Rabbi Miriam Philips

You Are What You Eat: The New World of Kosher Food

D'Var Torah By: Rabbi Lance J. Sussman

Thousands of years ago , Judaism recognized the essential significance of food in the Jewish and human experience. Originally, without explaining “why” we should eat some, but not all types of different foods, the Torah in this week’s portion, Sh’mini (Leviticus 11), laid down a lengthy list of culinary dos and don’ts, the textual foundation of kashrut , Jewish dietary practice and law. The Rabbis greatly expanded on this topic and today there are a variety of expressions of kashrut.