Psalms 104:14 HE causes the grass to grow for the cattle, and herb for the service of man….
[King James translation]
Herbs
There are a number of herbs mentioned in the Bible. Hyssop, garlic, frankincense, myrrh, cinnamon and mint are just a few. During Biblical times, many herbs had medicinal as well as culinary usages. For example, in the wilderness, the people complained to Moses about the foods that they missed, including the leeks, onion and garlic. See, Numbers 11:5.
Some herbs also had symbolic or religious significance. For example, hyssop was considered the holy or purification herb. Hyssop branches were used in the temple worship and used to clean sacred places. In Leviticus, at the time of the Exodus, the Jewish people were instructed to “Take a bunch of hyssop, dip it into the blood in the basin and put some of the blood on the top and on both sides of the doorfame.” See, Exodus 12:22. In Psalms 51:7, David asks GOD to “Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.”
In John 19:29, it was noted that a sponge filled with vinegar was put on a hyssop branch and held to JESUS’ lips. Psalms 104:14 states that herbs are to serve humankind.
Herbal Tea
The health benefits of herbal tea have been known for a very long time.
Herbal teas, sometimes called a “Tisane” are an infusion or combination of herb, water, dried fruit, flowers, leaves, grass or roots. Herbal teas may be made with or without the tea leaves of a tea plant Camellia sinensis.
When “purists” or “traditionalists” speak of tea that comes solely from tea leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant, they usually refer to five types of tea: White, Black, Oolong, Green and Pu’er tea.
- Black Tea is fully oxidized (fermented), withered and dried. Some of the popular Black teas include English Breakfast and Darjeeling. [Oxidation is an enzymatic process that causes the tea to turn brown after harvest. This chemical reaction is the same kind of process that occurs when an apple or avocado turns brown after being cut and is exposed to oxygen.]
- Green tea skips oxidization and is withered and simply dried. [Fixing is a tea process that prevents oxidization. There are a number of “fixing methods” to help prevent oxidation, including pan frying (e.g. in a pan or wok with gas or wood fire); steaming (e.g. where steam is forced between the leaves; Tumbling (e.g. where a metal tumbler rolls and heats the leaves) and Baking (where a type of oven is used to bake the leaves) are some of the common “fixing methods.” Teas can also be fixed by microwaving, sun drying the leaves, boiling, modifying room temperatures in a room where the tea leaves are stored.]
- Oolong Tea is partially fermented (e.g. between 30-70%) and withered. These teas are popular in Japan, Taiwan and China. Oolong is a cross between black tea and green tea in taste and color.
- White Tea, usually from China, is not oxidized or rolled, but usually withered and dried by steam, air drying, mechanical drying or solar drying. The flavor tends to be “lighter” than most traditional green teas or black teas.
- Pu’er or Pu-erh is a fermented tea produced in China. Pu’er tea is aged tea. Green tea is not fermented, Oolong tea is partially fermented, Black tea is fully fermented and Pu’er tea is post-fermented. Pu’er is fermented and then put in storage and aged, usually under high humidity. It tends to be a thick tea, sometimes sold in thick cakes.
See, “About Tea,” http://www.about-tea.com/2005/11/the_four_types_of_tea_1.html; “Pu-erh Tea,” https://www.webmd.com/vitamins/ai/ingredientmono-1169/pu-erh-tea.
According to WebMd:
Studies have found that some teas may help with cancer, heart disease, and diabetes; encourage weight loss; lower cholesterol, and bring about mental alertness. Tea also appears to have antimicrobial qualities.
Katherine Tallmadge, MA, RD, LD, a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association noted: “There doesn’t seem to be a downside to tea.”
See, “Types of Teas and Their Health Benefits,” https://www.webmd.com/diet/features/tea-types-and-their-health-benefits#1.
Questions still remain as to how long should you steep tea or how much tea should you drink to achieve the most benefit, but according to WebMd, many nutritionists are of the opinion that any tea is a good tea.
Brewed tea is generally preferred over bottled tea. If you are taking medication, it is advisable to consult your physician before starting any new supplement or herbal teas as remedies since some herbal remedies may not be suitable. Parents should always consult a health care consultant before attempting to administer herbal remedies or teas to babies or infants. See, “Herbal Remedies Are Risky for Babies, Researchers Say,” by Laurie Udesky, May 5, 2011. Some tea extracts (e.g. concentrated forms of teas in pills or capsules) can be harmful to health and may even cause liver damage. So again, consult your physician before consuming these types of products. Sometimes, “more” tea properties in a concentrated form is not always better.
MORE
Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, and Christmas and the “holiday season” are wonderful times to fellowship with friends and family and just say “THANK YOU” to GOD. Yet, this time of year is also a time when it is so easy to become distracted and sidetracked from our main purpose for living. There is so much glitter, so much of everything, everywhere. There is so much attention given to eating, drinking and consuming, that it is easy to lose focus. So on each Wednesday of this season, let us fervently and prayerfully remind ourselves and each other that GOD has given us food and good herbs to serve humankind so that we, in turn, may serve HIM. Let us pray for clarity and “better vision” so that we can focus on what is really important---namely, serving a GREAT and GIVING GOD.
Instead of “consuming more” ---more shopping, more buying, more sales, more concern about what to give, and more debt, let’s instead strive to become more and more like HIM. In Ephesian 5: 1-2, Paul encourages each of us to “Be imitators of GOD, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as CHRIST loved us….” Tea up for the season! Be more and more like HIM by letting your spirit steep in GOD’s WORD!
Be Thankful; Be More and BE BLESSED!
