Why do pigs get so much scorn from the jews, muslims and proper christians?

Question

Curious why all these frown on pigs? I understand its written in the scripture, but why?

By proper christians - I mean proper christians its pretty clear by:

Isaiah 66:15 For behold, the LORD will come in fire, and his chariots like the stormwind, to render his anger in fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire. For by fire will the LORD execute judgment, and by his sword, upon all flesh; and those slain by the LORD shall be many. Those who sanctify and purify themselves to go into the gardens, following one in the midst, eating pig’s flesh shall come to an end together, says the LORD."

Before you ask I have come across christians who wont eat pork. I dont know the name of their faction.

Answer 1

Eating it without proper preparation is very dangerous, almost all food taboos originate from safety.

Answer 2

What the heck are "proper" Christians. Either you are a Christian or you aren't. Pigs have traditionaly carried tapeworms (taenia saginata) and have been frowned on by many people because of this. I suspect that with the coming of more modern cooking methods, (high temperatures and meat cooked right the way through) that changed for some people but others hung onto their practice of avoiding pork because they had forgotten the original reason. (Or maybe they just didn't trust the new way of cooking.) I used to eat pork until I read about how the poor bloody pigs were killed. In the most barbaric way possible. Since then I haven't been able to stomach it. (I feel I shouldn't encourage this practice anyway, so I wouldn't eat it, even if I could!)

Answer 3

There is a brilliant book on this subject which I would heartily recommend. It is entitled "None of These Diseases" and its author is a Dr.S.I. McMillen. It discusses a number of Biblical prohibitions, including this, and demonstrates that they have a sound medical basis. We all know that pigs are farmyard scavengers and that tapeworm is a real threat unless pigmeat is properly handled before being served at table. It is also a fact, however, that many people who would not be averse to eating it on principle find that they are allergic to it. With the additional complication of all kinds of hormones being inserted into pigs through modern farming techniques, pigmeat is really, on the whole, not a good idea. This enforces the views of Jews, Muslims and Seventh Day Adventists, who accept the prohibition against eating pigmeat laid down by Scripture.

Answer 4

The health answers are elsewhere and correct. There is however no risk in Western countries today and, of course, pork is widely eaten.
However, the Jews (and I suspect the moslems) can't seem to accept that the only reason no longer exists so they tend to interpret it as a commandment from God which we, as mere humans, can't be expected to understand. One reason I was given by an orthodox Jew is that the pig has cloven hooves therefore appears to be kosher but, in reality, it doesn't vhew the cud. In other words, it's a fraud, trying to make people belive that it's edible - Yeah! weird, if I was a pig I'd do exactly the opposite :-). Who WANTS to be eaten? Maybe God showed all pigs the hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy :-)

Answer 5

you have to understand the times the Old Testament was written. See, back then, they didn't understand the concept of refridgeration, proper cooking, bacteria, or parasites. Thus, the elders began to notice people often got sick (and maybe died) from eating certain things, pigs being one of them (which is true, eating undercooked pork can lead to a host of illnesses). The only way to get everyone to listen was to put it in the scripture as if god told them not to eat it.

If you look at a lot of Orthodox Jewish customs, like the necessity of burying your dead before sundown on the day they die, they come out of good hygeine. They just didn't understand the science behind it at the time. Pigs were percieved as dirty, because they slosh in the mud all day and eat almost everything, including garbage

Answer 6

I'm not very religious but the way it was explained to me when i was a kid is; the bible, old testament especially, is more a kind of rule book, remembering that the Muslims and Jews were of the same faith until they split up, before Christianity was even thought of. the Mediterranean area is [obviously] very hot, and pig meat if not cured and cooked properly becomes poisonous in hot climates. washing is a big part of the Muslim faith, which is a pretty obvious one. in Britain it's usually quite cold in winter, but even then there's that old saying never eat pork if there's an "r" in the month. so there you are, hope that makes more sense to you than it does to me

Answer 7

The OT says not to eat any farm animal that does not have cloven hooves and chews its cud. The pig does neither. This was probably based on the the belief in biblical times that the pig was seen as unclean because of its rolling in the mud, which it does of course just to keep cool. They didn't know any better then. Of course, in modern times, the rolling in mud no longer matters, pork is just as clean a meat to eat as any other animal's is. So it is mainly because some religious people feel it is wrong to deny the "word" of God by disobeying the order not to eat any farm animal that does not have cloven hooves and also chews its cud that the pig still is not eaten by some.

Answer 8

Like much of Hebrew law, the prohibition against pork likely stemmed from some health or social danger. Pork is notorious for its ability to spread trichinosis. Additionally, pigs don't live the the most sanitary of conditions. Without proper sanitation, pig sties can become breeding grounds for hepatitis, roundworm, dysentery, and a myriad of other diseases.

There may also have been an economic reason for the prohibition. Pigs do not fare well in the hot, arid climates that the authors of the Old Testament lived in. They require constant attention to prevent sunburn and dehydration. Regardless, the incentive to raise and eat pork is strong. Pigs yield tasty, fatty meat with a high caloric content. In order to convince people to forgoe raising pigs in favor of goats, sheep, fowl, and other animals more suited to the climate, it may have been necessary to name them verboten.

This restriction is similar to the Hindu taboo against eating beef. In India, nearly every rural family owns at least one cow. The majority of India's population are subsistence farmers, and the cow is a necessary tool. It does the work of a tractor, makes fertilizer, and provides milk for children. It's dung can be used as a roofing or flooring material and is the primary source of cooking fuel for many rural Indians. In earlier times, it may have been tempting for farmers to kill and eat the family cow during droughts and famines, but doing so would have been suicidal. WIth no means to plow or fertilize fields, the farmer's family would have to rely on hunting and gathering for subsistence. Making cows sacred convinces people not to kill them, thus helping to ensure a stable future.

Answer 9

Without venturing into any biblical mumbo-jumbo , I think it perfectly natural to dislike an animal that eats its own and other faeces. This is especially so with the Jewish faith who place great value upon the cleanliness of food. Pork also has a reputation for various human ailments, and famously the meat does not store safely in hot, fly blown regions such as the Arab world.

Answer 10

because eating pork can be dangerous nowadays pigs get injected and everything and checked before they can be eaten but back then it just wasn't safe and it probably turned into some kind of taboo the thought of eating any kind of meat makes me feel ill so i can understand that some countries think dog meat is a delicacy but i don`t think many people from the west will want it or monkey meat and things like that

Answer 11

Because in the ancient times they ate garbage and carrion and were disease-carriers. Trichinosis and worse. A lot of the Mosaic dietary laws were just common sense back in the days before germs, parasites etc. were understood.

BTW, what do you consider a "proper" Christian? Most Christians have no trouble with pork...in fact, in the book of Acts the dietary restrictions were lifted as the Apostles realised they couldn't ask all and sundry to keep the Jewish dietary rules.