Comments on: Why do Jewish Orthodox say pigs feet have something to do with not eating pork?

By: Yossi

Yossi — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 15:49:59 +0000

I'm an Orthodox Jew, and erlampo pretty much covered it. I gave him a thumbs down because of his unnecessary comment in the end...
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By: Angelus

Angelus — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 15:09:59 +0000

Being Jewish and having the don’t eat pork mantra drummed into me I can tell you why. According to the torah (The old testament) we are supposed to eat according to the laws of kashroot (not sure how to spell that in english). This means that all meat neads to be kosher before we can eat eat. For an animal to be considered kosher it has to have split hooves AND EAT ONLY cud. The animal then has to be slaughtered in a particular way to maintain its kosher status.

As for fish, a kosher fish has to have both scales and fins which is why we’re not supposed to eat shellfish as they have neither scales nor fins.
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Jew since birth

By: Sam S

Sam S — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 14:36:59 +0000

I never ever heard that, and it certainly isn't in the Hebrew bible. I went to Yeshivah, and as far as I know there is no clear cut reason why split hooves/feet make an animal unfit, it's just one of those "cause I said so" mystical laws. There is no devil per se' in Orthodox philosophy (at best an angel whose job it is to oversee death and cleansing of souls and that is only in some Orthodox philosophies), and he certainly does not have horns, nor any physical attributes.
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By: Rosen

Rosen — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 14:11:59 +0000

The reason that Orthodox Jews do not eat pork, is because the pig is considered unclean and therefore not kosher., and shellfish as well..Secondarily, any animal which has cloven hoofs is also not allowed to be eaten. This basically derives from the lack of refrigeration during Biblical times. Also milk and meat cannot be mixed which includes dairy foods, so Orthodox Jews maintain two separate kitchen and sets of dishes to cover this restriction. However./Interestingly enough the Muslims despite religious and political conflicts with thr Jews have very similar diatery restrictions and the food theyare allowed to eat is called Halal and is very similar to the Kosher food eaten by Orthodox Jews. We as taxpayers are paying for all that because State Agricultural Departments have to oversee whether those customs are followed . It all seems very anachronistic to me and a violation of the separation of State and Church. I respect the beliefs of others, but the state should not involve tax payers in this matters as well including not permitting tax exemptions and privilegise to religious organizations
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By: erlampo

erlampo — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 13:46:59 +0000

Pigs have cloven (split) hooves, supposedly like the devil, and according to the Bible (remember the Bible?) this makes them unfit to eat.
In Judaism, Kashrut (kosher) is the set of dietary laws governing what may or may not be consumed. These laws are based upon the Torah and the Talmud. According to Jewish law, animals that both chew their cud (ruminate) and have cloven hooves are kosher[8]. Animals with one characteristic but not the other (the camel, the hyrax and the hare because they have no cloven hooves, and the pig because it does not ruminate) are specifically excluded[9] (Leviticus 11:3-8).[10] Jews are forbidden from eating pork, as swine are considered to be unclean. In the context of Judaism, the books of Leviticus and Deuteronomy from the Hebrew Bible specify what must not be consumed.

The Book of Leviticus states:
“ Nevertheless these shall ye not eat of them that only chew the cud, or of them that only part the hoof: the camel, because he cheweth the cud but parteth not the hoof, he is unclean unto you. – Leviticus 11:4 ”

These are the animals considered to be unclean according to Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14. Verse 7 to verse 8: (7)Nevertheless these ye shall not eat of them that chew the cud, or of them that divide the cloven hoof; as the camel, and the hare, and the coney: for they chew the cud, but divide not the hoof; therefore they are unclean to you. (8)And swine, because it divideth the hoof, yet cheweth not the cud, it is unclean unto you: ye shall not eat of their flesh, nor touch their dead carcase.
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It just goes to show how utterly ridiculous religion is.