Food for the Soul

Just as there are foods that are good for the body and foods that are harmful, so there are foods that nourish the inner person -- the soul -- and foods that harm it.

The Kosher Laws are Torah's guides to those foods that affect the Jewish soul adversely.  Nay meat or fowl that is eaten must be slaughtered in the prescribed, human fashion.   Meat and milk must never mix.  Scavengers, predatory beats and fish, shellfish and certain other animal are forbidden.  Any processed foods must be produced under strict supervision.

Kosher Meat is Healthy Meat

If you're used to thinking of Kosher as an antiquated health prescription, think again:  Processed foods must be produced under strict supervision.  Meat and fowl must be slaughtered in a human fashion.

Since the animal feels no shock and little pain, far fewer toxin are released into the blood.  Scavenger and predatory beast are forbidden.

Gourmet maven Dr. Myles Bader writes, "If you want healthy, clean teasing chicken, buy kosher."  Non-kosher chicken are soaked in warm water to help remove feathers.  Kosher chickens are submerged in cold water for thirty minutes, salted to remove blood and rinsed three separate times to remove all the salt.  Since 48% of food poison is cause by contaminated chicken, this process could literally be a life saver.

A larger percentage of the animals slaughtered for kosher consumption are rejected.  According to the stringent Kosher guide lines they're not considered fit for human consumption.  almost all of them are sold on the common meat market.

Eating is Sacred

When they talk about spirituality, people think about mediation, prayer and maybe music.  Few imagine eating as a spiritual activity.  But according to the Torah, everything a person does is another way to infuse the world with spiritual meaning.  Especially eating.   When a person eats food with the proper mindfulness and uses the energy of that food for good things, the food becomes elevated through his eating.

That's another reason for Kosher guidelines.  Kosher foods are those that a Jewish soul is able to elevate.  Non-kosher foods are those that will only drag the soul down.  When enough people are busy elevating the world rather being dragged down by it, the world is able to reach it fulfillment, the time described by the prophets as the Era of Moshiach.

It is Never Been Easier to Keep Kosher

Seventy percent of the packaged foods in your cupboard are probably kohser already.  Kosher foods are the fastest growing segment of the food industry.  Going the full mile can be a smooth, step-by-step process--each step a mitzvah all on its own:

• Don't mix meat and milk
• Cut out pork, shellfish and non-kosher fish.
• Buy only those processed foods that have kosher certification.
• Make your kitchen kosher.