Re: Why I Leave the Cheese Off That Burger

On Feb 22, 2:27 am, Joe Bruno <jbr...@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
On Feb 19, 2:20 pm, "Shmaryahu b. Chanoch" <Omega....@xxxxxxxxx>
wrote:





This is allowed to be forwarded without copywrite violationhttp://www.rabbidaniellapin.com/thoughttools/ThoughtToolsIssue60WhyIT...

Why I Leave the Cheese Off That Burger
Rabbi Daniel Lapin

February 19th, 2009                       25th day of Sh'vat,
5769                              Issue # 6
0

Forward to a Friend (which is what is happening here)

Two of the most common misperceptions about Judaism are that kosher
food means food that has been blessed by a rabbi and that Judaism does
not believe in an afterlife.

One of the reasons so many Jews mistakenly assume that their faith
ignores existence after death is because the Hebrew Bible, known as
the TaNaCH, contains so few references to what happens after death.

Indeed, throughout the Torah God promises those who live by the
Covenant a good life in this world rather than rewards in the world to
come.  In spite of its importance, there is a reason for this paucity
of information on the afterlife.

The reason is simply that the great mystery of death can easily
overwhelm our lives, utterly robbing us of passion and spontaneity.
Death, the shocking gateway to the unknown, can easily infect our very
essence, coloring our souls with a compelling but subconscious
negativity.  In some faiths, allowing death to become an obsession
makes people contemptuous of life and diminishes the value of their
own lives as well as the lives of others.

Thus Jews are urged to avoid all unnecessary contact with death.
Séances or other gatherings intended to ‘raise the dead’ are
prohibited. In no way does Scripture suggest that communicating with
the dead is impossible, just that it’s a really bad idea.

Obviously people do die and we mourn.  However the mourning is not for
the departed.  Safe in the arms of our Father in Heaven, they are
fine.  It is we who are impacted by the death and it is for our loss
that we mourn.  One purpose of mourning is to go through a formal
process that helps banish the aura of death, allowing us to return to
our normal exuberant love of life.

Being subconsciously but overwhelmingly aware of death inhibits us
from rapturously embracing life. It interferes with staying happy and
diminishes our ability to plan our lives and live our plans.  Though
we know it is there, focusing on the afterlife is just
counterproductive.

The seductiveness of death is clear to anyone who has slowly driven
past an accident scene, peering at someone lying on the ground. It is
equally clear to anyone who has sat in a darkened room watching a
movie displaying people getting killed.  Death exerts a fatal
fascination while, at the same time, it subtly disrupts life in ways
we don’t always recognize.

In an effort to separate our day-to-day lives from the oppressive and
paralyzing impact of death, the Torah commands Jews to separate ‘death
food’ and ‘life food.”  Meat is viewed as a perfectly legitimate food
for humans but we have to realize that an animal yielded its life to
provide that hamburger.  On the other hand, milk is the food of life.
No animal died in order to provide it and furthermore, milk is the
first nourishment all baby mammals encounter.

Both meat and dairy products are recommended foods in Judaism and
indeed both have important ritual roles.  However, as part of the laws
of kosher food, meat and dairy are kept quite separate in Jewish
cooking.

Ancient Jewish wisdom shows how the three time duplication of the
following verse lifts it from its literal meaning.

Do not cook a goat in its mother’s milk.
(Exodus 23:19, 34:26, Deuteronomy 14:21)

Scripture doesn’t waste our time with arcane commandments.  Who would
have thought of cooking a goat in its mother’s milk?  Instead this
passage reveals the cosmic truth that there is a deep gulf between
meat and milk, which is to say, between life and death.

As humans we experience both but we need to keep them separate.
Allowing the spirit of death to intrude can rob our lives of their
full potential.  While Jews should avoid eating meat and dairy foods
together, all who wish to enhance their lives can choose to block
obtrusive images of death in entertainment or the news and recognize
them as a form of spiritual pollution.

 -------------------------

Along with this, I recently read an article in Biblical Archaeology
Review (BAR) where the author was commenting about having Greek
Orthodox on Crete use seperate pots for cooking meat and milk.  His
insight was that the clay pots would absorb the bacteria from the milk
(ie yogurt) and if meat was cooked in that pot then the meat would
sour.  All throughout the eastern end of the Med is common to have
different pots for meat and milk.  At some point in history milk was
allowed to ferment (like bread and beer) in order to allow to be kept
longer.  Thus cheese and yogurt allowed longer usage of milk.  Modern
milk sauces would just not have been possible.

Both of these comments are interesting....

I rarely eat any hamburgers. My doctor is concerned about my
cholesterol and has me on a low fat diet.
Before I buy anything, I read the label to determine the fat content.
I allow myself 15 grams of fat per meal, no more.
The government's recommendation is 60 grams per day.-

I am in far better health, thanks to my military service (all of that
forced PT). If you do not smoke (one of the military's great "sins"),
the military does teach self discipline. Most young troops are very
much more into health than the older folks. Lots of lean protein
(chicken), body building and long runs. Far better than what we see
in the general population (those who do not follow a kosher diet and
eat at home). Wonder how it is within Israeli society?
.

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