Why don’t Jews eat pork?

The commandment

Leviticus 11 lists the signs of a kosher mammal: fully split hooves and chewing the cud. It then names animals with only one sign. The pig is the classic example: “The swine – although it has true hooves, with the hooves cleft through, it does not chew the cud: it is impure for you” (Leviticus 11:7; also Deuteronomy 14:8). The prohibition includes all pork products – ham, bacon, lard and gelatin from pigs.

Why?

The Torah does not give a reason. Many commentators see the dietary laws as a form of holiness and self-discipline: “You shall be holy, for I am holy” (Leviticus 11:44). Maimonides in his Guide also mentions health considerations, but most authorities stress that the commandment holds regardless of any explanation. A Midrash teaches that a person should not say “I find pork disgusting” but “I would like to, but my Father in heaven has forbidden it.”

A symbol in history

Because pork was so clearly forbidden, persecutors sometimes forced Jews to eat it. The Books of the Maccabees tell of Jews who preferred death; the pig became a symbol of the line between Jewish faithfulness and assimilation.

Life comes first

The Torah says the commandments are given “so that you shall live by them” (Leviticus 18:5), and the Talmud concludes – “and not die by them.” When there is danger to life, a sick person may eat non-kosher food, including pork, if nothing kosher is available.