The Levitical diet refers to a diet governed by eating rules outlined in the Bible, found primarily in the Book of Leviticus. In the Levitical diet, all things edible are either designated as expressly allowed or expressly forbidden. In addition to allowing and forbidding certain food types, maxims of the Levitical diet include striving to eat food in its natural state, as it was created by God, and avoiding using food in any way as a replacement for God.
Seed-Bearing Produce
According to "What the Bible Says About Healthy Living: Three Biblical Principles that Will Change Your Diet and Improve Your Health" by Dr. Rex Russell, M.D., the Levitical diet as described in the Book of Leviticus contains passages pertaining primarily to proteins, but these rules are not comprehensive. Elsewhere in the Bible, other passages describe rules pertinent to other types of food, and these are to be considered part of the Levitical diet. Genesis 1:29 states, "And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat." This indicates that all fruits, vegetables, grains and nuts that are seed-bearing, or fertile, are acceptable. This excludes genetically-modified produce, which is sterile.
Milk and Honey
Milk and honey are also acceptable, despite not being discussed in Leviticus, according to Dr. Russell. Exodus 3:8 states, "And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites."
Clean Proteins
Numerous passages in Leviticus detail which proteins may be eaten and which are forbidden. In general, "clean" proteins are acceptable and "unclean" proteins are forbidden. According to Leviticus 11:3-8, clean animals are those which "chew the cud," or are herbivores, and have cloven, divided hooves, but all animals that do not satisfy both categories are unclean. Camels, rabbits and pigs are cited as examples of unclean animals. Fish with scales are clean, according to Leviticus 11:9, but all other water-dwelling animals and plants are forbidden, according to Leviticus 11:10-12. Herbivorous birds such as chicken and duck are allowed because they are not expressly forbidden, but others including eagles, vultures, buzzards and owls are forbidden in Leviticus 11:13-19. Leviticus 11:20-23 forbid eating most insects, but special exceptions are made for locusts, crickets and grasshoppers.
Member Comments