Do I still need to eat "kosher" today?
What about pork, crabs & co.?
What the Bible says, and what the world is only now discovering
God's food regulations, as given in Leviticus 11, seem strange, religious or outdated to many people today. But on closer look, one recognizes: these instructions were neither arbitrary nor purely cultic, they rest on
deep biological, health and spiritual wisdom. God clearly distinguishes in his Word between clean and unclean animals, not because he "doesn't like" certain animals, but because they fulfill
different functions in creation. What we today call "kosher" had its origin not in Jewish custom, but already before the Law, for example with Noah, where God distinguished between clean and unclean animals. This shows: the category "unclean" was not invented, it was observable and relevant for humans.
The biblical classification, and the scientific confirmation
The world today marvels at what the Bible revealed thousands of years ago:
Unclean animals, like pigs, eels, crabs, mussels or vultures, take on a cleanup function in nature. They are the
biofilters, waste recyclers and carcass removers of creation. They clean up what would make people sick, but they are not meant for permanent human consumption. Pigs, for example, can hardly sweat and break down toxins only insufficiently. They store residues of medications, environmental toxins and parasites in their fatty tissue. In many countries the consumption of pork is considered a risk factor for inflammations, worm infections and viral transmissions. Mussels, crabs and shrimp are biologically considered filter feeders, they suck up everything drifting in the water: heavy metals, bacteria, fecal matter and microplastics. All this is stored in the flesh and absorbed when eaten. In contaminated waters, these animals constitute one of the main sources of disease transmission. Predator fish like eel, catfish or shark stand at the end of the food chain, over years they accumulate mercury, PCBs, dioxins and other toxic residues in dangerous concentrations. The European Food Safety Authority, for example, has repeatedly found exceeded limit values in eels. Also birds like gulls, eagles or vultures, considered "unclean" in the Bible, eat carrion, garbage or dead animals, their flesh is correspondingly often contaminated with bacteria, parasites and toxins that can trigger diseases in humans.
It is quite different with animals designated by God as "clean": ruminants with cloven hooves, like cattle, sheep or goats, eat grass, have complex digestive systems for detoxification and excrete pollutants efficiently. Also
fish with fins and scales, like trout or salmon, show in studies a significantly lower contamination with poisons and pollutants.
Conclusion from a biological perspective:
God's classification is no religious relic, it is a protective categorization with a medically demonstrable basis.
Whoever disregards it eats, in case of doubt, the "biowaste bin of nature."
What does the New Covenant say?
In the New Covenant it is no longer about attaining righteousness before God through food regulations. Christ has made us righteous not through prescriptions but through his blood. Yet that does not mean that everything that is "allowed" is also helpful.
Many Christians point to Jesus' words in Matthew 15, that it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person. But in this passage it is not about pork, but about the human traditions of the Pharisees, more precisely about ritual handwashing.
Also Peter's vision in Acts 10 is often cited to declare all food regulations finished. But here too it is not about nutrition, but about the fact that God has declared people from the Gentiles to be clean. Peter himself later confirms this with the words: "God has shown me not to call any man common or unclean." The key for protection: GIVING THANKS, not "blessing."
In the New Covenant there is no magical formula that makes unclean food clean.
But there is a spiritual key:
"For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, for it is made holy by the word of God and prayer." 1 Timothy 4:4-5
That does not mean: "Eat blindly everything you want." Rather:
"Receive with awareness, with thanks, and in trust in God's Word." That is far more than a "table prayer."
It is a spiritual act:
"Lord, you are the source. It is not the food that protects, but your Word. I receive it with thanks and dedicate it to you." God's protection lies not in the food itself, but in the heart that receives.
Conclusion:
The food regulations show God's order of creation, but the New Covenant shows:
It is not the law that protects, but the connection.
God knew it from the beginning, the world is only now discovering his wisdom:
Unclean animals have a function, but not on your plate.
If you eat with understanding, with knowledge and with gratitude, you are not living legalistically, but wisely.
The question is no longer: "What may I do?" but: "What serves me, and what honors the one who made me?" For:
"So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." 1 Corinthians 10:31