To Eat or Not to Eat Pork

[loretta]

It is commonly believed that excessive consumption of pork is related to heart and other ailments.  After having spent a considerable time in the Babylonian church, I am reluctant to consume too much pork.  Leviticus 11:7-8, Isaiah 66:17, Deuteronomy 14:8 are some verses that forbid the eating of the pig for health reasons (?)

However, it seems that lately, nutritionists are touting the benefits of pork fat, aka lard, against the more common vegetable fats, which are produced using chemicals and heat, a deadly combination.
http://authoritynutrition.com/6-reasons-why-vegetable-oils-are-toxic/

Is it the healthier way to go?

The TOP 3 reasons why YOU should be eating LARD
http://www.weedemandreap.com/the-top-3-reasons-why-you-should-be-eating-lard/

[JD]

If you say Jesus backwards...it sounds like sausage. I'd go with it.

[Rhys 🕊]

That susej was on to something 

Rhys

[Rhys 🕊]

Me thinks Miss Piggy disagrees 



Rhys 

[Kat]

Hi Loretta,

From the site Judaism 101:
Kashrut: Jewish Dietary Laws
However, health is not the only reason for Jewish dietary laws (kashrut). Many of the laws of kashrut have no known connection with health. To the best of our modern scientific knowledge, there is no reason why camel or rabbit meat (both treif) is any less healthy than cow or goat meat. In addition, some of the health benefits to be derived from kashrut were not made obsolete by the refrigerator.
v

In recent years, several secular sources that have seriously looked into this matter have acknowledged that health does not explain these prohibitions. Some have suggested that the prohibitions are instead derived from environmental considerations. For example, a camel (which is not kosher) is more useful as a beast of burden than as a source of food. In the Middle Eastern climate, the pig consumes a quantity of food that is disproportional to its value as a food source. But again, these are not reasons that come from Jewish tradition.

The short answer to why Jews observe these laws is: because the Torah says so. The Torah does not specify any reason for these laws, and for a Torah-observant, traditional Jew, there is no need for any other reason.
v

In his book "To Be a Jew" (an excellent resource on traditional Judaism), Rabbi Hayim Halevy Donin suggests that the dietary laws are designed as a call to holiness. The ability to distinguish between right and wrong, good and evil, pure and defiled, the sacred and the profane, is very important in Judaism. Imposing rules on what you can and cannot eat ingrains that kind of self control, requiring us to learn to control even our most basic, primal instincts.
http://www.jewfaq.org/kashrut.htm
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Rom 14:14  I know and am convinced by the Lord Jesus that there is nothing unclean of itself; but to him who considers anything to be unclean, to him it is unclean.
v. 15  Yet if your brother is grieved because of your food, you are no longer walking in love. Do not destroy with your food the one for whom Christ died.

The OT held the Jews to a higher standard and kept them separate/different from those around them. The old covenant (OT laws) is replaced by the New covenant is much more about following the laws of the spiritual, than the physical laws. I will add, all things in moderation seems a wise thing to do.

mercy, peace and love
Kat

[Joel]

Clean and unclean was a separation ordained of God in the Old Testament.
The Jews were set apart from the Gentiles as the chosen people.
A person can become a fat slob eating nothing but kosher foods.
Are gentiles that worship God better off observing the dietary laws now days? I don't think so.

God chose to do away with the physical aspects of separation in the New Testament.
Peter learned this lesson as recorded in Acts 10, having been told to not call that which God had cleaned unclean, referring to the gentile Cornelius. Peter was resistant, but was lead of the Spirit to do the right thing.

Joel

[Dennis Vogel]

Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Colossians 2:16

[loretta]

Tks very much for that enlightening information, Kat. It was very helpful to know that the dietary laws had little or nothing to do with health, as I was earlier led to believe. Now I can enjoy my pork, in moderation.

Tks everyone for your posts, the humor included. I could do with some in my life right now!

[arion]

From a purely physical standpoint whenever we consume an animal we also consume what the animal has been eating.  Pigs and hogs aren't that picky about what they eat so garbage in garbage out.  That 'might' be why God choose the hoofed animals such as pork to be off limits to the OT jew.  Just my speculation.  To the believer all things are permissible but not all things are beneficial.  So do your research on what you eat and make the best choices for you and yours.  I try to eat 'healthy' although I will admit to an occasional indulgence as my over 50 waistline would suggest from time to time.   

[John from Kentucky]

No food rules for God's anointed.

In all things, Jesus sets us free from the rules of men and demons.

[Dave in Tenn]

When you think about it, I'll bet you'd have a hard time coming up with something that causes such a visceral, physical revulsion as the thought of eating something you've been taught is 'off-limits'.  I've done a little nibbling like this in my travels.  I'll confess that eating a grass-hopper or a spoonful of grubs required not only more 'effort' than scarfing down a twinkie, but a measure of humility as well.

I think Peter experienced this in his dream...this built-in sense of the 'wrongness' of it all.  It was something to be overcome, re-evaluated, and he had to humble himself to obey the Lord.  Of course, this dream taught him to receive the Gentiles as brothers in Faith.  Maybe there is a lesson there for our present and future, if we are to righteously judge the whole world.  After all, he who is first in the Kingdom is the servant of all. 

[microlink]

Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Colossians 2:16

Yes, very true.
I believe that even common sense prevails on some things like eating crab, lobsters, snakes, octopus, etc.
It is repulsive and not created by God for human consumption, IMO.
The deeper spiritual meaning has to do with partaking of spiritual unclean that Babylon serves us on her platter.

[Dennis Vogel]

In most Asian countries they eat just about anything. Spiders, monkeys, rats, whatever.

[Dave in Tenn]

I'll testify that I am a human and have eaten all of the above...and craw-dads too. 

It's always somebody else's diet that makes us squirm--assuming we're 'squirmable'.    The Kingdom of Heaven is not in food or drink.  It's in righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.  I've yet to meet a too-squirmable eater full of peace and joy at the table.

Joh_6:55  For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. 
 

[thewatchman]

I can imagine a hebrew travelling through Philistia and smelling the most marvellous smell...."what is that?" he asks....It is roast pig, or bacon.....and he can't have any...or did he secretly eat it away from other jews? And the wrath of God did not fall upon him....Hmmmmm....Bacon...the tasty temptress....

[Rene]

I can only imagine how horrified the Jews must have been when they heard Jesus speak of "eating the flesh of the Son of Man and drinking His blood."  We know it has a spiritual meaning, but most of those hearing these words of Jesus had no clue that He was not talking literally.

John 6:53-56 - "Jesus, therefore, said unto them—Verily, verily, I say unto you—Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of Man, and drink his blood, ye have not life within yourselves .He that feedeth upon my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath life age-abiding, and, I, will raise him up at the last day; For, my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink; He that feedeth upon my flesh, and drinketh my blood, in me abideth, and I in him.

John 6:60-61 - "Many of his disciples, therefore, when they heard said—Hard is this discourse,—Who can, thereunto, hearken? But Jesus, knowing within himself that his disciples were murmuring concerning this, said unto them—Doth this cause you, to stumble?

I believe that even common sense prevails on some things like eating crab, lobsters, snakes, octopus, etc.
It is repulsive and not created by God for human consumption, IMO.

BTW microlink, crab meat is one of my favorites.  MmMm good! 

[indianabob]

Been following the Jewish dietary rules for 45 years and at age 79 I look 40. 
Of course that's first thing in the morning...


You decide what is best for ya'll.

Indiana Bob

[microlink]

Amen brother. Dietary laws are not THE LAW (of Moses) but are given to us to take care of our selves. Thanks.

[Dave in Tenn]

Lev 11:1  And the LORD spake unto Moses and to Aaron, saying unto them,
Lev 11:2  Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, These are the beasts which ye shall eat among all the beasts that are on the earth.

[indianabob]

Foods that we may/should enjoy.
Think back before Google when we didn't know which foods were safe to eat and the trial and error method was used. Lots of upset stomachs and long incubation diseases.

God planned from before the beasts were even created to put a sign on his approved list of animals. One example is the Ruminant type. Animals that both chew the cud and have a split hoof.
Now here is the deal for folks who lived off of the land before there was established scientific guidelines about what is safe to eat.
Anywhere a person might travel in the whole earth by foot or horseback or ship, one could identify edible animal meat by simply observing a healthy, living animal to see if it lived on mostly grass, grain, leaves etc. and chewed the CUD and had a split hoof.
For the seaman it was fish with fins and scales, but that is another story.

See detailed explanation at the below mentioned site: the process eliminates all hazardous disease organisms. If it doesn't kill the cow it ain't gonna kill us.
Indiana Bob

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ruminant