MARCH 24 • 2022 | 43

SPIRIT

Spiritual Eating 

A WORD OF TORAH

K

eeping kosher is a vital 
part of Jewish life. The 
word “kosher” comes 
from the Hebrew word kasher, 
meaning “fit” or “proper.
” And, 
indeed, the term 
itself has even 
entered the gen-
eral vernacular. 
When some-
thing is kosher, 
it is considered 
“above board” 
and meets certain 
required standards. As we shall 
see, kosher is an entire world-
view — a philosophy on food, 
and on life in general.
Before delving into the ideas 
and philosophy behind kosher, 
it’s important to acknowledge 
two things. Firstly, the basis for 
all mitzvot is that God com-
manded us to perform them. 
With loyalty and commitment, 

we dedicate our lives to fulfill-
ing His will, whether or not we 
understand the true meaning 
and significance of the com-
mandments. 
While acknowledging that we 
cannot truly probe the ultimate 
Divine wisdom and motivation 
behind the mitzvot, neverthe-
less, we are called on to do our 
best to understand them so the 
mitzvot can have a maximum 
impact on who we are and have 
a maximum transformative 
impact on making us into better 
people. This follows the philos-
ophy of the Ramban when it 
comes to mitzvot, which he says 
is about how the mitzvot trans-
form and make us into better 
people.
Secondly, kosher encompass-
es a wide range of halachic prin-
ciples and applications, each 
immensely detailed. There are 

the laws governing which ani-
mals are kosher and which are 
not, documented in this week’s 
parshah, Shemini. There are the 
laws governing how animals 
are slaughtered and prepared 
for consumption. There are the 
laws governing the separation 
of milk and meat. Each of these 
aspects of kosher comprises its 
own world of details and ideas 
and meanings, and we can’t 
possibly do justice to them in a 
short discussion.
But, we can make a start. Let 
us embark on a journey of dis-
covery. And perhaps, the best 
place to begin is with our per-
spective on non-kosher food. 
Is there something intrinsically 
wrong with non-kosher food? 
Is it simply unhealthy? Rav 
Yitzchak Don Abarbarnel, one 
of our great sages, argues force-
fully that kashrut has nothing to 

do with health. He explains that 
the Torah is a book of Divine 
wisdom, not a health manual. 
Furthermore, he says, there is 
no indication that non-Jews 
who eat non-kosher foods are 
any less healthy than Jews, and 
also, that there are a number of 
unhealthy foods and even toxic 
substances not even mentioned 
in the Torah as being unkosher.
According to the Abarbarnel, 
and many other sources, keep-
ing kosher is about spiritual 
health. The Maharal of Prague 
has a particular perspective 
and maintains that this doesn’t 
mean there is anything bad 
intrinsically, whether spiritually 
or physically, with non-kosher 
food. Rabbi Azriel Chaim 
Goldfein cites the halachic rul-
ing that if you have three indis-
tinguishable pieces of meat, two 

Rabbi 
Warren 
Goldstein

continued on page 44

