Dietary Laws in the New Testament

It is clear from the New Testament that there was some discussion in the early Church about the Jewish dietary laws. Should (Gentile) Christians adhere to these as well?

When the Church expanded beyond the borders of Israel, Jewish Christians were faced with a problem: all Gentile food was considered unclean in Judaism and should therefore not be eaten (Hosea 9:3). There was also the issue of whether Gentiles (non-Jews) who became Christians should also start to follow the dietary laws, or whether this was a duty that only applied to Jews (see Galatians 2:12-14; Colossians 2:16). Jesus himself emphasised that there is nothing that can go into you from the outside that can make you ritually unclean, only sin which comes from inside (Mark 7:14-23; Luke 11:41). The question that was arising more and more often now was: how much authority should the food laws be given within Christianity?

In Acts 10:9-16, Peter has a vision of a sheet that descends from heaven with all sorts of animals on it. He hears a voice declaring that all animals are clean and suitable for eating.

This vision allowed the Church to let go of the dietary laws and with it all the other purification laws. A definite decision on this matter was taken at a council in Jerusalem: Christians had to abstain from eating meat that had been sacrificed to idols, from blood that came from bloody meat, and from sexual immorality (Acts 15:13-29). But they did not have to follow any of the other biblical laws regarding purity.

Paul was of the opinion that food cannot be unclean in and of itself. He did feel that Christians should be sensitive to fellow believers who thought differently. They should not offend them by eating “unclean” food in their presence or by offering them this type of food. Paul thought preserving peace and unity within the Christian community was of primary importance (Romans 14:14-21).