Jesus and Animals: A Look at Vegetarianism in Christianity

In a world where about 80% of the Earth’s population consider themselves believers, questions about how our religious convictions relate to everyday practices, including diet, are becoming ever more relevant. Christianity, the largest religion with more than 2 billion followers, is especially interesting in this context. One of the main commandments of Christianity is “Thou shalt not kill,” but how is this commandment connected with eating meat? Does it apply only to people, or does it extend to animals as well?

Humanity’s original food according to the Bible

The Bible begins with a description of the Garden of Eden, where God gave man plant food:

Meat is not mentioned as part of humanity’s original diet. Only after the Fall and the Flood did God permit Noah and his descendants to eat meat:

Many theologians, including those who lived in the 2nd–3rd centuries, such as Clement of Alexandria, believed that eating meat is a concession to human weakness. He did not insist on giving up meat entirely, but called for moderation. Origen, St. Augustine, Gregory the Great, Thomas Aquinas and other authorities of Christian thought held roughly the same view.

Conflicting views on meat-eating in Christianity

Modern Christians hold diametrically opposed views on how to interpret the commandment “Thou shalt not kill.” Some believe that eating meat in no way harms a person’s spiritual life. Others see the killing of animals as a direct violation of the commandment.

Tertullian, one of the best-known Christian writers and theologians, who had a significant influence on the development of Christian thought, was an unwavering supporter of vegetarianism. He criticized meat-eating, as well as other theologians who justified it by appealing to the Bible and the authority of the apostle Paul. For Tertullian, killing animals for food was a sin that harmed a person’s spiritual development.

Today only a few Christian groups, such as the Seventh-day Adventists, actively promote vegetarianism as part of a healthy lifestyle and of caring for God’s creation. Other preachers call the eating of meat in the Bible “a concession to our hardness of heart,” but there are also those who see nothing wrong with eating meat.

Jesus Christ and his attitude toward animals

To understand Jesus’ true attitude toward animals, we need to immerse ourselves in the historical atmosphere of ancient Israel in the time of Christ.

Jesus Christ was born and grew up in Galilee, in the north of ancient Judea, in a family that professed Judaism. He followed Jewish traditions: he was circumcised on the eighth day after his birth, regularly attended the synagogue on the Sabbath and observed the Jewish festivals, such as Passover.

In his teaching Jesus relied on the moral principles of the Old Testament, such as love for God and one’s neighbor, justice, mercy and the commandment “Thou shalt not kill.” He emphasized:

Temple sacrifices and Jesus’ protest

The Jewish temples of Jesus’ time were places where great crowds gathered, especially during festivals. Their distinctive feature was the regular sacrifice of animals—an important part of the religious cult prescribed in the Torah.

According to Jewish law, one could eat only the meat of animals considered “clean”: ruminant mammals with split hooves, birds from the list permitted in the Torah, and fish with scales and fins. In those times animals were slaughtered within the temple precincts, and it was not permitted to eat an animal that had not been offered in sacrifice.

Archaeologists have found a great many bones of slaughtered animals in the vicinity of the Jerusalem Temple—tens of thousands of remains of sheep, goats, cattle and birds. This confirms the testimony of the historian Josephus Flavius about mass sacrifices, which he described as “an enormous slaughterhouse.”

When Jesus was 33 years old, a unique event took place that is described in all four canonical Gospels. In the Jerusalem Temple Jesus showed his anger by driving out the merchants. This act caused a huge stir, especially among the priests. A few days after this event Jesus was crucified.

The expulsion of the merchants: what really outraged Jesus?

What was it that so outraged the usually restrained Jesus? Was it really only the money changers, who exchanged money for the pilgrims?

Dr. James Tabor, a well-known professor at Oxford University who specializes in the study of ancient Judaism and early Christianity, believes that driving the merchants out of the Temple was not a protest against the money changers alone. In his view, Jesus was protesting above all against the cruel practice of animal sacrifice. “Seeing the cruel treatment of animals made Jesus lose his temper. He became so angry that he drove the people out into the street and closed the Temple for a whole day,” the professor states.

Jesus and the Nazirites: a vegetarian connection?

Researchers ask why Jesus was called “Jesus of Nazareth” if the settlement of Nazareth is mentioned neither in the Old Testament, nor in the works of Josephus Flavius, nor in Roman documents. Some scholars suggest that Christ was not simply Jesus of Nazareth but “Jesus the Nazirite.”

The Nazirites are mentioned repeatedly in the Old Testament as righteous people: “I raised up some of your sons as prophets, and some of your young men as Nazirites. Is it not so, O you children of Israel? says the Lord.”

The Hebrew word “nazir” means “separated,” “consecrated.” From it come the Greek “nazoraios” and the Latin “nazareus,” which were used to designate the Nazirites.

Epiphanius of Cyprus (4th century) mentions in his treatise Panarion that the Nazirites abstained from meat. Jerome of Stridon (5th century) wrote that the Nazirites did not eat meat or drink wine, following strict rules of asceticism.

An especially well-known Nazirite is John the Baptist, revered throughout the Christian world as the forerunner of Jesus Christ. In Christian iconography he is often depicted with the attributes of a Nazirite: long hair and a beard, and clothing of camel’s hair.

Researchers suggest that Jesus, like his forerunner, may have been a Nazirite, and that this is why he was called “Jesus the Nazirite.” However, this version is not supported by the official Church, which creates certain contradictions in Christian theology.

The Dead Sea Scrolls and the vegetarianism of Jesus

In the mid-20th century, sensational manuscripts were discovered dating from the period between the 3rd century BCE and the 1st century CE—the Qumran manuscripts, or the Dead Sea Scrolls.

The American scholar Robert Eisenman, one of the leading experts on these scrolls, argues in his book James the Brother of Jesus that James led a community that strictly observed the Law of Moses, including the commandment “Thou shalt not kill,” which it applied to animals as well. According to Eisenman, James’s brother, Jesus, also belonged to this community and was therefore opposed to animal sacrifice and to eating meat.

Charles Lavie also maintains that Jesus was a vegetarian and that his early followers practiced vegetarianism. He notes that the Book of Genesis describes how Adam and Eve in the garden of paradise ate only plant food, and he interprets this as God’s original plan for humanity.

The monastic tradition of vegetarianism on Mount Athos

The Holy Mountain of Athos, one of the oldest centers of Christian monasticism, inherited the tradition of abstaining from meat. The first written references to this practice are found in monastic rules of the 10th–11th centuries, for example in the typikon of St. Athanasius the Athonite, the founder of the Great Lavra.

In the following centuries the tradition of vegetarianism on Athos only grew stronger. Byzantine emperors and patriarchs issued decrees in support of this practice. Today all 20 monasteries of Athos keep a meatless diet. Meat may not be eaten there by the monks, nor by the pilgrims.

The monks regard giving up meat as a means of spiritual purification and of struggling against the passions of the flesh. The Church Fathers taught that meat can inflame the passions and hinder spiritual growth. However, the Athonite standards are far from being observed everywhere in the Christian world.

The theology of our relationship with animals: the view of modern theology

Of particular note are the works of Andrew Linzey, an ordained priest of the Church of England and a professor of theology at Oxford University.

Linzey argues that animals have intrinsic value in God’s eyes and are not merely instruments for satisfying human needs. He rejects the idea of man as the center of the universe, believing that it distorts Christian teaching.

In Linzey’s view:

• God created all beings, which means that animals have value in themselves, and not only in relation to human beings
• Redemption in Christ concerns not only people but the whole of creation, including animals
• The Kingdom of God is a state of peace and harmony in which there is no violence or exploitation, including toward animals

Linzey criticizes modern industrial animal farming, considering it incompatible with the Christian values of love, compassion and care for creation. He regards vegetarianism as a Christian ideal that corresponds to God’s original design for creation.

Linzey’s interpretation of Jesus’ actions in the Jerusalem Temple is especially interesting. He sees in them not just anger at the merchants but a profound protest against the system of animal sacrifice, which was turning a holy place into a place of violence and killing. Linzey directly links Jesus’ actions in the Temple with his subsequent crucifixion: by staging a protest against the slaughter of animals, Jesus challenged the religious and political authorities of his time, and this led to his execution.

Conclusion: Christian ethics and our attitude toward animals today

The question of Christianity’s attitude toward eating meat remains open. On the one hand, many modern Christians consider eating meat permissible and not contrary to the teaching of Christ. On the other hand, a growing number of people see in vegetarianism a return to God’s original design of harmonious relationships among all His creatures.

Historical and theological research points to the possibility that the early Christian communities and Jesus himself may have been vegetarian. The tradition of abstaining from meat lives on in monastic practice, especially on Athos.

In today’s world, where meat consumption has more than tripled over the past 50 years, the ethical treatment of animals is becoming an ever more pressing question for believers. Perhaps rethinking Christian teaching in the light of compassion for all living beings could be an important step toward a more harmonious world.