Image: this ‘vintage ad’ is actually a parody.
People who are unhappy with laws love to bring up Prohibition and then cite the old cliché, “You can’t legislate morality.” However–
The failure of Prohibition proves not that you can’t legislate morality, but that you can’t legislate morality when the entire country disagrees with the legislation.
Prohibition failed because too many people were unwilling to obey the law.
The truth is, we legislate morality every day. We create laws that require some things and prohibit others. There are thou shalts and there are thou shalt nots. And people adapt. We grow accustomed to the rules and begin to perceive them as good, as normal. In fact, the law establishes societal norms. The law teaches people what is right and what is wrong. In its role as a teacher, yes, the law establishes—it legislates—morality[1].
“Wherefore, the law was our SCHOOLMASTER to bring us to Christ,” Galatians 3:24[2].
One benefit of Old Testament law is the impact it has had on the eating habits of Jewish and, to a lesser degree, Christian cultures. When was the last time you saw horse meat on a menu? Or an American grocer willing to sell the meat of any land-based meat eater, or of domestic dogs or cats? To be honest, I feel awkward writing about it, and you’re probably uncomfortable reading about it. We are horrified at the notion; we recoil in disgust. But ask yourself why we recoil? Why do we eat some animals and not others?
After all, there are open markets in the world where you can buy the meat of almost any animal. So why do Americans react in shock to barbecued rats on a kabob?
Because the Old Testament forbids the eating of such things, and the Bible’s influence has shaped our choices–our tastes–down through the centuries. Do we follow the Biblical rules?
Obviously, we do not: pork is everywhere today. But pork was everywhere in Bible times also (remember the men with a herd of 2,000 pigs in Mark 5:13?). Pork is delicious and the animals are among the least expensive to raise. No, Christians do not keep kosher. Nor should we (Acts 10:15).
But it is interesting to consider the entirely positive influence of the Old Testament dietary restrictions. The healthiest animals to eat are those the Bible allows: animals with both cloven hooves and multiple stomachs, such as cattle, sheep, and goats.
The least healthy are meat eaters—animals that eat other animals. Among fish, the healthiest are again those the Bible allows: scaled fish, rather than those with skin or the hard shells of lobster, shrimp, and crabs—because these are bottom feeders, living on carrion and fecal matter, and thus more likely to spread illness to humans.
In the case of land and sea creatures we are forbidden to eat, the dangers they pose, including both bacteria and parasites, can be largely eliminated by the hotter, more even, “all-over” cooking of a modern kitchen.
But who knows how many thousands of lives have been saved throughout history because of kosher dietary restrictions?
And one dietary restriction we hear little about applies to animals the Israelites were allowed to eat. God’s chosen people were allowed to eat cattle, sheep, and goats, but not every part of them.
“And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, ‘Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, ‘You shall eat no manner of fat, of ox, or of sheep, or of goat … For whoever eateth of the fat of the beast, … shall be cut off from the people. Moreover, ye shall eat no manner of blood, whether it be of fowl or of beast, in any of your dwellings. Whatsoever soul it be that eateth any manner of blood, even that soul shall be cut off from his people’” Leviticus 7:22-27.
The excellent book NONE OF THESE DISEASES[3], by S.I. McMillen, argues that God’s laws protected God’s people from illnesses science would not understand for thousands of years.
The prohibition against pork, for example, protected people from roundworms (unusually common in pigs). Rules requiring hand washing stopped the spread of germs though germs would not be discovered for centuries. And the above rule against eating blood protects people from blood-borne pathogens and from the risks of an iron overdose. As vital as blood is to your circulatory system, large doses are toxic to your digestive system.
So the Hebrews could eat beef and mutton. But they could not eat the blood from those animals. But what about the fat? “You shall eat no manner of fat…” Leviticus 7:23.
Why not?
Who would eat fat anyway? Actually, we eat fat all the time. Pig fat is rendered into lard, and beef, sheep, and goat fats are rendered into tallow. Lard is prized for cooking and baking. Tallow can get much hotter and is prized for frying. Yet, God’s people were not to eat lard (being pork fat), and were not to eat tallow (being the fat of ruminants). “You shall eat no fat.”
Why not? Was God just giving the people rules, or was there a scientific basis for the prohibition?
There was a scientific basis. These highly saturated fats—when eaten in America’s Super-Size quantities—cause heart disease, strokes, and a host of other problems. And God knew that. He protected His people, promising that if they would obey His laws, they would suffer “none of these diseases” that the Egyptians—and presumably all other Gentiles—would suffer, Exodus 15:26.
Christians live under the New Covenant. We know that circumcision is optional but not required. Yet it has health benefits not only for men but for their wives. (McMillen’s book notes that Jewish women suffer a lower incidence of cervical cancer which many believe is due to the pervasiveness of circumcision among Jewish men.)
Similarly, Christians are free to eat pork, lard, beef tallow, marbleized steaks, and fatty ground beef. But modern science has proven the benefits of God’s ancient kosher laws: eating pork, blood, fatty meat, and fish without scales presents risks[4]. And though we do not strictly follow the Bible’s dietary laws, I am thankful for their continued positive influence.
The law remains our schoolmaster, guiding us toward healthy habits. Not only can the law legislate morality. If we are willing to consider it, the law can guide us toward healthier families and a healthier culture.
One final point: while researching this essay, I ran across blogs from Christians who seem convinced lard is the miracle ingredient that everyone should be eating. While fats in small doses are a necessary part of our diets, I’m inclined toward a more traditional scientific position: consume saturated fats in moderation.
But if you do not trust science, or believe the various studies to be in conflict, let me encourage you to err on the side of the Old Testament. When confused by the conflicting voices online, defer to the Bible’s guidance. After all, “God is not a God of confusion, but of peace” 1 Corinthians 14:33.
May God’s word teach us how to eat. May God’s word legislate our morality, our ethics, our societal norms. May the law be our teacher, God’s word our Schoolmaster.
AΩ.
[1] Should you disagree, ask yourself: Have you heard someone defend their choices by arguing, “Well, it’s not illegal.” Young people are particularly fond of the defense of legality, as if everything that is legal is automatically right. Of course, that is false. The entire study of ethics concerns actions that are legally right, but are wrong nevertheless, because they are unethical. Nevertheless, we know—even teenagers know—the law does serve as a guide to right and wrong. The law IS OUR TEACHER, and it does legislate or establish morality. Again—see Galatians 3:24.
[2] I love Galatians 3:24 in the King James version. I memorized it from the New American Standard version, which employs the word ‘teacher,’ but ‘schoolmaster’ is better.
[3] This book has been revised and updated: NONE OF THESE DISEASES: The Bible’s Health Secrets for the 21st Century, by S.I. McMillen and David E. Stern.
[4] Yesterday’s news reported that two people have died in Louisiana this year from eating raw oysters. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/flesh-eating-bacteria-raw-oysters-rcna227900
**Some fats are allowed under kosher law, and some forms of tallow are prepared in a manner that is considered kosher.
Household Words: 