Marbaniang, Domenic

After the Flood, God blessed Noah and granted to him every living creature as food even as he had given the green herbs (Gen.9:3). Prior to the Noahic Covenant, we don’t find any mention of humans being non-vegetarian. But, after the Flood, man was granted to kill and eat every living creature, with the following two conditions: 1. Humans, under the Noahic Covenant, are not permitted to eat flesh with its blood (Gen.9:4) 2. Homicide (murder of humans) is affirmed as a capital offence (Gen.9:6) When the Mosaic Law was given, God further stipulated meat laws that distinguished between clean and unclean animals and forbade the Jewish people from eating anything unclean (Deut 14:3-21). He also reaffirmed that blood must not be eaten but must be poured out on earth like water (Deut 12:16). Scholars have considered several reasons for the prohibition of blood-eating; but the prominent reasons considered are that God wanted to protect the animals from human cruelty and also protect humans fro...