Re: Why do Christians eat pork?
Peace Searching:
As you had mentioned earlier, Christians believe that the laws of the Old Testament are no longer applicable due to the crucifixion of Jesus and the new laws set forth. The quote above appears to be the a view of the early Christian church. This is no longer a generally accepted belief. I do not know of any words from Jesus Christ which would condemn eating pork. Do you?
Ok, this is long, but it gives you a detailed response:
Jesus and the "Law of Moses"
At Mt. Sinai, God gave Moses not only the Ten Commandments but also many divine instructions about personal behavior, methods of worship and lifestyle choices. These divine instructions came to be known as the "law of Moses" even though they were actually "the law of God given to Moses." When Jesus Christ lived his physical life, many often forget he was reared as a devout Jew. After Jesus' birth, Joseph and Mary observed the seven-day purification period for women, and also had Jesus circumcised on the eighth day (Luke 2:21-23), according to the instructions of the law of Moses n Leviticus 12:1-3. These aspects of the Law of Moses are found literally adjacent to the chapter on dietary laws (Leviticus 11). Since Joseph and Mary scrupulously observed Leviticus 12 in rearing Jesus, it follows that they scrupulously observed Leviticus 11 in their choice of meats which were fed to Jesus and the rest of their children. The observant nature of Jesus' family is further confirmed in Luke 2:39:
"And when they [Joseph and Mary] had performed all things according to the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee."
Notice that Luke does not call these Old Testament requirements the "law of Moses," but refers to them as the "law of the Lord."-a subtle, but important indicator of the early Christian church's views about Old Testament laws. Luke 2:41 adds that Joseph and Mary kept the Feast of Passover "every year" at Jerusalem. It is not clear whether they brought their children with them every year, but verse 42 states that they brought Jesus with them to Jerusalem for the Passover Feast when Jesus was twelve years old.
During his adult years, the scriptures portray Jesus as being loyal to the "observant" traditions of his parents. We know that Jesus was careful to observe the Passover and Days of Unleavened Bread (Matthew 26:17-19), and that he participated in the "Last Great Day" of the Feast of Tabernacles (John 7:37). In Matthew 5:17-18, Jesus openly declared his allegiance to the Old Testament Laws of God (i.e. "law of Moses"). He emphatically stated:
"think not that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill... Till heaven and earth pass, one jot [a dot of the I] or one tittle [a cross of the T] shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled."
Whew! Jesus' affirmation that his coming will abolish "nothing" from the Old Testament laws of God ought to give all modern Christians pause about assuming Jesus made any major changes in the observance of the dietary laws. Two truisms of biblical study are as follows: (A) The words of God (in the Old Testament) and Jesus Christ (in the New Testament) carry more scriptural authority than the words of their human followers, and (B) one must interpret vague scriptures in light of the meaning of clear scriptures, not vice versa. Applying both these truisms, any vague passages in New Testament books must be interpreted in a manner consistent with the clear declaration of Jesus Christ in Matthew 5:17. Given the vehemence of Jesus' support for God's Old Testament laws in Matthew 5:17-18, we must insist on finding very explicit evidence in the New Testament that something was "done away" before we abandon the practice. This is particularly true in the case of Paul's writings as Peter warned that Paul's writings were easy to misunderstand (II Peter 3:16). It is noteworthy that while God canonized many of Paul's writings, Peter's warning about their difficult doctrinal application was also canonized. If Paul's words were easily misunderstood in his own time and in his own culture, how much easier might it be for us to misunderstand Paul's writings when we not only read Paul's words in a different language but are also two millennia removed from his historical context?
Hebrews 13:8 tells us that Jesus Christ is:
"...the same yesterday, today and forever. Be not carried about with divers and strange doctrines."
Here the writer of Hebrews warns against following false doctrines by reminding the reader that Jesus Christ's doctrines not only "did not change" but also "will never change." Does this scripture sound like Jesus Christ was one to radically alter the Old Testament laws of God? Quite the contrary, the scriptural evidence is that Jesus supported and practiced them faithfully during his entire life. (Taken from
www.biblestudy.org)
So, it is clear that Jesus, pbuh, did not eat pork and did not change the law that made it permissable to eat pork.
Raw beef, poultry and seafood also have parasites and bacteria.
They CAN contain parasites, yes. Any foods, including fruits and vegetables CAN contain them. But, that's not the point of this thread. The Bible doesn't say you cannot consume beef, fish, chicken, fruits or vegetables. Pigs are unclean animals which is why they are not permitted. They eat their own feces and any other garbage they can find regardless of what it is. This then becomes part of its meat which you in turn ingest.
If you want to eat it, it's up to you. The bible says you can't and quite frankly, for me personally, the thought of ever eating pork again disgusts me. (Yes, I did eat it and liked it at one time.) However, even before reverting I rarely ate it and never bought it because of the thought of what was in it. Now, after learning more, I just can't stomach it.
So, chow down if you like...but it doesn't change the fact it's not permitted.
Peace,
Hana
