Hallelujah, But I'm Not A Vegetarian

The Hallelujah Diet may not be making God very happy

As a Christian who in very interested in the subject of diet, nutrition and weight loss, I was excited to hear about a book written by a pastor named George H. Malkmus that was allegedly based on Scripture verses from the Bible called The Hallelujah Diet.

My first exposure to this holy diet plan was when the former minister of music at my church lost a significant amount of weight on it several years back. He was already a big man at 6'7" tall, but The Hallelujah Diet helped him trim down by an incredible 75 pounds. The results of this way of eating for him were just undeniable and he was one of the strongest proponents for this way of eating you'll ever meet. But there's more to share about what happened next for him in just a moment.

Malkmus is well-known within Christian circles for his frequent appearances on radio and television and in publishing a health newsletter that is read by hundreds of thousands of people each month. In addition, he travels all around the country talking about health and nutrition in seminars held mostly in churches and local venues.

His message: God ordained the way we should eat and it includes consuming living and organic foods, implementing better lifestyle choices, and getting our lives in accordance with what the Lord wants for us.

This all sounds good on the surface and certainly Malkmus is a strong believer in the Lord and in the health principles he is teaching people about their diet. But that "optimal health you were meant to have" according to Malkmus is predicated on eating lots and lots of living and organic foods which in and of itself is not a bad thing. However, when it is to the exclusion of foods such as meat (described as "dead animal products" which Malkmus believes "is more harmful to our health" than any other food) and other "deadly" foods, Malkmus reveals that his motive is less spiritual than it is in promoting veganism and the vegetarian lifestyle.

With that said, though, I give credence to Malkmus for acknowledging the harmful effects of excessive preservatives in foods, white sugar (which he says "contributes to an obese society, contributing to epidemic rates of heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, and a long list of emotional problems"), prescription medications, white flour (which makes "the most wonderful paste"), and caffeine. That is why Malmus highly recommends people eat more raw foods to have their bodies work the way God intended.

Sprinkled throughout the book are various success stories from people who have been on The Hallelujah Diet in an effort to legitimize that it really is working for real people. I'm sure it is, but the jury is out on the so-called 85:15 rule, where 85 percent of food consumed should be raw and a mere 15 percent is cooked foods.

Wanna see what you get to eat in a typical day on The Hallelujah Diet? Try this on for size.

BREAKFAST: One serving of BarleyMax powder to cleanse the system.
MID-MORNING SNACK: 8-oz glass of vegetable juice with flax seed.
LUNCH: More BarleyMax with raw veggies and fruit.
MID-AFTERNOON SNACK: 8-oz glass of vegetable juice with trail mix.
DINNER: Another BarleyMax serving with non-head lettuce and pasta.
DESSERT: Juicy fresh fruit or organic apple juice.
EVENING SNACK: Homemade organic recipes from the book.

Doesn't this just sound so yummy to your tummy? NOT!

While I can certainly appreciate a pastor trying to help people eat better than they ever have before to preserve the temple of the Holy Spirit which is our bodies, I cannot for the life of me understand how Malkmus believes his nutritional approach is the one and only way that God would have people to lose weight and get healthy. With all due respect to my fellow brother in Christ, he is just plain wrong in his conclusions about weight loss and diet for ALL people. There is no one God-endorsed diet plan out there and anyone who tells you otherwise is lying.

When I weighed 410 pounds just two years ago, there is no way I could have ever been able to do The Hallelujah Diet because it was more of what I had heard my entire life about getting my weight under control -- eat better, stop eating junk food, move your body, YADDA YADDA YADDA! Those statements ring so hollow and I heard them again and again as I read The Hallelujah Diet book.

But now that I found a healthy way to eat and control my weight through the incredibly healthy low-carb lifestyle, my life has been radically changed for the better -- over 180 pounds gone forever! Is God mad at me for losing weight and keeping it off this way, Rev. Malkmus? I sure don't think so. He is probably happy to see me finally find a way to control my cravings, enjoy the foods that He created for me to eat, and now serving as someone who can inspire and encourage others who need to lose weight, too.

Remember that minister of music I told you about who had lost weight being an enthusiastic follower of The Hallelujah Diet. Well, apparently he got tired of having to avoid social events at church where there was food that was totally off-limits to him for his diet. Not only has he gained back all of that weight he lost, but he now weighs more than he did before he went on the diet. It's sad to see that happen to this great man of God, but unfortunately it was predictable in my opinion.

Some people can only keep up that way of eating for a short period of time before they go completely nuts! While Malkmus believes in his diet, I don't think there's anything shameful about a Christian choosing to follow another diet plan instead. Perhaps people who have tried and failed on The Hallelujah Diet should try the low-carb lifestyle instead. I know that will be a hard transition, especially since Malkmus often references such radical vegetarian activists such as Dr. Joel Fuhrman, T. Colin Campbell from The China Study, and other various anti-dairy, anti-meat web sites in the appendix to his book. But you can do it and God will help you just as He helped me.

Permanent weight loss is definitely within your grasp and I pray that God will reveal to you what will work best for your body. After you lose the weight for good you can shout HALLELUJAH for the blessings that God has bestowed upon you for lasting weight loss and improved health like you've never seen before. It CAN happen if you believe that God can still perform miracles -- he did it for me thanks to livin' la vida low-carb and I'll never be the same again! And he'll MAKE IT HAPPEN for you as well.