Walking past a non-kosher restaurant, a rabbi couldn’t help but notice a prominent member of his congregation walking inside. He peeked through the window to see if he was really sitting down to eat. And he was. The rabbi waited patiently to see what he would order. After a while, a waiter wheeled over a cart with a massive pan and unveiled … a roast pig with all the trimmings, down to the traditional apple in its mouth.

The Rabbi is shocked. He rushes inside and accosts his congregant. “You? How could you?!”

“Rabbi,” says the man calmly. “This is such a fancy restaurant. All I asked for was a simple apple and they made such a fuss!”

If there is any one food that gets Jewish blood boiling it’s the pig. Did you know that there are even Torah laws against raising them?1 And not only in Israel, but anywhere. In fact, the Talmud pronounced a curse upon breeders of swine.2 Pig is repulsive to millions of Jews, including those who do not observe the other kosher laws. I’ve heard it myself so many times over the years, “Rabbi, I’m not strictly kosher, but I would never eat pork!”

But why single out the poor pig? Halachically, a cheeseburger is actually “worse.” While we may, under some circumstances, benefit financially from swine, we may not do so from a cooked mixture that includes meat and milk.

At one time, pigs were considered dirty and thought to be spreading all kinds of horrible diseases like trichinosis. But today, pigs are touted as the next source for human heart transplants. So why are they still so despised?

Well, we know that to be kosher an animal must chew its cud and have split hooves. The swine is unique in that it has split hooves but does not chew its cud.3 The sages thus looked upon the swine as a model of blatant dishonesty. The way a pig wallows on its back, it appears to be showing off its “kosher looking.” So, it makes itself out to be kosher even though it’s absolutely treif. The pig is thus compared to Esau, who would regularly ask his father halachic questions which made him appear to be a a devout scholar, when in fact he was a murderer and more.

Why is [Rome, descended from Esau] compared to a swine? To teach you that just like a pig, when it lies down, it protrudes its hoofs and says, "look, I am Kosher!" - so too the Kingdom of Rome robs and extorts yet gives the appearance as if she is holding court and conducting itself justly. 4

In other words, it’s not just that the pig is unkosher. Plenty of animals are. But rather that he makes a point of giving the impression that he IS kosher!

It is the deceit and duplicity that make him so reviled. In Hebrew, we would call him a “tzavua,” one who paints himself to look pious when inside he is a scoundrel. Just like Esau.

There was a politician running for office and in his election campaign he promised to lower taxes. But when he was actually elected, he raised them. When confronted that he promised to do the opposite, he said, “To tell you the truth, I lied.” And the people were so impressed. They had never met such an honest politician before!

The Torah wants us to be religious, but it also expects us to be honest and not to make false impressions.

So, more than simply being unkosher, the dishonesty and the hypocrisy of the swine is what makes him so abominable. He gives a holy impression when he is as unholy as they come.

I suppose it’s like they say, “Better an enemy you know than an enemy who disguises himself as a friend.” There are terrorists in camouflage outfits, but there are far more dangerous terrorists who wear pinstriped suits!

Please G‑d, we will all be kosher Jews, not only in our kitchens but in the way we lead our lives.