Why did God invent "unclean animals" in the first place?

Question

If God thinks shrimp, oysters, crayfish, lobsters, prawns, abalone, eagles, crows, mice, lizards, bats, penguins, owls, worms, snakes, pigs, and winged insects (excluding locusts, beetles, and grasshoppers) are so nasty, why did he create them in the first place? Was "uncleanliness" the result of a design error? Was he unsure what kind of foodstuff they'd turn out to be but thought they might make good mates for Adam? What happens if you eat a cow, goat, goose, fish, or chicken that has eaten a worm or some other unclean animal?

Are there any Christian restaurants that serve only clean animals that have been fed purely upon other clean animals or plants? Should we pass a constitutional amendment to make it illegal to eat shrimp or lobster at the same time that we pass an amendment outlawing same-sex marriage?

FYI: For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about, read the Old Testament. God forbids unclean foods in it, calling them an abomination, just as he forbids a man to lie with a man for the same reason: it's an abomination. If the New Testament said the Old Testament rules don't apply anymore, then why are Christians still throwing a fit about homosexuality but are not concerned about shrimp-eating?

I'm surprised how many of you claim to be Christians but don't recognize scripture from your own Holy Book. Shame upon you! http://www.godhatesshrimp.com/

Answer 1

Malarkey! Man invented unclean animals with his imagination. God may have created man, but primitive superstitious man created religion at a time when he knew nothing about science.

Answer 2

They're here to clean up the wastes of the earth. It's really disgusting why people would eat pig or any of these disgusting creatures when Jesus didn't or the Apostles!

As for the cow; they have two stomachs--I heard. As for the chicken; I think it goes in the gillard (the neck part) so it doesn't go in the stomach either. As for the fish; you can see when you clean them. I believe the goose is part of the duck family---so it is unclean; doesn't it have webbed feet? As for the goat; I don't know---maybe you need to do some more research and study. As for men going with men & women going with women; it is abomination too(Lev.18:22).

** TEXTS THAT INVOLVE THE CLEAN AND UNCLEAN MEATS:
GEN.18:7-8; LEV.11; 20:25; DEUT.14; ISAIAH 66:17; EZEK.22:26; DAN.1:8; MATT.3:4; LUKE 24:41-43; ACTS 10:10-14; 1COR.3:16-17; 9:27; 2COR.6:17; AND REV.21:8.

IF THE CLEAN AND UNCLEAN MEATS WEREN'T VALID FOR TODAY; THEN WHY OH WHY WOULD THE LORD PLEAD WITH FLESH NOT TO EAT UNCLEAN MEAT--(ISAIAH 66:15-17).
ALSO NOTICE DEUT.14:4 "SHALT NOT EAT ANY ABOMINABLE THING" AND REV.21:8 "...THE ABOMINABLE SHALL HAVE THEIR PART IN THE LAKE WHICH BURNETH WITH FIRE AND BRIMSTONE: WHICH IS THE SECOND DEATH."

Note: If you start attacking things on people; then they will be attacking christians at the end. It really doesn't matter because God is going to send his punishment to sinners that don't obey him anyway. It doesn't matter what you do; people will hate christianity much more. Don't everybody have rights; we don't want our rights taken away; do we? I know you are trying to do well; but the end is very close!

Answer 3

Well, the thing about unclean animals is that they weren't created as "unclean". After Adam and Eve fell, God allowed people (as well as animals) eat anything they want. However, when God gave Moses the Law, he was making a covenant with Israel. Part of this Law were the food regulations. Many of the unclean animals would have been horrible for the Israelites to eat anyway. Pork and other fatty animals would have been harmful and unhealthy to the Israelites, and seafood was considered unclean to the Israelites because they are scavengers; bottom-feeders, basically. This was used by God to test the Israelites' loyalty, and to give the Israelites a code of ritual purity (see my other article). That's the jist of it.

As for Christians not obeying the Law/Pentateuch, the Law is set up as a contract for Israel's covenant. However, that is what we Christians know as the Old Covenant. Christians obey the NEW Covenant through the blood of Christ. In other words, neither I nor any other Christians (except the "Torah-Observant" ones) signed the Deuteronomical contract, and are no longer bound by the aforementioned.

Answer 4

First, the obvious. All God's animals are good creations, everything He made he looked on and said that they were good. The point of the dietary laws is an Old Testament measure to help Israel understand their separateness from the other nations. He gave them ceremonial laws about every aspect of their lives (diet, circumsision, dress, etc) so that whatever they were doing there was some reminder that they were set apart and His. Thus if they started to drift into the traditions of other nations it would be obvious right away. The ceremonial part of the law is not observed by most Christians, so no, there are not restaurants like that for Christians. However there are Jewish restaurants that don't serve pork, or cheese with meat, or shellfish, or of course lizard, bat, or anything gross.
And of course the ceremonial dietary laws of the ancient Jewish culture should not become part of the US constitution, as they are part of the law of another nation, not ours. The ban on same-sex marriage reflects the common sense and common morals of generations of Americans, and so it would be justifiable to defend this American value against the fads that assail it, by writing it into the law.

Answer 5

God created a wide variety of animals, for the enjoyment of humans and to keep them company. But only a certain amount of those animals were clean (ie could be eaten by the Israelites of the time). However, the Mosaic Law (which included the designation of animals as either clean or unclean) was made obsolete after Jesus came to Earth and gave his life. Therefore, we can eat any animal we want nowadays because some of the laws don't apply to us today. However, some laws (eg do not murder) still apply.

Answer 6

Were you dropped on your head as a young child? Who says those creatures are "unclean animals"? You are seriously lacking brain cells.

You don't eat the contents of a cow, chicken, goat, fish or goose's stomach so whatever they ate wouldn't affect us.

Why stop at passing an amendment to make it illegal to eat shrimp or lobster, why not include oysters, crayfish, prawns, abalone and anything else YOU deem unclean?

BTW - Who are you to say what is clean and unclean???

Answer 7

God ? didn't make them "unclean" certain religions and or cultures have named them that. Some for good reasons, pigs (pork) if not cooked fully in the past can transmit thricanosis which we now can see after the invention of the microscope and medicine but in ancient times people could get very ill same as Schell fish if not properly prepared or eaten during the wrong season can kill you. So religions called them unclean to keep epople from eating them.

Answer 8

After Jesus was ressurrected, and Peter was going about spreading the Gospel, God came to Peter telling him that he could eat these animals now, the Old Testament and the old ways were changed once the Mesiah came. We have to take that into consideration, people could not even talk to God yet but, through a high priest, now we have Jesus and the Holy Spirit so that we can pray directly through the Lord.

Answer 9

They weren't unclean when they were made, however, they pick up much of the toxic waste man puts into the water around us and collect deadly bacterias like e-coli and salmonella, and Pigs spread tapeworm and trichosomiasis if not cooked properly. Calling them unclean was a way to get people to stop eating them and getting sick. And You are a religious bigot if you think those laws will ever be passed!

Jesus said "Judge not, lest ye be judged" . You might want to remember that.

Answer 10

Nothing is clean in this world. You dump waste into the ground, the bateria and some other insects consume it. Those insects are eaten by larger animals and we eat those animals. Does that mean we eat our own dump? And what the heck does this has to do with same-sex marriage.

Answer 11

At Exodus 31:12, 13 the Bible says: "And Jehovah said further to Moses: "As for you, speak to the sons of Israel, saying, 'Especially my sabbaths YOU are to keep, for it is a sign between me and YOU during YOUR generations that YOU may know that I Jehovah am sanctifying YOU."

Under the Law of Moses, the nation of Israel was given many laws on hygiene, disposal of wastes, quarantine and they were told not to eat the animals listed as 'unclean' because there were no refrigeration or processing methods for animals at that time and certain foods can cause allergies or some animals eat waste.

We are not under the law anymore, as the Bible says at Acts 15:28,29: "For the holy spirit and we ourselves have favored adding no further burden to YOU, except these necessary things, to keep abstaining from things sacrificed to idols and from blood and from things strangled and from fornication. If YOU carefully keep yourselves from these things, YOU will prosper. Good health to YOU!"