Strange Diets

            Among the many confusing things in Leviticus, we can include the dietary laws (ch. 11).  the laws themselves are straightforward enough:  you may eat this; you may not eat that.  The befuddling question is, “Why?”

            There are several possibilities.  One theory says that the Lord has hygiene in mind, that is, that many of the animals are bottom-feeders, carrion-eaters, or just plain dirty (think pigs).  Maybe.  Another theory suggests that there’s a theological motive, that the forbidden critters are somehow associated with pagan religions.  Again, maybe.  I don’t see it, but I’m not an expert on ancient paganism.  Still another theory suggests that the problem is animals that have characteristics of two ‘classes.’  So a fish with fins and scales is allowed: it lives in the water and has the characteristics appropriate to that.  A shellfish is not allowed:  it lives in the water but has characteristics appropriate to land creatures.  Maybe.  I have found it helpful to think about the distinction between a God who gives life and anything that smacks of death.  So, animals with the stink of death about them—bottom-feeders, carrion-eaters, sty-dwellers—are excluded.

            The point is that it is hard to find a single, unifying reason that some animals can be eaten and others cannot be eaten.  Perhaps all four of those theories has a part to play.  The bigger issue, the one that is very clear, is this:  Israel’s dietary restrictions are one more way to demonstrate their distinctiveness in the world.  It doesn’t matter how delicious ham or bacon or shrimp might be, Israel says, “No,” to it.  They refuse first because their God said they should and—unlike the rest of fallen humanity—they are meant to be a people who listen to the Lord and obey Him.  Second, they refuse on the basis of that very deliciousness:  they are humans, not animals, and they are slaves to their appetites and desires.