Why aren't meat and milk supposed to go together in Jewish dietary law?

Answer 1

An excerpt from "Judaism for Everyone" by Shmuley Boteach.

Separation of Milk and Meat
Another aspect of kashrut involves the prohibition against mixing, eating, or cooking milk and meat together. A Jew may not eat a cheeseburger or other mixture of dairy and meat products, nor may he even cook the two together. In Judaism milk and meat are irreconcilable opposites. There is a profound reason behind this seemingly obtuse rule.

Following from the principle of being weaned from a love of violence, the Jew is slowly conditioned to love life and abhor death. More than anything else, Judaism is a religion of life, a celebration of being. Man, as increasing misery overtakes him, may be led to believe that life is not an intrinsic blessing. Indeed in our own generation it is not life, but happiness, that is seen as the ultimate blessing. And when happiness is not forthcoming—when life is riddled with pain—life becomes a curse that we may wish to terminate. Judaism teaches that though death is inevitable, it must be resisted with every ounce of energy, irrespective of our happiness. Life is like having a child, always a blessing whatever the path. Life, even in its most miserable manifestations, presents endless opportunity, whereas death presents endless monotony, man's inability to change and progress. In death man loses all uniqueness, becoming an object like a stone.

Life in Judaism is everything that is Godly, everything that is noble. In the Torah, God is referred to as the God of life, and the Torah is described as the tree of life. As a river is connected to the spring whence it stems, the living individual is connected with the eternal source of life. Death comes about when the connection has been severed. Death, rather than a state of being, is a void, a black hole, a vacuum of meaning and existence. Death is the darkness that ensues once the light has ceased to shine. There are no wakes in Judaism. The dead are buried quickly, with a quiet and solemn dignity and we await the time when all will be raised from the dust.

Therefore, Judaism always seeks to separate life from death. Although man may be overtaken by death, he must still run from it with all his soul, with all his might. Jewish ritual is designed to reinforce the light and restrain the darkness. Jewish observance establishes a perimeter into which death cannot infiltrate. Many important Jewish rituals, therefore, revolve around symbols separating life from death.

Here we have the reason that Jews separate milk from meat. Milk is the ultimate symbol of life, the very elixir sustaining early existence. Dead meat, however, is death incarnate. One represents attachment to the living God, the other His absence. Man must be weaned from a belief that life and death can coexist. Man must remain firmly dedicated toward combating the darkness wherever it may appear. For this reason, the observant Jew even has separate dishes for meat and milk in the kitchen. His or her home and material possessions proclaim the line that divides the living from the dead, the eternal from the ephemeral. His or her very food supports a spiritual constitution that accepts his or her humanity while negating their animal tendencies. And in this way, not only the soul, but even the body of man, can achieve sanctity and holiness.

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Answer 2

On three separate occasions, the Torah tells us not to "boil a kid in its mother's milk." (Ex. 23:19; Ex. 34:26; Deut. 14:21). The Oral Torah explains that this passage prohibits eating meat and dairy together. The rabbis extended this prohibition to include not eating milk and poultry together. In addition, the Talmud prohibits cooking meat and fish together or serving them on the same plates, because it is considered to be unhealthy.

Or, to put it differently, the "seething a calf" comes directly from the written Torah; this prohibition was explained (and, in the process, expanded) in the Oral Torah (which tradition explains as being handed down to Moses at the same time that the written Torah was); and then further"fenced" by later rabbis to make sure that the fundamental law could **never** be broken, even by accident.

Answer 3

I was asked this question the other day while discussing something with my brother. I knew Jews couldn't have meat and dairy, but I never knew why. Thanks for posting this question. I'm not Jewish (Muslim born Atheist), but hearing it put that way, death separate from life, makes perfect sense to me. It's a mind, body, soul connection. very beautiful. I will never have a cheeseburger or chicken pizza again.

Can someone tell me why Jews can't have shellfish?

Answer 4

Something about a baby shall not be boiled in its mothers milk.
Thank you Mark. I wasn't sure if anyone was going to answer this, so I explained what I could.

Answer 5

I wouldn't mind knowing that myself. I don't want the weirdo version. I want the rational version.

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Answer 6

Because G-d said so.