I've heard -- and am biased to believe -- there are some practical bases for kosher laws. Some people got trichinosis from mishandled pork, e.g., and prohibition is simpler than quality assurance; Other, non-Hebrew cultures cooked lambs in their mothers' milk as a "sacrament;" not doing so was a practical cultural differentiator.
My suspicion is that it started as an economic move. The Israelites were sheep herders trying to carve a niche in a dominant culture of pig and cattle herders. Telling them they couldn't eat pork and certain sacrifices had to be lambs was a way of subsidizing the sheep farmers. I came to this conclusion after reading a long chapter in the bible that talks about the breeding. Even back then they understood husbandry and economics. I doubt anyone had a clue about germ theory.
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I've heard -- and am biased to believe -- there are some practical bases for kosher laws. Some people got trichinosis from mishandled pork, e.g., and prohibition is simpler than quality assurance; Other, non-Hebrew cultures cooked lambs in their mothers' milk as a "sacrament;" not doing so was a practical cultural differentiator.
My suspicion is that it started as an economic move. The Israelites were sheep herders trying to carve a niche in a dominant culture of pig and cattle herders. Telling them they couldn't eat pork and certain sacrifices had to be lambs was a way of subsidizing the sheep farmers. I came to this conclusion after reading a long chapter in the bible that talks about the breeding. Even back then they understood husbandry and economics. I doubt anyone had a clue about germ theory.