The morality of sacrificial work and vegetarianism
Hello Rabbi Avraham,
I just read in Tractate Zevachim a somewhat chilling description of the holding of the sin offering of a bird between the priest’s fingers, and I thought to myself, wouldn’t our world be supposedly more moral and better without causing pain and suffering to dozens of animals and birds every day by slaughtering and sacrificing them?
It’s hard for me to say this, but sometimes I find myself understanding and identifying with secularists who believe that offering sacrifices is immoral and inappropriate for our time. Although as a believer, I, God forbid, do not doubt the truth and morality of the Torah, I am trying to resolve the internal contradiction I have in this matter.
I would appreciate your response.
Regards
I didn’t understand why the identification is with the “secular.” It’s with the animals, isn’t it? And don’t the religious care about their suffering?
Some wanted to say that in the future, sacrifices will be abolished (R. Kook, based on several midrashim), since when the world is sufficiently reformed, there will be no need to cause suffering to animals. At most, plant sacrifices (menachot) will be brought. He writes that then it will also be mandatory to be vegetarian (I think vegan). Although, I assume that this will no longer be necessary since we are approaching the industrial capacity to produce meat and dairy products synthetically (without raising animals and causing them suffering).
By the way, I would like to ask, do you, as someone who identifies with animal cruelty, avoid eating meat and dairy products? This can be done today. I ask because many of us have a tendency to wonder about the Torah and the Halacha, but not to do anything we can do.
By the way, the sacrifice itself does not cause great sorrow and suffering. The main sorrow and suffering is not in the killing but in the raising. Eating, which is mass and requires industrial and mass raising, causes much more sorrow and suffering than offering sacrifices.
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Asks:
You’re right, I wanted to write at the beginning of my remarks, for the sake of fairness, that I am not a vegetarian, but in my opinion it doesn’t matter that much, because my question is about the Torah as a divine and eternal source that claims that the idyll is the offering of sacrifices. And not about me as a private person who is still surrendered to the lusts of his flesh.
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