Are Christian Vegetarians Weak in Faith?

"One person believes it’s all right to eat anything. But another believer with a sensitive conscience will eat only vegetables. Those who feel free to eat anything must not look down on those who don’t. And those who don’t eat certain foods must not condemn those who do, for God has accepted them. Who are you to condemn someone else’s servants? They are responsible to the Lord, so let him judge whether they are right or wrong." - Romans 14:2-4 (NLT)

The above phrase "sensitive conscience" is translated by the NIV version of the Bible as "weak in faith". This is almost certainly a poor translation, since it is the only translation which calls vegetarians "weak in faith".

Another indication that it is a poor translation is the fact that Paul promotes avoiding meat later in the same letter. "It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything else if it might cause another believer to stumble" (Romans 14:21).

It is possible that Paul was addressing an attitude of arrogance among certain Christian vegetarians. If these vegetarians were becoming arrogant about their diet, then their "weak faith" was leading them to condemn other Christians.

It's important to note that the Bible is filled with vegans, and not once are they condemned (Link). This passage in Romans is not any different. It's more likely that Paul was addressing a growing amount of division based on dietary laws.

In conclusion, this passage was not written to arrogantly condemn Christian vegetarians. Rather, Paul's entire point was exactly the opposite. "Those who feel free to eat anything must not look down on those who don’t."

"God has accepted them" - Vegans in the Bible

Check out this video about "why God allowed man to eat meat".

As a forward, it's my opinion that people who obsess over trivial stuff in the Bible ("you must eat meat" or "you must not eat meat") have a view of a God that is uptight and unloving. This type of God doesn't interest me (or most people, for that matter). Fortunately, I believe that God is loving & generous.

1) God cares about animals, even to the point of knowing when they die. "What is the price of two sparrows--one copper coin? But not a single sparrow can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it" (Matthew 10:29).

2) According to the Bible, God initially commanded humans to be vegans (Genesis 1:29). In fact, meat wasn't regarded as food until after the Great Flood, which took place thousands of years after the first sin (Genesis 9:1-5). But why would God suddenly change His mind? One obvious answer is that all of the vegetation on the earth was destroyed by the flood. Therefore, for humans to survive, they had no choice but to eat meat, at least until their plant foods grew back.

3) The Bible suggests that God's initial standard of veganism will be reinstated in heaven. "The wolf and the lamb shall graze together; the lion shall eat straw like the ox, and dust shall be the serpent’s food. They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain,” says the Lord (Isaiah 65:25). Rather, heaven will be filled with fruits and vegetables: "On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations" (Revelation 22:2).

4) According to the New Testament, there are times when eating meat may cause somebody to stumble: "It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything else if it might cause another believer to stumble" (Romans 14:21). "Therefore, if what I eat causes my brother or sister to fall into sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause them to fall" (1 Corinthians 8:13).

5) To avoid meat sacrificed to idols, Daniel ate a vegan diet: "At the end of the ten days they looked healthier and better nourished than any of the young men who ate the royal food. So the guard took away their choice food and the wine they were to drink and gave them vegetables instead" - Daniel 1:15-16

6) When the Israelites needed food in the desert, God initially gave them manna (bread from heaven) until they complained. "Where can I get meat for all these people? They keep wailing to me, ‘Give us meat to eat!'"(Numbers 11:13). But God punished their demand for other food. "But while the meat was still between their teeth and before it could be consumed, the anger of the Lord burned against the people, and he struck them with a severe plague" (Numbers 11:33).

7) We see that eating plant foods was God's initial plan in the book of Genesis, and is his ultimate plan in the book of Revelation. Yet is it OK to live up to God's ideal of being vegan today? Of course! As Jesus said, "Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven" (Matthew 6:10).

- Check out my other post, "Animal Cruelty is a Sin".

Christian Vegetarians, Vegans and Raw Foodists

"One person believes it’s all right to eat anything. But another believer with a sensitive conscience will eat only vegetables. Those who feel free to eat anything must not look down on those who don’t. And those who don’t eat certain foods must not condemn those who do, for God has accepted them. Who are you to condemn someone else’s servants? They are responsible to the Lord, so let him judge whether they are right or wrong." - Romans 14:2-4 (NLT)

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Dr. Ben Carson is the American director of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) as well as a world famous neurosurgeon. He is a 7th Day Adventist Christian and follows the vegetarian recommendations of the diet.

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"Fred Rogers of the public-television program Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood, an ordained Presbyterian minister, was a vegetarian and avoided any products derived from animals" (LINK).

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Carthusian Monks
"Into Great Silence" is an award winning documentary about the everyday lives of Carthusian Monks, who live in the remote French Alps. "Dinner will be potato soup, a hunk of dry bread, raw fruit and water. Carthusians are vegetarians. A brother delivers the food through a little hatch." (Link)

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Methuselah

According to the Bible, God initially commanded humans to be vegans (Genesis 1:29). In fact, meat wasn't regarded as food until after the Great Flood, which took place thousands of years after the first sin (Genesis 9:1-5). But why would God suddenly change His mind? One obvious answer is that all of the vegetation on the earth was destroyed by the flood. Therefore, for humans to survive, they had no choice but to eat meat, at least until their plant foods grew back.

Before the flood, when humans were still following the Genesis 1:29 diet, the Bible says that humans often lived to be hundreds of years old. As one author puts it, "In the time of Methuselah and his long-lived ancestors, eating flesh was still understood to be a perversion of God's plan, and men obeyed the command given them by their Creator to eat only the produce of the earth." (Link)

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"Happy birthday to Loreen Dinwiddie, who has an awesome name and just turned 108 years young! She credits her vegan diet, which she started in 1922 with her husband, for her longevity. Loreen, a Seventh-Day Adventist, says she draws her diet from biblical teachings” (Link). The Seventh Day Adventist Church promotes a lacto-ovo vegetarian diet. Most Seventh Day Adventists are vegetarians (Link).

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Dr. Fred Bisci is a 91 year old Christian vegan Medical Dr. who promotes a plant based lifestyle for health and longevity:

 

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Paul Nison is a famous raw vegan who cured ulcerative colitis on a raw vegan diet. Nison is very passionate about his Messianic Jewish (Christian) faith. Here's a video of Paul Nison interviewing another raw food Christian advocate named "Don the Baptist":

Nison wrote the book, "Health According to the Scriptures".

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- Reverend George Malkus coined the term "Hallelujah Diet" after curing his colon cancer on a raw vegan diet.

Malkmus wrote a book called "God's Way to Ultimate Health".

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Dr. Rita M. Hancock is a Christian Medical Doctor who has been featured on K-Love radio. Her book, "The Eden Diet", promotes reasonable sized food portions as a way towards health. She can attest to the results, after losing 75 pounds on this diet! Rita doesn't exclusively promote vegetarianism, though she includes it as a very healthy option.

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"Mango Moses" is a Christian raw-foodist vegetarian. His music video will most likely make you smile: