Clean vs. Unclean

So our reading this week came from Leviticus. There are several chapters that lists lots of dos and don'ts. One of those lists being a list of meats they can and cannot eat. So here it is:

Clean Meats
-Anything with a parted hoof, clovenfooted and cheweth cud
-All kinds of Fish (those with fins and sales)
-Locust
-Beetle
-Grasshopper

Unclean Meats
-Camel
-Coney
-Hare
-Swine
-Things living in the water without scales and fins
-Eagle
-Ossifrage
-Ospray
-Vulture
-Kite
-Raven
-Owl
-Night Hawk-Cuckow
-Hawk
-Cormorant
-Great Owl
-Swan
-Pelican
-Gier Eagle
-Stork
-Heron
-Lapwing
-Bat
-Weasel
-Mouse
-Tortoise
-Ferret
-Chameleon
-Lizard
-Snail
-Mole

Pretty interesting list. Why such a detailed list? There are two general reasons, health and sanitation and obedience. A lot of the unclean animals listed, like swine, more easily contract diseases. Living in a time where their sanitation abilities were limited, Heavenly Father wanted to keep them safe. (Interesting fact: there were certain things that missionaries in my husband's mission could not eat, pig being one of them. It was meant to protect the missionaries from diseases that their bodies were not built to fend off. I thought it interesting that this still goes on in certain forms today) There other reason was to test the children of Israel. The Lord wanted to see how obedient they would be. The Institute Manual put it perfectly, "By voluntarily abstaining from certain foods or by cooking them in a special way, one made a daily, personal commitment to act in one's faith."

Although it is not so strict, the Lord has provided His children today with a list of good and bad things for us to eat. We call it the Word of Wisdom. Here's a list (found in Doctrine and Covenants 89: 5-17):

Good
-Herbs
-Fruit and vegetables
-Meat, used sparingly
-All grains

Bad
-Alcohol
-Tobacco
-Hot Drinks (meaning coffee and tea. Most members believe that herbal tea and hot chocolate are fine but some stay away from hot drinks all together)

The reason we have the Word of Wisdom today is to keep our bodies clean. As it says in 1 Corinthians 6: 19-20, our bodies are temples. They are used to house our spirits. Both our spirits and our bodies are gifts from our Heavenly Father. And we must be holy to return to our Heavenly Father. I am grateful for the Word of Wisdom. I am grateful that I have never taken a sip of alcohol or coffee or taken any type of mind altering drug. I have seen the addictions that have come from these things and I have seen the devastation that has come from that. My own family has been greatly affected by these things and I am grateful for the protection I have received from not partaking. There are always ways I can be better. The Word of Wisdom encompasses the health of our bodies in general, including working out and eating healthy. This is a goal that I have had that I have put off for too long. I am 21 years, overweight and I have high blood pressure. It is time for me to get my butt in gear! I am striving to be more careful about the foods that I eat and have been trying to muster up the motivation to work out more so that I can have a clean, healthy body for my spirit to reside. I know that as I do that, I will be blessed.