The Question of Vegetarianism

Prof. N.T. Wright exhorted us to live like we were living in the coming age. The next day, I stopped eating meat. My wife asked, "What happened to you? Did your father tell you to be vegetarian again?" I said, "I think so." She forced me to eat a small piece of meat. I refused.

She was mad at me and told her mother, "It seems Manoj is becoming Hindu again!" I said, "Nope. I am living like I would live in the age to come." "You see, my wife, there's no death in the coming age. Where will you get dead animals or fish to eat? Even wild animals won't feed on each other. How could we?"

So, I told my friends, "In the coming age, you will not get non-vegetarian food." The North Eastern guys said, "Man, you're kidding. We can't survive without meat." I said, "Sadly, my friends, you will thrive. But nobody dies in the coming age. Where will you find a dead animal or a dead fish?"

These days, many people are turning to veganism, particularly those who believe in radical non-violence. It seems vegetarianism also has precedence in the Bible. First, in Genesis 1, the creation narrative, we read, "God allowed Adam and Eve to eat of every tree and plant (Genesis 1:29)." However, they did not eat the flesh of animals until the fall happened.

Second, when Isaiah talks about the post-resurrection world that God would renew and recreate, he points out, "The cow and bear shall graze, their young shall lie down together, and the lion shall eat straw like the ox... they will not hurt or destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the "knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea." (Isaiah 11:7-9). The lion and the lamb will lie together, and the lion will not harm the lamb [for food].

The question is if all of us will become vegetarians and nonviolent in the age to come, why kill and eat meat now? I am writing a detailed paper on this topic and welcome your views. My thesis is that though the Bible is neutral about food matters—food does not bring people closer to God or take people away from him—it does seem to favor a "nonviolent standpoint" in an ideal world.

The world, at present, is not ideal. God allowed people to eat animal meat after the flood, and Jesus sanctioned all kinds of meat (including pork) by pronouncing them clean (Mark). However, in the creation narrative and the recreation scenario, the Bible seems to support the idea that people will not need violence to procure food in the coming age.

Therefore, I propose that if some people choose to remain vegetarian (due to their cultural influences) or become vegetarian for non-violence's sake, the church can consider it harmless and allow this freedom of choice. The detailed paper will soon be available on Academia.edu for us to read. Still, I would like to hear your views to help shape mine regarding this controversial subject. Thank you for your contribution.