Introduction

Amanda Griesbaum is the creator of Following Isidore, where she writes about the Catholic faith, rural life, and recipes from her grannie.  She believes the best way to live out God’s two greatest commandments: Love Him and Love your Neighbor, is to learn, practice, and share your faith and do it all with good food! She has not had a neighbor turn away brownies or good conversation.

She was born and raised Buckeye making a home in the Show-Me-State. She moved from one Midwest state, Ohio, to another, Missouri, where her husband is originally from. She has three kids, two cats,  two dogs, and whatever creatures she happens to acquire. Amanda and her husband are starting their own branch of the family farm while they both teach high school. He is a former Science teacher turned Ag teacher and she is a former Ag teacher turned Science teacher. 

I am fascinated by faith. I have interviewed people from the Hindu, Sikh, Parsi, and the Evangelical Christian faith. The Catholic faith has a special place in my heart. I love cathedrals, art, literature, and baroque architecture, and the Catholic faith is intertwined with my passion. I sit down for a chat with Amanda. In the first part of the interview, we talk about living out the Catholic faith and what that entails, the beliefs, rituals, and dogmas of the Catholic faith, life as a farmer, marriage, and motherhood.

Amanda, I consider it an honor and privilege to interview you. Help me understand what is living out the Catholic faith in rural life means?

As my Rural Sociology professor would say in class, ‘If we recognize that there is a Rural culture, we must recognize that there is an Urban culture.’ 

And God does the same thing – technically He did it first…

Even Though the Catholic Church is universal in its readings, practices, teachings, etc. (I can attend mass at my home parish, out of state, or abroad, and know what I will be hearing and how to participate.) God still meets us where we are and uses our communities and experiences to teach us and bring us closer to Him. 

That to me is beautiful.

In a rural community that may look like having a home canned-goods exchange, blessing of fields, prayers for rain, bonfire get-togethers, talking about hunting and fishing with your Deacons, and introducing your priest to the county fair. 

I love it when a new priest arrives at our parish and we get to introduce him to our community!

For someone who has never seen an eight-year-old show a 1200 lbs steer, it’s a bit of a shock. Yet, it demonstrates very clearly the expectation God gave us to have dominion over and care for His creatures. Not to mention the determination and power of a child. 

All of these things are where we can share and experience God in a way we understand. 

As someone who has lived in rural communities all of her life, we are very close to the cycles of the Earth: its seasons, the cycle of birth and death, sensitivity to the weather, and our reliance on it. We are accustomed to the joys and frustrations of caring for those creatures and land. 

We are people of faith and hope. 

I use the terms ‘faith’ and ‘hope’ quite a bit. I should probably explain what I mean by those two words. To me they are actionable. 

When life becomes difficult you maintain your faith and act in hope. You continue to go to church and pray even when it feels impossible. You still get up every morning and take care of your animals even when the market has bottomed out. You continue to plant year after year not knowing if the weather will be in your favor for the season. 

You keep doing because your faith and hope drive you to live your purpose and trust God. You don’t just sit and wait for things to improve because you might be part of God’s plan to make it better for yourself or others. You continue to say ‘Yes’ and take action. 

And while country life may seem slow-paced and full of sunsets – and in some ways, it is – it is a life of action, just not in the same way as our Urban counterparts. 

We may not be rushing to work just to get stuck in traffic. But I can bet you that farmer in the tractor is moving as fast as he can to get to the next field. 

Walk me through the Catholic faith. The beliefs, rituals, dogmas, and how it has helped you?

I wish I had a degree in theology right now! Since I don’t, here are the big ones as far as beliefs/rituals/etc. 

The Catholic faith is centered around the Eucharist, the true presence of Christ in the Host (bread) as the Son of God and the Messiah. It is a miracle and a mystery we get to experience every time we attend Mass. It is why we go to Mass – A good homily (sermon) and music are a bonus. We need Jesus with us and in us. 

We believe Jesus was conceived in the Virgin Mary by the Holy Spirit. We have a deep love and devotion to Mary because of her ‘Yes’ to God’s will. We see her as being the perfect example of how to love and serve God. 

Because we believe in Christ’s death and resurrection, we accept the need to die to ourselves to make room for God’s will. We can do this through the Sacraments of Baptism, Marriage, Reconciliation, Anointing of the Sick, Holy Orders, Communion/Eucharist, and Confirmation. Each of these is a way for us to serve others instead of ourselves. They allow us to be humble and receive the grace of having a deeper formation in the faith through living the life that God intended. 

If I could, I would just put the Apostles Creed in here.

The Catholic faith is both a practice of hope and of intellect which is why I love it so much. I rely on my hope of achieving heaven to cause me to learn and act in a way that will help me realize it. It is not a ‘resting’ faith. It is very much a faith of action in devotion, service, and education.

Before my husband and I joined the Church at Easter of 2017, I had always had a love of Jesus (raised Protestant). I also had a curiosity about what else there was to Christianity passed baptism as a ‘ticket’ to heaven. There had to be more. 

The Catholic faith encourages learning and curiosity. It feeds my soul and my desire for knowledge without feeling like I am betraying my beliefs. Rather, I find, the more I learn and question, the more my faith and security in Christ and the Church are strengthened.

One very particular practice that I have adopted since joining the Church is attending Adoration. A time that I sit with Jesus where the Host is exposed and is never left alone. We don’t need a repeat of the Garden of Gethsemane. 

So I sit and stay awake with Him during my 2 AM weekly date night. (How cool is that? I get to have regular date-nights with Jesus!) 

I can feel Him sit with me. And sometimes that is all I do, just sit with Him. More often than not I will journal. It may be about a struggle I am having, something I am grateful for, or just something I want an answer to. I will write and pray. Turns out the Holy Spirit likes to communicate with me through writing, gets me out of my head. 

After I write, then I read Scripture. And it has never failed to show me what I need for that night. 

And I don’t plan out what I will read, I just close my eyes and open my Bible. It is a beautiful experience and one that I am missing terribly since Covid-19 began and the chapel closed. 

Being near Jesus in the Eucharist is only part of being in Communion with Him. 

I am continuing to develop my relationship with Him so when I can sit with Jesus again, I will know Him better. 

I admire farmers. It is because of their hard work, dedication, and creativity that I get food on the table. Talk to me a little bit about life as a farmer?

Beautiful and tragic. 

The ‘FFA Creed’ says it best:

‘I believe that to live and work on a good farm, or to engaged in other agricultural pursuits, is pleasant as well as challenging; for I know the joys and discomforts of agricultural life, and hold an inborn fondness for those associations which, even in hours of discouragement, I cannot deny.’ 

My husband and I memorized these words when we were in high school as members of the National FFA Organization. Today, as current/former FFA Advisors, these words still hold a place in our hearts. We believe in the tradition of farming and the future possibilities the agricultural industry holds. 

We both have that inborn fondness for agriculture. Our parents and grandparents instilled them in us just as theirs did for them. 

We have experienced great joy in being part of the ag industry. It gave us our first jobs, created community, and provided us with our purpose: To secure America’s future in agriculture by educating the next generation. This also includes beginning our own branch of the family farm and making it sustainable for our children. 

It has also caused us the greatest pain. Jeremy’s father was killed in a tractor rollover accident in the pasture beside our house. We struggle with the loss of him every day. He was the one we were supposed to expand the farm with. He was the one who was supposed to teach us everything. He was supposed to be the one to watch our children grow and be there for them as they learn how to care for the land. We were supposed to watch him grow old. But none of that happened.

Yet, here we are. Still pursuing our goal of farming despite its tragedies and because of love. The love and passion Ralph had for his animals, his land, and the people he served were passed on to us. His charisma and devotion was something you couldn’t help but catch if you were around him. 

Even when the markets drop out, a stubborn cow finds a hole in the fence, when we wish the farm ran on a 9-5 schedule, or the worst happens – we will never regret choosing to farm. It gives us everything we need. Time with family and friends, lessons for our children, a home and community, and a respect for God. 

I want to know a little bit about your family. How did marriage change you as a person? How did becoming a mother change you? Any surprises along the way?

Fun story, my husband and I met in Washington DC at a leadership conference through FFA. I was from Ohio and just completed my Sophomore year of high school and he was from Missouri and had just graduated high school. 

You want to talk about God bringing us together. 

This was the first year my FFA chapter had gone to this annual event in decades and this was Jeremy’s last chance to go. 

This conference is offered something like 8 different weeks in the summer, with two hotels for each week, with like 500 kids in each, with those divided into like 30 groups.

And we were there during the same week, the same hotel, and the same group.  I will let you do the math on the odds. 

One two-step and a swing dance later we found ourselves long-distance dating for 3.5 years. Until he moved to Ohio after graduating from college. Then we waited another 2.5 years before we got married. 

I had the education to finish and I was worth the wait. He thought so too. 

We have been lucky to grow up together. We developed as individuals and as a couple in our time together. That makes it difficult to tell how marriage changed us. What I will say is we appreciated our time together. We didn’t live with each other before marriage so getting married wasn’t just a formality. It was a change. But a natural one that felt right and comfortable. 

What did cause a larger shift was becoming parents. 

I always wanted kids, like two, but never saw myself as the ‘mothering’ type. Jeremy, however, was very much into being a dad. It was cute and still is. I love catching him in moments with the kids when he is reading to them or playing with them.

It is very attractive and makes me love him more. It also has made me love being a mother. I am now a person who is ‘give me all the babies!’ just pile them on. Which came as a surprise to me! Even with the three that we have now, who are very close in age, and the chaos that comes with it, I still would love more. 

Each child, not only my own, is such a precious gift that is full of purpose and potential. I can’t imagine life without that possibility. Which is why, now more so that I am a mom when I see my students who struggle with home, or a child mistreated, or hear of abortion, my heart physically aches knowing what could or should be. 

It has also caused me to have a greater devotion to Mary. I love thinking about her as a mother. I love looking at my kids with her in my heart and wonder what it was like to watch Jesus learn how to walk. Did she laugh when he caught a cat by the tail, did she run across a room to fish something out of his mouth, did she hold him and pray for him to fall asleep when he was fussing and she was tired? How did she help form his faith? Did she have patience? Did she feel that same mix of love, wonder, and sadness that all mothers carry? 

She helps me every day by showing me how to love her Son and in turn my husband, children, and community. I’m far from perfect but she helps keep me on track – or at least prevents me from going completely off the rails. Motherhood is hard. 

Photo Credits: Amanda Griesbaum Jake Gard