Part 1 of 2 (Part 2, Part 3)
by James Ong
Singapore
My purpose for writing this article is two-fold. .
Firstly, it is to show that proponents of raw veganism as Biblical nutrition, period (hereinafter abbreviated as PRAVEBN) are actually spreading a diet heresy that is demonic in origin.
Secondly, it is to share with you what the Bible actually prescribes for good health.
In studying what the Bible has to teach us about nutrition and health, it is helpful to bear in mind a number of cardinal truths. First of all, we need to know that "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work." (2 Timothy 3:16-17, NKJV)
Therefore, in seeking to understand what God has to say about any topic, we have to carefully and systematically review all passages in the Bible that have a bearing on the topic, trusting that the same Holy Spirit who inspired, say Genesis 1:29, also inspired Genesis 9:3 and many other related passages appearing later in the Bible. Only then can we form a proper theology on the topic.
Secondly, we must realize that despite all that human beings have achieved in science and technology, his understanding is still limited. God's wisdom and intelligence is far superior than man's. Isaiah 55:8-9 proclaims: "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways," says the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts."
So when a medical researcher, doctor, nutritionist or religious teacher comes up with some new theory that contradicts the Bible, as Christians we know that either the theorist was biased or there were some flaws in his experiments or, perhaps, no proper experiments were done at all to prove the theory (see also 1 Corinthians 1:19-31 where Paul discusses man's folly versus God's wisdom).
For instance, it was previously thought that the best way to minimize the risk for certain cancers of the digestive tract, hypertension and cardiovascular disease was to consume a low-fat diet.
Today, cutting edge nutritional research tells us that there are good fats and there are bad fats. Certain fats are essential for health (the omega 3 and 6 essential fatty acids, EFAs). Without adequate EFAs, we will die. Even saturated fats and cholesterol are not as harmful as they were once thought to be as long as these are not consumed excessively. Trans-fatty acids in the form of heated refined vegetable oils, margarine and vegetable shortening are the real culprits.
Thirdly, we must believe that God is love and every commandment, statute and precept He has given in His Word is meant for our good and welfare. Isaiah 48:17-19: Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel:
"I am the LORD your God, who teaches you to profit, who leads you by the way you should go. Oh, that you had heeded My commandments! Then your peace would have been like a river, and your righteousness like the waves of the sea. Your descendants also would have been like the sand, and the offspring of your body like the grains of sand; his name would not have been cut off nor destroyed from before Me."
Before I expose PRAVEBN for what it really is, let us examine more evidence in the Bible that God intends for us to eat both animal and plant foods (you may read my earlier letters for other evidence).
Genesis 1:29 and 9:3 (NJKV)
Let us place Genesis 1:29 and 9:3 side by side to properly understand these two verses:
And God said, "See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food."
"Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. I have given you all things, even as the green herbs."
The first thing we should note about these verses is that they were both spoken by God to man in the context of a blessing (please read the preceding few verses). Certainly, one would not expect someone who blesses another to give him poison as food!
Secondly, if we were to analyze these two verses carefully, we will discover that both of these verses are very similar in structure. They are both God-given instructions to man, which may be further broken down into two parts - grant of authority and exacting of responsibility.
The first (highlighted in bold) involves God's grant of authority or permission to man that he may freely take the life of both seed-bearing trees/plants and clean animals for consumption.
The second (underlined) denotes an obligation on man's part, even a command, that man should derive his nourishment from both plant and animal foods. In both instances, the Bible uses the word "shall" (hayah in Hebrew) to show that it is not an option.
It is for this reason that self-inflicted starvation or anorexia nervosa is a sin condition that has to be dealt with. As the creation of God, we have a God-given responsibility to take care of our bodies by consuming the foods that God has provided for us. Animal food is not depicted as inferior to plant food in any way. It nourishes us in the same way that plant foods do ("even as the green herbs"). In both instances, the same Hebrew word for "food", oklah, is used.
In fact, the Bible often depicts animal foods to be somewhat superior. For instance, the Promised Land of Canaan is described as a land flowing with milk and honey, both of which are animal foods, not a land flowing with lettuces and tomatoes. Meat was often offered to special guests and eaten on festive occasions (e.g. Genesis
18:7-8, 1 Samuel 25:8-18)
Today, medical and nutritional research has proven God's wisdom in giving the instruction in Genesis 9:3. Human beings cannot manufacture Vitamin B12 and the 8 essential amino acids needed by the body but must obtain them from food. Vitamin B12 is found only in animal foods. Deficiency in Vitamin B12 leads to pernicious anemia (disease of the red blood cells), neuropathy (nerve damage) and brain damage.
Blood tests of vegetarians have shown that they are often deficient in Vitamin B12, essential amino acids, the fat-soluble vitamins such as A, D, E and K, even Vitamins B1 and B2, and certain minerals such as zinc, magnesium, iron and selenium. These are essential nutrients for health. Long-term veganism has been implicated in female infertility, miscarriages, reproductive disorders, low sperm count, dementia, Alzheimer's Disease, depression, blindness, brain damage and other diseases of the nervous system.
In short, vegans who fail to supplement with Vitamin B12 (the natural form of which comes from an animal source) and other micronutrients are digging their own graves. We must remember that in Bible times, there were no manufactured nutritional supplements or artificially fortified foods. All the macro- and micronutrients that are essential for health were to be obtained naturally from food that was eaten daily. How then can PRAVEBN claim that their diet is the God-approved, Biblically-sanctioned way to eat?
Animal foods are called complete proteins because they contain all 8 essential amino acids, the building blocks of life. Without these, our bodies will not be able to produce new cells (including hair, skin, sperm and eggs), tissues, enzymes, antibodies and hormones. Nutritionists believe that we need about 1 gram of complete protein for every 2 pounds of body weight. To get the equivalent of these from plant foods, a vegan has to eat a wide variety of grains, legumes, nuts and seeds everyday. This can lead to an overload of carbohydrates.
Experts such as Dr Barry Sears, Ph.D., have shown that having an excess of carbohydrate intake can lead to problems such as weight gain, increased body fat, production of bad prostaglandins, hyperinsulinemia/hypoglycemia and cardiovascular diseases, besides putting stress on the pancreas and adrenal glands.
Furthermore, to use an illustration from the IT industry, why would we want to buy individual word processing, spreadsheet, email, scheduling and database programs when we can buy an integrated software package that already comes with all these? Animal foods inferior to plant foods? Says who?
Before leaving Genesis 1:29 and 9:3, I wish to point out that there is another important reason why animal food was given to man. Besides providing nourishment, consumption of meat was supposed to form part of the religious ritual of animal sacrifices.
Notice that God blessed Noah after he offered clean animals on the sacrificial altar and God was pleased with the offering. Implicit in the Genesis 9:3 command is that God expects man to continue offering clean animal sacrifices to Him. These are to serve as the forerunner to the ultimate sacrifice of the perfect God-Man, the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. I shall deal with this very important subject in greater detail later.
Deuteronomy 12:20-28 (NKJV)
"When the LORD your God enlarges your border as He has promised you, and you say, 'Let me eat meat,' because you long to eat meat, you may eat as much meat as your heart desires. "If the place where the LORD your God chooses to put His name is too far from you, then you may slaughter from your herd and from your flock which the LORD has given you, just as I have commanded you, and you may eat within your gates as much as your heart desires.
"Just as the gazelle and the deer are eaten, so you may eat them; the unclean and the clean alike may eat them. "Only be sure that you do not eat the blood, for the blood is the life; you may not eat the life with the meat. "You shall not eat it; you shall pour it on the earth like water. "You shall not eat it, that it may go well with you and your children after you, when you do what is right in the sight of the LORD.
"Only the holy things which you have, and your vowed offerings, you shall take and go to the place which the LORD chooses. "And you shall offer your burnt offerings, the meat and the blood, on the altar of the LORD your God; and the blood of your sacrifices shall be poured out on the altar of the LORD your God, and you shall eat the meat. "Observe and obey all these words which I command you, that it may go well with you and your children after you forever, when you do what is good and right in the sight of the LORD your God.
This passage is straightforward and self-explanatory. Notice that God does not restrict His people over how much or how often meat may be eaten. Notice also that both the clean and unclean may eat meat. In the Pentateuch, "unclean" sometimes refers to people who are sick in the body. Hence, we see that God does not even restrict the sick from eating meat.
What I wish to highlight is the instruction not to eat blood, which represents the life of the animal. PRAVEBN often teach that living beings must derive nourishment from living foods, hence we must eat raw. They give the illustration that all animals eat their food raw.
For this reason, they hardly ever fall sick. This teaching is unscriptural, even demonic, steeped in New Age thinking. God expressly prohibits any thought that we can eat the life of another living thing. He is the source of all life. It is in Him that we live and move and have existence (Acts 17:28). His Spirit breathed into our nostrils the breath of life and so we became a living soul (Genesis 2:7). He alone is the sustainer and preserver of our lives.
Insofar as raw foods preserves most of the nutrients and enzymes, it is good for us to eat them uncooked. But we must never entertain the thought that raw foods give us "life".
Exodus 16:3 and Numbers 11:4-6
And the children of Israel said to them, "Oh, that we had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of meat and when we ate bread to the full! For you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger."
Now the mixed multitude who were among them yielded to intense craving; so the children of Israel also wept again and said: "Who will give us meat to eat? 5"We remember the fish which we ate freely in Egypt, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic; 6"but now our whole being is dried up; there is nothing at all except this manna before our eyes!"
My purpose for quoting these two passages is to show the typical diet of the Israelites during their sojourn in Goshen, Egypt. Yes, the manner in which they asked for meat left much to be desired. Yet, the point I am trying to make is this: on such a diet of cooked meat, bread and either cooked or raw vegetables, the family of Israel grew from 70 (when they first arrived in Goshen during the time of Joseph) to an estimated population of 2-3 million in just 430 years (roughly 10 generations)! How then can PRAVEBN claim that humans cannot thrive unless they consume a raw vegan diet?
The Diet of David and His Military Commanders
Let us look at the typical diet of David and his mighty men.
The references are 1 Samuel 17:17-18, 25:18 and 2 Samuel 17:28-29. They ate roasted/parched grains of wheat and barley, bread and cakes made of fine flour, beans, lentils, parched seeds, raisins, figs, honey, curds, cheese and mutton. With this omnivorous diet, David derived strength to slay Goliath, the giant, and defeated the enemies of Israel in battle.
The exploits of David's mighty men are recorded in 2 Samuel 23:8-39. Among them are warriors who achieved great victories in battle, one of them even single-handedly killed 300 men at one battle. Who says eating animal foods is unhealthy? And we should also not forget men like Joshua, Caleb and Samson.
Parable of the Lost Son
In this beautiful parable (Luke 15:11-32), it is interesting to note that the father of the prodigal son immediately ordered the slaughtering of a fattened calf for a meal to celebrate the return of his lost son. Notice that it is not just beef (or more accurately, veal) but fattened beef! If a fattened calf were so toxic, why would the father (which in the parable is commonly understood to represent God, our loving Heavenly Father) have done such a senseless thing? Shouldn't he have asked for a meal of raw fruits and vegetables instead, especially for a son who has been lost and malnourished for so long?
PRAVEBN are very much like the elder brother in the parable, completely misunderstanding the heart and intentions of God. In that parable, the father told the eldest son that all that he has, i.e. including his flocks/herds, is freely available for him to partake. Nutritionists know that a meal of fattened beef provides the severely malnourished man with the essential amino acids, essential fatty acids, fat-soluble vitamins, minerals, saturated fats (including the important, health-enhancing palmitioleic and stearic acids) and cholesterol that his body so desperately needs.
Mark 7:13-23 (NKJV)
"making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have handed down. And many such things you do." When He had called all the multitude to Himself, He said to them, "Hear Me, everyone, and understand: "There is nothing that enters a man from outside which can defile him; but the things which come out of him, those are the things that defile a man.
"If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear!" When He had entered a house away from the crowd, His disciples asked Him concerning the parable. So He said to them, "Are you thus without understanding also? Do you not perceive that whatever enters a man from outside cannot defile him, 19"because it does not enter his heart but his stomach, and is eliminated, thus purifying all foods?"
And He said, "What comes out of a man, that defiles a man. "For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, "thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness. "All these evil things come from within and defile a man."
Although Jesus used this occasion to teach the true source of spiritual defilement, it is very significant that He also spoke His mind regarding food. What was Jesus saying about food, and how do we interpret this passage, especially vs. 19? Jesus was teaching His disciples the basics of nutrition and digestion.
Food that God has given for man's consumption (i.e. both plant and animal foods sanctioned in the Bible), when taken into the body, is acted upon by the digestive system (represented by the "stomach"). The nutrients that the body needs are retained by the system and those that the body does not need are eliminated (when one goes to the lavatory, which is the literal reading in Greek).
God has so designed our digestive system that we are supremely able to digest and assimilate ALL foods and eliminate wastes that our bodies do not need. In the KJV, the last part of vs. 19 reads, "purging all foods." In the NIV, NASB and Amplified Bible, it reads, "He declared all foods clean." The message is the same - no food is to be considered impure or unclean.
How relevant this passage is for PRAVEBN! They make the Word of God (Genesis 9:3) of no effect with their teaching, falling into the trap of pride, foolishness, blasphemy, deceit and wickedness. For they treat the gracious gifts of God with contempt, teaching that flesh putrefies in our gut, thereby introducing toxins into our bodies. They even propose the theory that man's life was shortened from 900 years to 120 years because he consumed the animal foods that God gave him.
Doctrine of Deceiving Spirits and Demons
Now let us turn our attention to 1 Timothy 4:1-7 (NKJV):
Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron, forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth.
For every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be refused if it is received with thanksgiving; for it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer. If you instruct the brethren in these things, you will be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished in the words of faith and of the good doctrine which you have carefully followed. But reject profane and old wives' fables, and exercise yourself toward godliness.
Contrary to what PRAVEBN claim, "every creature of God" does not refer to plants only but to both plants and animals. Remember that Paul is a Rabbi who knows the Torah intimately. His readers are also well acquainted with the Old Testament and all of them are meat-eaters.
Why did the Holy Spirit regard the teaching that Christians abstain from certain foods as the doctrine of deceiving spirits and demons?
Here's why:
