question about christianity and kosher laws

[unblock]

pardon my ignorance on this matter. christianity obviously branched off from judaism a couple millenia ago, and christians do not officially follow the jewish laws of kashrut -- no pork or shellfish, no mixing milk and meat, strict prohibitions against "work" on the sabbath (which even means not starting fires, etc.)

not all jews observe these laws either, but that's a topic for another thread.

my question is, at what point, and per what authority, did christianity officially decide that these laws didn't apply?

i am told that this is mentioned in the new testament; if so, could anyone cite chapter and verse?

i hope i'm not offending anyone, i'm genuinely curious about this.

tia

[Midnight Rambler]

1. I'm not sure, but...

I believe it had something to do with Paul beginning to preach to the gentiles in Greece and other parts of the Roman Empire, as opposed to just amongst the Jews, as the other apostles were doing, and with that I assume he would have abandoned the dietary restrictions.

That's just what I remember reading. I could be wrong, though.

[Yupster]

12. It was done formally

Look to the book of Act, Chapter 15.

As Paul and the other apostles spread out throughout the empire to preach the teachings of Jesus, a question arose. Jesus was a Jew. Would a follower of Jesus have to be a Jew also?

Apostles returning to Jerusulem and through their letters back to the city kept running into the same problems. There were many people who were willing to convert to this new religion except for one little problem -- circumcision.

The question then came to the floor. Does a follower of Jesus have to follow Mosaic Law, including circumcision?

It was decided a formal decision would have to be made. A conclave was called among the elders and apostles in Jeruselum.

The Council of Jeruselum formally decided the issue.

It was decided that to be a believer in Christ, Gentiles would have to ...

1. not eat food blessed by or to idols.
2. not be sexually immoral
3. not eat blood of strangled animals

This was written in letter form (Acts 15, 22-35) and sent to the believers throughout the Empire. This letter ended the notion of the "God-fearing Man (like Cornelius) who followed Christ's teachings, but did not follow all of Mosaic Law especially circumcision).

This was the schism. The break from Mosaic Law. The separation of Christianity and Judaism. And it was done in a formal council with a formal written letter at the end of it.

Hope that helps.

[catabryna]

2. This is how it's been explained to me and...

is my understanding of the proclamation:

Mark 7:18-20:

"18 “Are you so dull?” he asked. “Don't you see that nothing that enters a man from the outside can make him ‘unclean’? 19 For it doesn't go into his heart but into his stomach, and then out of his body.” (it appears that Jesus declared all foods “clean.”) 20He went on: “What comes out of a man is what makes him ‘unclean.’"

NIV - New International Version

Cat

[China_cat]

9. But then there is

this from Matthew...supposedly the words of Jesus himself.


5:17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.

5:18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.

5:19 Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

It took Paul to spin things the way he wanted them.

[Name removed]

10. Deleted message

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[supernova]

3. Peter and Paul had

an argument in Antioch. Peter fervently wanted any new "christians" to convert to Judaism first, then christianity. This meant that, among other things, gentile men would have to be circumcised. And yes, follow kashrut.

Paul, wisely for once, told him to stuff it. That in fact this would impede the development of the movement, and he was right about that.

The end result of that er discussion was Peter got to stay and Paul went off ot other parts of the Greco-Roman world.

I believe this story is in Acts, but I'll have to look it up to be sure.

[The Jacobin]

7. The end of the argument is here:

http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/acts/acts10.htm
(as a Catholic, I site the verstion used in the U.S. Catholic church.)

Peter saw a large sheet coming down from heaven with "all the earth's four-legged animals and reptiles and birds of the sky".

He was told to "slaughter and eat" which he refused to do. The response was "What God has made clean, you are not to call profane."

Peter (and the early church) took this to mean that conversion to judisam and following the mosaic laws were not required for a gentile o become a christian.

I'm not certain if an observant Jew converted to christianity whether she would be required to continue observing the mosaic law.

[Nikia]

4. There's this one

Romans 14:13-15 (New International Version)
New International Version (NIV)
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society
13Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother's way. 14As one who is in the Lord Jesus, I am fully convinced that no food is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for him it is unclean. 15If your brother is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy your brother for whom Christ died.
Although in this particuliar verse, Paul was saying that the Christian Jewish missionaries should keep Kosher around other Jews, he was also saying that no food is unclean. They shouldn't be judgemental against the Gentile Christians who were not eating Kosher.
I believe that there are other verses that say similiar things. The Jewish Christians were told not to judge the Gentiles for eating unclean, but if they feel in their own conscience that they should keep Kosher, they should and keep Kosher around those who hold it to be holy.
As a Christian, I apply these verses to my daily life also for more than just eating.

[hollowdweller]

6. That's during that time period where they were arguing about it.

On one hand you had the "Jewish Christians" James, some of the apostles that as best we can see felt that to be a Christian you had to observe the Jewish laws.

On the other hand you had Paul preaching to the Gentiles a more universal interpretation of the Gospel, although Paul himself still kept many of the taboos that even Jesus himself seems to have ignored.

What is interesting to me from the little I have read on it is that once Paul had the falling out with the Christians in Israel he went his own way. Over time I guess the Jewish Christians just kind of played out, or were martyred, while Pauls version, who had never actually met Jesus in real life, persisted.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

13. Most of the Jewish Christians may have perished in 70 AD when

the Romans ruthlessly put down a Jewish rebellion and destroyed most of Jerusalem.

[Nikia]

5. Also, Peter's dream

Acts 10:13-15 (New International Version)
New International Version (NIV)
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society


13Then a voice told him, "Get up, Peter. Kill and eat."
14"Surely not, Lord!" Peter replied. "I have never eaten anything impure or unclean."
15The voice spoke to him a second time, "Do not call anything impure that God has made clean."

[hollowdweller]

8. Frontline on PBS "From Jesus to Christ" documentary

Had a great section on this. Here is a link to their website covering the part of the show where it talks about Paul at Antioch.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/religion/maps/primary/galatians.html

[unblock]

11. most of these responses address the food, but not the other laws

for instance, jewish law prevents lighting candles (or extinguishing them) on sabbath, instructs jews to wear clothing torn at the corners, and so on, to keep the head covered, and so on.

what about these laws?

thanks for all the responses, this is very educational for me!

[Lydia Leftcoast]

14. I think that most of the Leviticus laws got thrown out with kashrut

The laws on sacrificing animals, in particular, were thrown out because the Christians held that Jesus had made a sufficient sacrifice of himself for all time.

As for the rest, if Gentile converts didn't have to be circumcised or keep kosher, there was probably no reason to require them to observe the Sabbath restrictions or other such rules.

Actually, now that I think of it, there's a passage in one of the Gospels where the Pharisees criiticize Jesus for healing someone on the Sabbath, and Jesus asks if they would fail to rescue one of their animals that had fallen into a wall just because it was the Sabbath. He ends by saying, "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath."

[unblock]

15. as to the last point, judaism values health over ritual

as an example, even orthodox rabbis encourage the use of insulin for jewish diabetics, even though it comes from pigs. health comes first.

so healing someone on shabbat is not a problem in judaism.

[craychek]

16. here's another question

If most of these laws were thrown out, why are the ones that are in the Bible still cited by evangelical christians, catholics, etc. as support for certain actions or beliefs?

I mean, how do they decide which ones to keep and which ones to throw away.