Jewish Dietary Laws

For us Muslims, unlike Christians who worship in a church, we worship in a mosque and any place considered clean according to certain standards. This virtue of cleanliness is also considered when it comes to what we feed our bodies. Muslims are only supposed to eat foods that are considered clean. For example, pork is prohibited from consumption. For most Christians, they feel that the restrictions on some kinds of meat as stated in the old testament of the Bible does not apply to them and therefore eat what they please. Cleanliness for Muslims is very important and therefore very strictly practiced. For example, the reason for prohibition of consumption of pork is because a pig is considered very dirty because they tend to feed on anything.

| Jewish do not eat pork or shellfish. Other meats must be slaughtered according to Jewish rituals (Kosher). Certain foods must not come in contact with each other. (use of separate plates/cutlery)

Judaism, which originated in the middle east, is one of the oldest religions in the world. Judaism is the religion from where Catholicism and Islam have their roots. The main difference between Judaism and the previously mentioned religions is that Judaism is based on the old testament entirely excluding the new testaments in its teachings. Jews believe that they are the people chosen by God and that because of the covenant they have the duty, more than any other group of people, to keep the law of God. The law of God in Judaism comes in the form of the Torah. The books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy, which are said to have been written by Moses, form the Torah.

Last but not least, Judaism comes from the Hebrew word Yehudah meaning Judah. It is the religion and way of life for the Jewish people. Judaism is considered to be the oldest religion. The Hebrew Bible is called the Torah. A synagogue is their place of worship and their services are led by a rabbi. You can be born Jewish or you can convert. There are 14 million Jews worldwide. About 42% are in Israel and about 42% are in the U.S. The remaining Jews are spread worldwide. The spoken language of the Jews is Hebrew. Men wear a small beanie on their head called a kippa while praying, eating or saying blessings. Jews have kosher diets. They can eat chicken and turkey but not pig. The Jewish religion celebrates their own holidays and special days such as Passover, Yom Kippur and Hanukkah. Imagine receiving

Christians eat pork. Alcohol is forbidden in Islam while alcohol is not. They also practice

Islam and Christianity are the largest religion in the world and share many common beliefs. The two religions co-exist in many parts of the world. However, each religion has it is own territories where they are the dominant religion. The two religions share almost the same history of inception and concepts of faith. Despite, being similar in many ways, they also have marked differences. The differences have led to mutual distrust between the Christians and the Muslims. Many Muslims have come out openly to criticize the Christian religion and Christians have written many articles condemning the Islam religion. The differences and similarities appear in many aspects of the religions. As such, it is easier to discuss them intensively by restricting the discussion to selected aspects. The life after death and belief in the Supreme Being by the believers of Christianity and Islam religions has many differences and similarities.

Judaism is different from Islam and Christianity in surprisingly different ways considering that this was the starting religion and all other religions branched off from here. Jews believe that the Torah is the most important part of the holy book, which is called Tenakh and is written in Hebrew. The holy book has three distinct parts called Neviim, Ketuvim, and torah. They believe that about 3,000 years ago, God gave the torah to Moses, Judaism’s most important prophet. Judaism’s rituals involve breaking of Shabbat bread, and sharing wine. They worship on Friday evening and Saturday morning. They come together at a Holy building called a synagogue to pray. Jews are orthodox, conservative and reformed.

The religions Judaism and Christianity are two of the five major belief systems. Some of the similarities they share are: they are both monotheist, believe in the afterlife, and they share the old Testament in their Holy Book. Some of their differences include: the Jews believe that Jesus isn't a divine being and the Christians believe that Jesus was the Messiah, and their holy ceremonies are guided by Rabbis, for the Jews, and Priest, for the Christians.

Both religions believe in one god, or are referenced as monotheistic. The only other religion like these two is the Islamic religion of the Muslims who worship their one god “Allah.” Judaism or the Jewish peoples god is named “YHWH” is known as the Tetragrammaton. The Christian’s god name is “Jesus.” On a daily basis Jewish are supposed to pray 3 times a day morning, afternoon, and evening. Christians pray whenever they want to.

Meat: Jewish people can only eat meat that comply with certain restrictions. Cattle and game may only be eaten if; they have ‘cloven hooves’ (e.g. split hooves like a pig) and ‘chews the cud’ (cud is food that is regurgitated from the stomach to be eaten again). If the animal does not comply with both restrictions then it cannot be eaten. Furthermore, Jewish Law prohibits inflicting pain upon animals; therefore the animal must be unconscious (in way way that happens instantaneously) and then killed instantaneously. In addition, the animal is prepared in such a way that certain forbidden fats and veins, as well as blood, are removed.

Despite being the product of separate, largely dissimilar religions, Christmas and Hanukkah fulfill a similar goal. Although the specific food traditions throughout Christianity and Judaism differ greatly, the role of food in these holidays is largely the same. Food is imbued with a sense of remembrance and reverence, creating a level of similarity between two very distinct traditions. Hanukkah, or the Festival of Lights, is a central holiday in modern Judaism. Although it is not a Biblical holiday, it marks a significant cultural event in Jewish history, commemorating the Maccabean revolt and subsequent rededication of the temple by Judah Maccabee.

Kosher is extremely important in the Jewish culture. It goes in detail and says which food is kosher and what *describes* people can and cannot digest, as well as any object that can be used under Jewish law. Kashrut is the set of biblical needs and Jewish law rules for the foods that Jewish people follow for what they can eat. Kashrut and kosher go hand-in-hand. They both come from the same Hebrew root Kaf-Shin-Reish, meaning improper. The general rules of Kashrut include the restriction of eating certain animals, the allowed animals must be killed a specific way compiling with Jewish laws, vegetables and fruits can not have bugs, you cannot eat meat with dairy, utensils that have been in contact with meat that's still hot cannot be used

Judaism is practiced by almost half of the country and is one of the oldest and biggest monistic religions. The laws they follow come from the Torah which comes straight from the Hebrew bible. This paper will consist of Jewish traditions regarding food preferences and avoidances, death/dying, communication, and grieving.

It is also believed in both religions that God will judge humans when the world has ended. Their dwelling will be based upon their actions in fulfillment with a moral code which is addressed in the Covenant, or agreement, which God made with his people. Angels are believed to exist and are sometimes believed to be messengers of God. Muslims and Christians both believe that Satan, called Shaitan by Muslims, and the evil spirits who follow him exist. They are known as enemies of humanity. Muslims and Christians alike have faith that Jesus Christ was born to the virgin Mary through immaculate conception and will return at the end of the world. The two religions have many similarities in their moral code and practices as well. Intoxication, homosexuality, and suicide are strictly forbidden and are considered morally unacceptable. Likewise, the two practice fasting, charity, and good works.

According to Pewresearch.org, Muslims are the fastest growing religion in the world with a population of 1.6 billion as of 2015. Dietary laws have existed since the biblical years of the Old Testament in the books of Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy which explains the practices for Christians and Jews. The Muslims are no exception because their dietary laws are outlined in the Koran and Hadith as received and practiced by Prophet Mohammed from God. Hence, the Muslims jurisprudence is the Sharia law which is the religious law governing the members of the Islamic faith and it is a combination of both the Quran and the hadith. These laws provide guidelines on what is forbidden known as haram and foods that are permitted known as halal which means cleanliness and hygiene in food preparation However, for this practice to be effective, most Muslim countries such as Indonesia and Malaysia have a food certification program with labels to food which are halal and provides safety to the consumers Kwon and Tamang, (2015). How the food is prepared and slaughtering of animals also has to be halal and the Islamic law states that animals should be killed in a humane manner. The awareness of halal food among non-Muslims has helped with the acceptance of halal food. Also, the concept of Islamic foods in the Quran and Sunnah which will be considered halal or haram as stipulated in the