On Food Laws

We, today, often neglect Leviticus.  The book is regarded as a collection of esoteric cultic rules for Judaism, smattered with a few ethical laws that still have bearing for mainline Christians.  The food laws, in particular, seem hard to understand from a Christian perspective.  However, this need not be the case.  The forbidding of certain foods fits very very nicely into a few typological understandings of Leviticus.

First, Jews were only allowed to eats "pure" animals - that is to say, animals which were the best example of their 'type.' They couldn't eat shellfish because a shellfish wasn't a "fishy fish" - it didn't have the backbone of a true fish. Similarly for animals which do and don't chew the cud or have hooves.

Why would such a thing matter? Only typologically! Jews were the 'type' of humanity - the truly 'human humans' thanks to the ethical law. The food laws symbolized that and gave a constant reminder to the Jews of who they were - God's chosen, those set apart by the revelation of the covenant to be His true humanity. The food laws were a sign of how Jews were separate and different from the Gentiles - they were a racial designation (like physical circumsition)

The second explanation is that not eating certain foods provides a consistent ascetic discipline that circumcizes the heart - that is to say, by learning to obey God in the eating of food one is reminded to obey God in all things and one is tutored to obey God in all things (as the law is a tutor). By denying our desire for a shrimp we die to our old self - the ancient Israelites however, not having baptism, did not have Christ's transformed human nature to provide a new self, so you see how the Law was merely a tutor and not salvation itself.

In short, the food laws are a form of ascetic fasting.

So why don't we follow those today? Well, how can we fast when the bridegroom is with us? And, since Christ has broken down the wall of enmity, how can we racially set ourselves apart? There is nothing WRONG with creation or certain animals - God has taken on matter and flesh to sanctify all matter and flesh. The physical world is GOOD, and refusing to eat foods once God has lifted the ban (as is evidenced in the NT) would be blasphemous.

Back to the fasting for a moment, because there's a really fantastic typological moment here. Before Christ, the bridegroom was not with Israel (racial Israel), and so they fasted constantly (with their food laws) and would fast more extensively for specific purposes. When Christ was on this earth during His ministry, the bridegroom was directly with Israel (racial and spiritual) and so there was no fasting for His disciples (this is noted in Matthew and Mark). Now, after Christ's glorious resurrection and ascension, the bridegroom is not with us (so we fast) and yet IS with us (in particular in the Eucharist, but also in His Church in in the union we have with Him by His activity and grace), therefore we don't fast.

So now, we fast and we don't fast. How do we do that?  If you look at the Orthodox Church's calander, exactly half of the year (including the W/F fast) is fasting, and the other half feasting. Right now, the Kingdom is already but not yet here, so we feast for Christ's salvation and fast for our repentance and to die to our old self.

This also forshadows the second coming, when the bridegroom will reside in the New Jerusalem and give light to all the world, and then there will be no need for fasting at all.

So that is why we don't follow Jewish food laws. To do so would be to blaspheme the commands of God through His apostles (in the NT) and would be tantamount to saying that Christ is NEVER with us in this life - in short to denying that Christ accomplished anything on this earth. Since we, as Christians, can say neither of those things, we fast ascetically (though from different foods from the Jews) and only off and on throughout the year, feasting to celebrate Christ's salvation.

Happy feasting!  CHRIST IS RISEN!

In the hope of the feast of the resurrected Christ,
Macarius