Mosaic Dietary Laws
Mosaic Dietary Laws
By Bryan Leinweber
October 31, 2003
Introduction The Mosaic dietary laws, the laws imposed by the directives of Moses on the Israelites, extended from earlier restrictions that had been placed on the eating habits of the human race. The Old Testament is full of directives regarding food consumption and God's law, and even Genesis addresses limitations imposed on certain types of food consumption. Primarily, the restrictions placed on the consumption of certain types of meat, a limitation that continues in rules for maintaining a Jewish kosher home, relates directly to what is viewed as the rules for the holy people of God. The people of God, then, are expected to recognize that "God is to be obeyed, concluding that circumcision and the prescriptions of Mosaic law are still obligatory" (1).
In understanding the Mosaic dietary laws maintained in the books of the Old Testament, it is necessary to consider the early restrictions placed on certain types of food consumption, the restrictions outlined by Moses for the people of God, and the implications of these eating restrictions both then and in the modern era. What must be recognized is that "To this day, these ruleswith variations, but always guided by Mosaic lawsare followed by many orthodox Jews" (2). Jewish religious practices, then, are based not only in their ancestral ordinances, but in the specificity of Mosaic law in terms of dietary limitations and circumcision (3). Relating the significance, then, of early restrictions and their application to Mosaic law, as well as an understanding of the role of Moses, are elements important in understanding Mosaic dietary laws.
Early Restrictions Early restrictions prior to the initiation of Mosaic dietary laws related directly to the belief that the human race originally consumed just vegetable products, and that it was not until the Flood and the prescriptions relative to Noah's animal ownership that individuals were
By Bryan Leinweber
October 31, 2003
Introduction The Mosaic dietary laws, the laws imposed by the directives of Moses on the Israelites, extended from earlier restrictions that had been placed on the eating habits of the human race. The Old Testament is full of directives regarding food consumption and God's law, and even Genesis addresses limitations imposed on certain types of food consumption. Primarily, the restrictions placed on the consumption of certain types of meat, a limitation that continues in rules for maintaining a Jewish kosher home, relates directly to what is viewed as the rules for the holy people of God. The people of God, then, are expected to recognize that "God is to be obeyed, concluding that circumcision and the prescriptions of Mosaic law are still obligatory" (1).
In understanding the Mosaic dietary laws maintained in the books of the Old Testament, it is necessary to consider the early restrictions placed on certain types of food consumption, the restrictions outlined by Moses for the people of God, and the implications of these eating restrictions both then and in the modern era. What must be recognized is that "To this day, these ruleswith variations, but always guided by Mosaic lawsare followed by many orthodox Jews" (2). Jewish religious practices, then, are based not only in their ancestral ordinances, but in the specificity of Mosaic law in terms of dietary limitations and circumcision (3). Relating the significance, then, of early restrictions and their application to Mosaic law, as well as an understanding of the role of Moses, are elements important in understanding Mosaic dietary laws.
Early Restrictions Early restrictions prior to the initiation of Mosaic dietary laws related directly to the belief that the human race originally consumed just vegetable products, and that it was not until the Flood and the prescriptions relative to Noah's animal ownership that individuals were
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