Break-dancing priest's new project aims to unite families over food

Published: 2007-08-15

ARLINGTON, Va. (CNS) -- What began as a joke in the kitchen will become a published cookbook this fall and possibly a TV cooking series next fall, said Father Leo Patalinghug, the break-dancing, martial-arts guru who also happens to be a skilled cook. The media project, "Grace Before Meals," aims to bring families together around the table, said Father Patalinghug, a priest of the Archdiocese of Baltimore who recently was appointed to serve as director of pastoral field education at Mount St. Mary's Seminary in Emmitsburg, Md. Although there is an undeniable novelty about watching a priest host a cooking show, Father Patalinghug said what is most important is the effort to get families to come closer together. The cookbook and the show are simply the vehicle to make that happen and to "strengthen families," because families are the "domestic church," he said. The show, in which the priest will visit families and cook with them, will air on PBS next year if the production company is able to find enough sponsors, said Father Patalinghug, who said family meals are essential to the integrity of the family.

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