Eating behavior of catholic priests – their perceptions

Abstract

Objective: To understand the eating behavior of Catholic priests, analyzing their perceptions of the influence of the priesthood on their diet.
Materials and Methods: This study used a qualitative approach, studying six participants from different age groups belonging to the Diocese of Novo Hamburgo-RS, Brazil. The interviewees responded individually to open questions and the audio of the interviews was recorded and submitted to content analysis (using categorical analysis) through category fragmentation and affinity regroupings. The study was approved by the Feevale University research ethics committee.
Results: It was possible to identify three distinct categories from the participants’ responses: diet before entering the priesthood; diet in the seminary; and the priesthood as an influence on diet. The first category highlighted the importance of the family in determining an individual’s eating behavior as well as the consequences of food deprivation during childhood, which can have repercussions in adult life. The second category addressed the changes made to live the vocation and adapt to the seminary’s customs. The third category demonstrated the influence of the priests’ busy and demanding routine, which sometimes causes healthy eating behaviors to be ignored, even though these are considered important by the interviewees.
Conclusions: It can be observed that the priests have eating behavior that is similar to that of the general population. However, they exhibit certain differences due to their vocation, such as having simple and modest eating habits, not refusing food that is offered to them and a displaying a concern for valuing the food they eat.