A History of Pork Consumption in Christianity

Pork has long played a complex role across religions and cultures. Judaism and Islam prohibit pork consumption altogether. Meanwhile, Christianity’s stance on eating pork has evolved over its 2000-year history.

In the early days of Christianity, pork was avoided by some followers. However, it was gradually accepted and became commonly eaten by Christians throughout Europe and the Americas.

When and why did attitudes towards pork change in Christianity? Let’s explore the fascinating history behind pork’s shifting status.

Early Christian Attitudes Towards Pork

During Christianity’s inception in the 1st century AD, adherents debated whether followers must observe Jewish law. This included the kosher restriction on consuming pork.

• Jesus Christ and his disciples were observant Jews who did not eat pork. The New Testament provides no specific teaching from Christ on pork consumption.

• Many early Christian converts were Greeks and Romans who had no cultural taboo against pork. Some Jewish Christians sought to require new converts to follow kosher laws, while others argued this was unnecessary.

• In 50 AD at the Council of Jerusalem, early Church leaders officially declared converts did not need to abstain from pork or other non-kosher foods. However, they still encouraged sensitivity towards the customs of Jewish Christians.

So while avoidance of pork was not enforced in early Christianity, it was likely still avoided by some followers in deference to Jewish traditions. But attitudes were in transition.

Growing Acceptance After Legalization of Christianity

In 313 AD, the Roman emperor Constantine legalized Christianity across the Roman empire. This marked a shift as practices from Roman culture increasingly shaped Christianity:

• As more Roman citizens converted, the Church became less tied to Jewish customs. Avoidance of pork declined among Christian converts who had always included it in their diets.

• Pork was commonly eaten across the Roman empire. Roman cultural attitudes that pork was an ordinary, acceptable meat now prevailed among Roman Christians.

• Prominent early Christian leaders like Augustine defended eating pork. Augustine stated that no food was unclean in itself according to Christian doctrine.

While some devout Christians maintained a personal avoidance of pork, the widespread Roman cultural acceptance of pork consumption came to be the dominant view in Christianity.

Complete Acceptance of Pork in Medieval Europe

By the Middle Ages, pork had become an established part of the Christian diet throughout Europe:

• As Christianity expanded across Europe, it assimilated cultural food traditions of Celtic, Germanic, and Slavic peoples who commonly raised pigs and ate pork.

• Laws and writings from European monasteries and abbeys in the 7th-12th centuries show pork was routinely eaten by monks and nuns. The Church did prohibit pork at certain times like Lent.

• Pork was highly valued across medieval society for its versatility and ability to preserve meat long-term as bacon, ham, or salted pork. It was an economical meat source for peasants and a prestige food for nobles.

• Medieval Christian philosophers and theologians designated the pig a respectable animal to eat, rejecting notions that the pig was unclean. Thomas Aquinas argued God had made the pig nutritious for human consumption.

By the late Middle Ages, the eating of pork was fully established across all levels of Christian European culture and society. Any lingering resistance had long since faded away.

Modern Christian Views on Pork

Today, pork continues to be widely enjoyed in Christian-majority nations in Europe, the Americas, Sub-Saharan Africa, and the Philippines. Prohibitions on pork are characteristic of Judaism and Islam more so than Christianity.

However, some denominations like Seventh-Day Adventists encourage a vegetarian or pork-free diet as a matter of health or faith, though this is not considered mandatory. Some Christians personally abstain from pork for wellness, ethical, or spiritual reasons as a matter of individual conscience.

While societal attitudes can change over time, for most Christians today, pork is as standard as beef or chicken in their diet. The Christian Church long ago opened the door for pork to be considered acceptable meats for followers of the faith.

• While Jesus Christ avoided pork per Jewish customs, no universal ban was instituted in early Christianity.

• As Christianity spread across the Roman empire and European nations, cultural acceptance of pork superseded earlier avoidance among Jewish Christians.

• By the late Middle Ages, pork had become fully established in European Christian diets, shedding any previous taboos.

So the evolution of Christian pork practices reflects both the faith’s Jewish roots and its expanding cultural interactions across Rome and medieval Europe over time. The history provides insight into how food traditions meld across societies, values, and religious faiths.