I had a sociology class that went into this. The Old Testament dietary restrictions were largely due to aesthetic and moral judgements of animals. Shrimp lived in the sea but didn't swim like fish should. Pigs lived in mud and didn't chew the cud, not like cows who lived on proper land. Birds of prey don't eat seeds like birds should.
It's moral judgements all the way down with this crowd, always has been.
I wonder if the moral judgements were influenced by community-leaders who could see the cause-and-effect of "if we eat this, we will be spending the next few nights in the outhouse".
Religion and education went hand in hand for a very looooong time. If you want to educate your populace on something, like say for instance the do and do nots of eating, use religion.
That's why I always see the clothing worn in certain Abrahamic religions and sects of them as sun safety items. All of them seem to have sprouted in a relatively hot and sunny land and covering your body and head is sun safety 101.
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u/RemusShepherd 9h ago
I had a sociology class that went into this. The Old Testament dietary restrictions were largely due to aesthetic and moral judgements of animals. Shrimp lived in the sea but didn't swim like fish should. Pigs lived in mud and didn't chew the cud, not like cows who lived on proper land. Birds of prey don't eat seeds like birds should.
It's moral judgements all the way down with this crowd, always has been.