By the numbers, Christianity is one of the world’s most widely practiced faiths, guiding millions of people when it comes to living and interacting with others. Vegetarianism involves a lifestyle in which people abstain from eating meat of any kind, and this sometimes includes the by-products of animal slaughter. Vegetarians opt to abstain from meat for ethical and health reasons. While there are some Christians who happen to be vegetarian and vice versa, Christian vegetarianism represents a belief system that connects abstaining from meat to reasons based on Christianity.
What Is Christian Vegetarianism?
Christian vegetarians generally adopt the practice of not eating animal flesh out of a respect for God’s creation, concern for the welfare of animals, or both. Whereas many adherents of Christianity practice vegetarianism as part of fast for Lent or other spiritual journeys, these particular Christians abstain on a full-time basis with Biblical support from both the Old and New Testaments.
For these followers, the case for a plant-based diet originates from the Creation story in the book of Genesis. In Genesis 1:29-30, God tells the first humans that green plants were given as food to both humans and other land-based animals. Christian vegetarians and vegans believe that this notion of a plant-based diet is reinforced and validated as being part of God’s “very good” design. Isaiah 11:6-9 refers to a vision of an idealized future wherein all creatures, including carnivores, eat plants. These are common Old Testament references for the Christian vegetarian lifestyle.
As far as the New Testament goes, many Christian herbivores view Jesus’s life as an ethical guide for vegetarianism. They view loving the “unlovable” to extend to animals, particularly those that are usually raised and slaughtered for consumption. Following tales of the life of Jesus Christ, these followers believe there’s an ethical call to not participate in the slaughter of animals, as doing so dishonors God’s creation, including harmful effects on the environment and natural resources.
Doesn’t the Bible Promote Eating Meat?
The Bible is considered the primary holy text for the Christian faith, and it contains several examples of people, including leaders of the faith, consuming animal flesh. Jesus Christ, in particular, who is noted as being without sin, is also shown as eating fish in the accounts of his life. The argument against vegetarianism as a command or directive is made by viewing the actions of one who was without sin as something Christians should follow.
Christian vegetarians generally do not view Jesus’s actions as a license to eat meat, especially after considering the ethics of how meat is procured. Some commonly cited examples include the consumption of cats and dogs and the production of foie gras. In most Western societies, the consumption of household pets is generally viewed as taboo and morally wrong. Additionally, foie gras, considered a delicacy, is the fattened livers of overfed duck and geese. The production of this food is illegal in some countries and states. For Christian vegetarians, just because meat can be eaten doesn’t mean that it should.
Critics cite the vision of St. Peter in the book of Acts as a sign that vegetarianism isn’t necessarily a tenet of the faith. Peter sees a large sheet carrying various animals, and hears a presumably divine voice ordering him to kill and eat and saying that what God has made clean shouldn’t be referred to as profane. Herbivorous adherents believe that the text shouldn’t be read literally and that the sheet of animals is a metaphor regarding the availability of the Gospel to all people, including non-Jews.
Although Christianity is one of the world’s most popular faiths, there are many different sects, denominations, and approaches to the Christian lifestyle. Christian vegetarians are those who believe that there is a faith basis for abstaining from meat, with supporting passages established in the Bible. This movement crosses denominational and cultural boundaries, including early churches and modern associations.