Rabbi Yuval Cherlow is head of the ethics department of the Tzohar organization and the Orot Shaul yeshiva.
Rabbi Declares Genetically Cloned Pig Meat Kosher
If it’s cloned, it’s not treyf, apparently. Rabbi Yuval Cherlow claims that pork from genetically cloned pigs is not only OK, it is not meat! GMO pork, he says, should be considered kosher, even with dairy products. Cherlow pushed for rabbinic approval of cloned meat. He cited hunger, pollution, and the suffering of animals as his main reasons, according to a report from the Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
Rabbi Cherlow elaborated if “[the] cell of a pig is used and its genetic material is utilized in the production of food, the cell in fact loses its original identity and therefore cannot be defined as forbidden for consumption. It wouldn’t even be meat, so you can consume it with dairy.” He made a comparison to gelatin. Gelatin is made from collagen, the stuff that connects our tissues together. If gelatin is made from pigs, it is OK, so why not meat?
Cherlow also said that he realizes that his controversial statement will receive a ton of pushback, “Without being a prophet, it is possible to understand that there will be a great controversy. In my opinion, such a pig is not meat and it is forbidden for the same reasons that the halachic authorities ruled in previous generations regarding gelatin,” he told Ynet.
Of course, I am confused. Does the rabbi actually mean meat grown in the lab? One can grow muscle, the source of meat, in culture. This can be done with cells from any animal.
Should we be on the lookout for burning bushes just in case God wants to offer any guidance? And will that guidance be in English, Hebrew or Vietnamese or all languages? I will keep an eye out for burning bushes, and beautiful women behind all the trees on the island of Shemya in Alaska.
Sad snark. Does this make you feel good?