Protestantism

» paper_turtle - Yeast

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Have you ever heard that a little yeast can soon take over the entire lump? I wonder what that means?
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In Jesus' time the kind of bread we eat today was usually made in the way we make sourdough bread today. A breadmaker had a "starter" which was a yeast culture created through fermentation of flour with water and perhaps a bit of honey. When he/she wanted to make a fresh loaf of bread he took a bit of this starter and mixed it with flour, water, and other ingredients.
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Its important to add just the right amount of yeast to the mixture. If you add too much, the yeast will overferment and produce a loaf full of huge air holes. Sometimes it will collapse in on itself because the gluten in the flour can't stretch far enough to support the weight of the other ingredients. The bread from such a loaf is definitely not pleasant to eat.
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Hence, the right amount of leaven/yeast within a person/group will form a cohesive whole which will be pleasant and will support life. Too much yeast produces unstable conditions which do not support life.
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I think its interesting that in making a loaf of bread which looks and tastes good, sugar and salt are very important. Sugar feeds the yeast and helps it rise. Salt regulates the yeast so it doesn't rise too much. Sweetness and saltiness in human conduct have similar effects in people. ;-)
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peace and love,
Paper Turtle

-- posted by paper_turtle