E-FEATURESMaking Sense of Kosher Laws Talkback Add Your Comment
 The origins of Jewish dietary or kosher laws (kashrut) have long been the subject of scholarly research and debate. Regardless of their origins, however, these age-old laws continue to have a significant impact on the way many observant Jews go about their daily lives. One of the more well-known restrictions is the injunction against mixing meat with dairy products. Not only do most Jews who observe kashrut avoid eating any meat and milk products together, many also wait a certain amount of time—30 minutes to a few hours—between eating meat and dairy. Everything the foods touch must be kept completely separate. A fully kosher household, for example, might have two or more different sets of flatware, tableware and cooking ware for making and serving meat dishes separate from dairy-based dishes. Some families even use two different dishwashers in order to maintain the separation. Outside the house, some Jews keep kosher by eating only at kosher restaurants while others have no problem eating non-kosher foods, so long as they maintain a kosher home. But what are some of the other laws of kashrut, and how are they to be explained? Many of the dietary restrictions outlined in Deuteronomy and Leviticus prohibit the consumption of certain “unclean” animals that either don’t chew their cud or don’t have cloven hooves, such as pigs, camels and rabbits. Likewise, while the Hebrew Bible permits the eating of fish with fins and scales, shellfish like lobsters and crabs are an abomination. Why were such seemingly innocuous physiological traits so objectionable to the early Israelites? One possible reason may be that the Israelites wanted some way to distinguish themselves from their non-Hebrew neighbors. Archaeological excavations of Iron Age I sites in Israel have shown that while pigs were a popular part of the Philistine diet, they were entirely absent from the herd-based economy of the Israelites. According to Ronald Hendel, such culinary distinctions soon became codified markers of cultural identity, whereby “the Philistine treat became an Israelite taboo.”* Perhaps similar efforts to affirm Israel’s uniqueness lay at the heart of other animal prohibitions. But according to kashrut, even permissible animals have to be prepared in a certain way in order to remain kosher. As explained in Deuteronomy 12:23-24, for example, the blood of a slaughtered animal cannot be ingested, for “the blood is the life, and you shall not eat the life with the flesh.” The Israelites, like many ancient peoples, believed that an animal’s blood carried the soul of the animal and therefore should not be consumed.** Thus, before a piece of meat could be cooked, it had to be fully drained of its blood. Though not discussed in the Bible, traditional kosher methods for doing this include broiling the meat or a combination of soaking and salting. Kosher law also forbids the consumption of wine that has been made, bottled or handled by non-Jews. Although this prohibition does not appear in the Hebrew Bible, it seems to have been followed as early as the second century A.D. In antiquity, wine was often used in libation rituals to various deities; for Jews this meant that any “pagan” wine could potentially have been made or used as a sacrifice to a foreign god. Thus, in order to avoid coming into contact with contaminated wine, Jews began making and bottling their own wine in accordance with Jewish law.  In the December/November 2008 issue of BAR, Gloria London examines one of the proposed theories for the development of kosher law. Notes*Ronald S. Hendel, “Of Sacred Leopards and Abominable Pigs,” Bible Review, October 2000. **Bryan Bibb, “What’s a Pleasing Sacrifice?” Bible Review, October 2004.
Kosher lawsIn addition to Steve Bascom's elucidation of the point about boiling kids in their mothers' milk, I'd like to point out why Jews don't eat pigs. These animals were not just tasty treats to the Philistines. The Philistines were essentially Greeks, after all, and to those ancient peoples, the pig was sacred to the goddess Demeter (or Mother Deo and her daughter Persephone). The slaughter of pigs and eating their flesh was part and parcel of sacred rites at seasonal festivals in her honor. The half-lady, lady chair found at Ashdod by the Dothans is probably this very goddess, although in Greek her name would be, not Ashdoda, but Azota, "she who must be worshipped." So, by NOT eating her favorite beastie, the Jews were, in effect, responding, "Oh no, she must NOT be worshipped!" Whether or not we still need to do that is another question entirely. It's the same question as to whether or not one eats matzoh to commemorate Passover. It's tradition! Those lobsters and such were sacred to sea gods in neighboring lands, I imagine, though I am not as familiar with those rites. Each dietary law does go back to something similar. • • • • • • • Bibical Archaeology ReviewI agree with the article: it is well edited, and thankful for the information from your fine magazine. Sincerely, Eleanora Lyons-Randolph Alexander. • • • • • • • kashrut and rabbinicsMichael Greenberg wrote: >>There are very debateable "laws" in Kashruth --we can discuss what is Rabbinical "interpretation" which may be erroneous,and Rabbinical "addition/invention" to what is NOT PROHIBITED in the Torah Scripture...ExampleS: The milk+meat together issue --the Torah merely says you shall not seethe a kid in the milk of its mother" -it does not say you can't eeat milk and meat together...<< The Samaritan communities in Israel (and elsewhere) likewise refrain from eating meat and milk together based on the enigmatic Torah verses about boiling a kid in its mother's milk. This suggests that the basic practice predates and is independent from the rabbinic restrictions. • • • • • • • Making Sense of Kosher LawsThis was an interesting article--the modern-day Glatt Kosher is vastly different from the ancient Biblical kashrut. I keep a Biblical kashrut diet, but not to the extreme standards as outlined in mondern-day rabbinical Glatt Kosher. What I've examined in Scripture, the command to keep kashrut in all aspects of life is a spiritual command/directive from G-d--not something done out of a desire to distinguish oneself from non-Hebrew neighbors. Also, in careful examination of Scripture, I have never found a command to prohibit common-usage dishes and utensils from touching one another as enforced in rabbinical Glatt Kosher--it was the items used in sacred temple use that were not to be being used for common purposes. I have also never found a command/directive to not mix milk with beef (the meat of fully-grown adult animals, not the calves/kids as outlined in Exodus 23:19; 34:26, Deuteronomy 14:21). While it could be argued otherwise, Abraham did serve his guests both dairy and meat before their departure to Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 18:8). • • • • • • • Kosher FoodsI am not Jewish, but I can make sense of Kosher laws by replacing unclean with unhealthy. I, too, consider shellfish an abomination, because I am so allergic to it, it would kill me. • • • • • • • Kosher laws have their own moral logicThere is a coherency that unites all the laws of kashrut, which piece-meal (!) explanations like London's do not capture or explain. There is a reason why no carnivorous animals are kosher, for example, and why kosher land animals are even anatomically committed to vegetarianism. That is why land animals must have hooves and second stomachs (pigs don't so of course they are not kosher - it is as simple as that). Similarly, the kosher birds are all vegetarian species, with the dove their emblematic symbol (of peace). Those animals that rend and tear, and spill blood, are treif (non-kosher). Even kosher meat must have the blood removed from it, to prevent our blood-lust and respect the animal's life. Similarly, the slaughtered animal must be killed in a manner that gives no pain. Milk, which an animal wishes to give freely, and which enhances life and nourishes young, is utterly superior to meat even when it is properly kashered. One may have milk before meat (washing the mouth between these) because milk is pure; one may not have meat after milk, because meat makes the milk impure. These are consistent with the Torah presentation of matters relating to bloodlust and food, the millenial lion and the lamb, respect for life, etc., etc. The real issues are morality and holiness. London is on the wrong track altogether, as are most of the posters here. • • • • • • • Uh, DuhTo the reform Rabbi, the reason you evaluate your OWN laws is because you lack what the simple answer is to these laws; tradition based on biblical verses. The bible spells out what is forbidden and our oral tradition from Moses supplements the rest. These traditions have been passed down for thousands of years and have endured. These laws have not changed, they have just been enforced to apply today's modern world. People who have no expertise or authority to decide these laws but who feel they are entitled to is why many Jews today are forgetting and losing their faith. • • • • • • • It's about our relationship with GodAs a Reform Rabbi, I have evaluated my own dietary observance and while I do not propose that I keep kosher, I do believe that Jewish dietary law is about our relationship with God and that God must be part of the process of our food getting to our tables. Check out my Yom Kippur sermon from two years ago on the topic: http://www.templeisrael.com/saks_yk_2006.html • • • • • • • Kosher other thingsIt'd be nice to see an article written about other things in Judaism that are Kosher. Kosher doesn't just apply to food. things like Torah Scrolls, Menorahs, Mikvahs, the Sukkah, and the Shofar and just some examples of other things that must be Kosher in Judaism. lets hear about that and less about food... • • • • • • • Kosher foodDoes this mean Kosher Jews can't eat mashed potatos and gravy? mashed potatos are my favorite food. The mashed potatos are usually made with milk and butter. Does this mean Jews cannot have it? Also the prohibition against pork: could they have decided to do without pork because of triconosis? • • • • • • • Mixing Milk and MeatOne of the interesting commentaries I heard about the prohibition to mix meat with milk, is that the meat represents death, while milk represents bringing life. • • • • • • • Kosher lawsThere are very debateable "laws" in Kashruth --we can discuss what is Rabbinical "interpretation" which may be erroneous,and Rabbinical "addition/invention" to what is NOT PROHIBITED in the Torah Scripture...ExampleS: The milk+meat together issue --the Torah merely says you shall not seethe a kid in the milk of its mother" -it does not say you can't eeat milk and meat together...Karaite Jews(Torah literalists who do not believe in Rabbinical "authority" do eat milk and meat together except the litearl prohibition of boiling a kid goat in its mother's milk...Clearly the mainstream rabbis went overboard in their "interpretation" and mistook an ethical prohibition of killing both the offspring to drink with its mother's milk--and even that limited to the goat family in literal Torah--as carte blance to expand the taboo to ALL milk and meat together...Even if you expanded the ethical killed offspring-mother's milk is not right argument to all Kosher species,today with separate Dairy and Meat herds there is no chance except oma small farm where an animal raised for meat would ever be eaten with milk from its mother..THUS this "interpretive expoansion" by the rabbis is very refutable as GOd's intended "law" ...Do you think God meant for jews to forego the delights of a good cheesburger? The rabbis ought to withdraw their expanded version of what the Torah says in this case. As to the Kasruth on wine produced or handled by non-observant jews--again it s a Rabbinical distortion as no such prohibition exists in Torah ecep for an INITIAL 3 year ban on culling the grape crop when Joshua began his Conquest of Caanan..Again the Rabbis "invented" a law that God did not put into the Torah itself. Unfortunately it is very clear in the Torah about fish needing both finsand scales to be permissable to eat and of animals to have both split hooves and chew their cuds..So if you eat pigs you violate Torah no ifs ands or buts...Also not stated in Torah is any mandating of keping separate eating utensils,pots,cups and plates for milk and meat--again it seems the rabbis went far overboard and crazy in thinking God could care about such silliness and wasted duplication and expense... • • • • • • • Making sense of kosher lawsI agree with the previous poster's (Steve Bascom) comment on the article "Making Sense of Kosher Laws". The distinguished Bible scholar Umberto Cassuto showed in his book "The Goddess Anath", published in 1951, (referencing Ginzberg's paper from 1935), that Ugaritic writings mention the Cananite custom of "seething a kid in milk", which is the corner stone of the Biblical injunctions against mixing milk and meat. In fact, this point was already raised by Maimonides (in this Guide of the Perplexed) in the 12th century. • • • • • • • Making Sense of Kosher LawsThe reason for Kosher laws is not that they are healthy, is because G-d told us to keep them. The written, and oral tradition were given at the same time at Sinai. They were only written down at a time when due to persecution it was possible to forget them. • • • • • • • kashrut articleWith some research on the cultural background of the day, you will find that the mixing of dairy and meat came from a differentiation from pagan rituals of the day. The pagan ritual included killing a pregnant mother goat and the kid inside her. The kid would then be boiled in the mother's milk. With a strictly "written Torah" approach as a definition of kashrut, there is no prohibition from mixing dairy and meat. This came later with oral tradition and is not scripture based. As with other oral traditions these are "fences" around the original commandments and not based on Leviticus 11. • • • • • • • |
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