From: abulsari@abo.fi (Abhay Bulsari VT)
Subject: Was Jesus Christ in favour of vegetarianism ?
Organization: Abo Akademi University
Date: Tue, 6 Oct 1992 13:45:40 GMT


This one is from Ted Altar. There are 6 main points and quite 
interesting to read. 



Was Christ a Vegetarian?  The following points mainly draws upon
Keith Akers' "A VEGETARIAN SOURCEBOOK"  1989, which again I
highly recommend.  Another source for this question is Lewis
Regenstein's "REPLENISH THE EARTH: THE HISTORY OF ORGANIZED
RELIGION'S TREATMENT OF ANIMALS AND NATURE--INCLUDING THE BIBLE'S
MESSAGE OF CONSERVATION AND KINDNESS TOWARD ANIMALS", 1991.  I
have no investment in this issue one way or the other, so I am
simply presenting some information that I've read in two books I
respect for their scholarship.


1.  "I REQUIRE MERCY, NOT SACRIFICE"  (Matthew 9:13 & 12:7):

  This is  a significant message when  we remember that in the context
in which  this was said  meat  eating  was commonly considered part of
these   sacrifices.   Sacrificial   offerings  often   entailed   meat
consumption  and a  strict  reading  of Leviticus  17:  implies  that,
indeed,  all meat  consumption necessitated  a sacrifice.   Also,  the
noted confrontation of Jesus in the Temple suggests that he was not at
all pleased by the desecration of the Temple by the money changers AND
by "those who were selling oxen and sheep and pigeons" (2:14-15) since
these animals were being sold for sacrifice and latter to be eaten.


2.  No unequivocal Biblical reference to Christ eating or buying
eat:

Consider  the verse where it is said that Jesus' disciples  "were gone
away unto the city to buy meat" (John 4:8).  This translation from the
King James version has been misunderstood as meaning literally "meat".
In  fact,  the Greek word for "meat" from which the  James translation
based its choice  for this word, simply meant nutrition in the generic
sense.  Hence, the Revised Standard Version now simply translates this
same passage  as  "his disciples had gone away  into  the city to  buy
food".

Regenstein notes that nowhere  in the New Testament is  Jesus depicted
as eating  meat and "if the Last Supper was a Passover meal -- as many
believe -- there is, interestingly, no mention of the traditional lamb
dish".


3.  Did Christ eat at least eat fish? (e.g., Luke 24:43):

  Note that on the two occasions where he  is said to have eaten fish,
these were after his death  and resurrection.  Also,  we should  maybe
keep in mind that fish was  a  well known  mystical symbol among these
early  Christians.  The Greek  word for  fish (Ichthys) was used as an
acronym whose initials in Greek stood for "Jesus Christ,  Son of  God,
Savior".   Given  how  the early Christian employed the term, there is
therefore good historical  evidence  for the argument that all  of the
"fish stories"  that managed to get into the gospels were intended  to
be taken symbolically rather than literally.


4.  Biblical breaks and contradictions:

  We should  not forget  that the Bible is not  complete and its  many
inconsistencies  require thoughtful interpretation.   For instance, we
have the contradiction between  Genesis 1:29-30  with  Genesis  9:2-3.
Some scholars interpret the  first prescription for  vegetarianism  as
the preferred diet, and suggest  that  it was only  after  God  became
grievously disappointed  with  human sin and flooded the earth did the
second provision become permitted, and  not without qualification (and
maybe  only  as  an  expedient  for the situation).   To  take another
example, the New Testament makes repeated attacks  on  meat offered to
pagan idols (Acts 15:20; Revelation 2:14),  but  Paul gives assurances
that eating such flesh is all right if no one is offended (Corinthians
10:14-33).  Paul, then, would seem to be contradicting Christ.


5.  Examples of Early Christians:

  Not  a few Christian scholars have concluded vegetarianism to be the
more  consistent  ethic  with   respect  to  the  spirit  of  Christ's
teachings.  For example, we have the Ebionites, Athanasius, and Arius.
Of  the  early  church  fathers we have Clement of Alexandria, Origen,
Tertullian,  Heronymus,  Boniface,  St. Jerome,  and  John Chrysostom.
Clement wrote, "It is far better to be happy than  to have your bodies
act  as  graveyards  for animals.  Accordingly,  the  apostle  Matthew
partook of seeds, nuts  and vegetables,  without flesh".   One  of the
earliest  Christian  documents   is   the  "Clementine   Homiles",   a
second-century work purportedly based on the teachings of  St.  Peter.
Homily  XII  states,  "The  unnatural  eating  of  flesh meats  is  as
polluting  as the heathen worship of devils,  with its sacrifices  and
its  impure feasts, through  participation in  a man becomes  a fellow
eater with devils".  Many of  the monasteries both in ancient times to
the  present  practiced vegetarianism.   For  instance,  Basilius  the
Great's  order, Boniface's order, Trappists monks, etc.  Also, we have
the examples provided by the stories around some saints like Hubertus,
Aegidius and Francis of Assisi.


6.  Indirect historical evidence:

  Knowledge about how the Essenes,  the Nazoreans  and Ebionites lived
suggests that Christ was  probably  a  vegetarian.  The  Essences were
Jews who were remarkably similar to the early Christians as evinced in
their  deemphasis upon property and  wealth,  their communalism and in
their rejection of animal sacrifices.  The first Christians were known
as the Nazoreans (not to be confused with Nazarenes) and the Ebionites
were a direct  offshoot from them.  All three groups  were  vegetarian
which is suggestive of the central role such a practice once played in
Early  Christianity.   Paul's  need  to  constantly  deal  with  these
vegetarians is also evidence of how prevalent they  were and not a few
fellow  Christians, it would  seem, took issue with Paul.  Paul, if he
is consistent with his words,  would have been vegetarian (Corinthians
8:13), notwithstanding his opposition  to the Ebionites.  According to
Clement of Alexandria, Matthew was  a vegetarian.  Clementine  Homiles
and Recognitions  claim  that  Peter  was  also  a  vegetarian.   Both
Hegisuppus  and Augustin testify that the first head  of the church in
Jerusalem after the death of Christ, namely Christ's brother JAMES THE
JUST, was a vegetarian and raised as one!  If  Jesus's  parents raised
James  as  vegetarian  then it would  likely  that  Jesus was also  so
raised.

Given the above points, it is reasonable to believe that vegetarianism
would  be consistent  with, if not mandated by,  the  spirit of  early
Christianity,  a spirit  that  advocated kindness, mercy, non-violence
and showed disdain towards wealth and extravagance.  Meat eating would
hardly have been  considered the way of the humility, non-extravagance
and love for all of God's creation.  Hence,  the orthodox early church
father, Christian Hieronymous, could not but be compelled to conclude:

     "the eating of animal meat was unknown up to the big flood,
     but since the flood they have pushed the strings and
     stinking juices of animal meat into our mouths, just as they
     threw quails in front of the grumbling sensual people in the
     desert.  Jesus Christ, who appeared when the time had been
     fulfilled, has again joined the end with the beginning, so
     that it is no longer allowed for us to eat animal meat"


-- 
A. Bulsari                                       Tel.  358 (21) 654 721
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