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If halal food is not available, would vegetarianism or veganism be an acceptable alternative?

ZooGirl02

Well-Known Member
Hey everyone. I am just wondering about something. If a person becomes a Muslim but there is no halal meat available it is justified to become a vegetarian or vegan?
 

DawudTalut

Peace be upon you.
Peace be on you.
Vegetables, Fruits, clean water, beans, kosher meat, No alcohol.... Food of the people of Book is lawful. (Those who really practice the true form of their Book)... Believers are directed to eat Halal (permitted) and Taiyyab (good, pure).


Additional:

a- https://www.alislam.org/v/k-Halal_Food.html


b- As a note, one would like to point that according to Holy Quran, early Christians were very careful about purity of food as the following verse mentions a statement of those who were hiding in caves:

[Al-Kahf Chapter 18 : Verse 20] And so We raised them up that they might question one another. One of them said, ‘How long have you tarried?’ They said, ‘We have tarried a day or part of a day.’ Others said, ‘Your Lord knows best the time you have tarried. Now send one of you with these silver coins of yours to the city; and let him see which of its inhabitants has the purest food, and let him bring you provisions thereof. And let him be courteous and let him not inform anyone about you.’

alislam.org/quran
 
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niceguy

Active Member
Halal food have gone from practically unavalible to only in a few special shops to have those special shops everywhere like in the small town where I live. We also have halal food in our normal grocery stores nowadays. It must have been difficult to be a practising Muslim in Sweden forty years ago, now with migration of Muslims here and some converts the numbers have made it economical enough to take away most of those problems, at least when it comes to food. This is good thing.
 

ZooGirl02

Well-Known Member
I'm sorry but I still don't understand the answer. Is going vegetarian or vegan an acceptable alternative when no halal meat is available? A simple yes or no answer will suffice. :)
 

beenie

Veteran Member
Staff member
Premium Member
Sure, why not?

I think the point the others were making, though, is that according to the Qur'an, eating meat from the People of the Book is Halal as well. Many people, including Muslims themselves, have forgotten this. They insist that the meat be slaughtered by a Muslim only. In addition, Muslims can eat meat that wasn't salughtered to any God at all, so long as it wasn't slaughtered to a different God.

But to answer your question, Muslims can be vegetarian too. I think the reason you're not getting a simple yes/no answer is because you premised the question with "if no halal meat is available". One has to understand what halal is to answer the question. Halal meat is any meat not slaughtered in the name of anothe God, humanely, and not pork.

So yes. :)
 

Valjean

Veteran Member
Premium Member
Aren't the Jewish dietary laws similar to the Muslim laws? Wouldn't kosher food be acceptable?
In the US kosher foods are widely available.
 

Smart_Guy

...
Premium Member
Hey everyone. I am just wondering about something. If a person becomes a Muslim but there is no halal meat available it is justified to become a vegetarian or vegan?

Short answer is yes!

Long answer is no... just kidding :D

But I don't see it is a big problem. A little problem yes, but not a serious one :D

I mean, fish, seafood in general, is still fine as an option for meat as long as it is not served with alcohol. Same with edible plants (you know, vegetables and fruits :D) no matter cooked under which Abrahamic religions.

If I was desperate, I'd buy live chicken and slaughter them myself. They are much easier to do than cattle. The only problem is I've never slaughtered anything in my life :D So yeah, gotta improvise in this :)

The problem I have with Kosher food is that I can't be sure if the slaughter was done with calling the name of God to it, and with what intention. Some Jews believe they follow the same God we follow in Islam, but some others don't. If it is the former, then things are fine.

I guess I'm kinda lucky I don't like cattle meat that much :)
 
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beenie

Veteran Member
Staff member
Premium Member
Aren't the Jewish dietary laws similar to the Muslim laws? Wouldn't kosher food be acceptable?
In the US kosher foods are widely available.

Kosher food is absolutely acceptable, and preferred over meat of unknown origin for sure. We eat kosher meat quite often.
 

Smart_Guy

...
Premium Member
Ah, it is not like vegetarianism or veganism are prohibited in Islam or something of that sort! Even the radicals did not say anything abut it, and they sure bring weird "things" from time to time.
 

wormwoodbush

New Member
Short answer is yes!

Long answer is no... just kidding :D

But I don't see it is a big problem. A little problem yes, but not a serious one :D

I mean, fish, seafood in general, is still fine as an option for meat as long as it is not served with alcohol. Same with edible plants (you know, vegetables and fruits :D) no matter cooked under which Abrahamic religions.

If I was desperate, I'd buy live chicken and slaughter them myself. They are much easier to do than cattle. The only problem is I've never slaughtered anything in my life :D So yeah, gotta improvise in this :)

The problem I have with Kosher food is that I can't be sure if the slaughter was done with calling the name of God to it, and with what intention. Some Jews believe they follow the same God we follow in Islam, but some others don't. If it is the former, then things are fine.

I guess I'm kinda lucky I don't like cattle meat that much :)

Wouldn't it be more import that the muslim person believes it's the same god as the jewish god, not what the jewish person believes? Because I believe the muslim god and the jewish god are different, but if you believe they are the same, then you can eat meat dedicated to the god of my religion. Sounds confusing but I've tried to put it as simply as I can.
 

Smart_Guy

...
Premium Member
Wouldn't it be more import that the muslim person believes it's the same god as the jewish god, not what the jewish person believes? Because I believe the muslim god and the jewish god are different, but if you believe they are the same, then you can eat meat dedicated to the god of my religion. Sounds confusing but I've tried to put it as simply as I can.

Before I go on, and just in case, I want to clarify that I did not mean any disrespect by saying "the problem I have with kosher". Sorry if I gave such an impression.

Your point is crystal clear ma'am. Thank you for your post.

Yes you're right, it is more important that the Muslim believe so. Unfortunately the point is not completely here.

I'd like to ask you for some information in relation to this. Does Kosher slaughtering require saying a prayer that includes the name of God? Does every slaughter in it has to necessarily be done like so? In Islam, we say "in the name of God" right before the slaughter. Is it similar in Kosher? If there is one and it is similar, then yes, Kosher is generally fine with me as a Muslim. If there is a difference, kindly advise.

There are other rituals, but this part is the one that counts here.
 
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wormwoodbush

New Member
Before I go on, and just in case, I want to clarify that I did not mean any disrespect by saying "the problem I have with kosher". Sorry if I gave such an impression.

Your point is crystal clear ma'am. Thank you for your post.

Yes you're right, it is more important that the Muslim believe so. Unfortunately the point is not completely here.

I'd like to ask you for some information in relation to this. Does Kosher slaughtering require saying a prayer that includes the name of God? Does every slaughter in it has to necessarily be done like so? In Islam, we say "in the name of God" right before the slaughter. Is it similar in Kosher? If there is one and it is similar, then yes, Kosher is generally fine with me as a Muslim. If there is a difference, kindly advise.

There are other rituals, but this part is the one that counts here.

Thankyou for your reply. I realised when I re read my post, that it seems I was saying I am jewish. I'm not, so I'm sorry I can't answer your questions. I'm christian, or should say WAS christian, as I don't follow any religion anymore. When I said "my god" I should have clarified my religious status, my apologies for the confusion. As I guess is obvious, the jewish god is the same as the christian god, which is probably why I wrote "my god" in my post. :)
 

Smart_Guy

...
Premium Member
Thankyou for your reply. I realised when I re read my post, that it seems I was saying I am jewish. I'm not, so I'm sorry I can't answer your questions. I'm christian, or should say WAS christian, as I don't follow any religion anymore. When I said "my god" I should have clarified my religious status, my apologies for the confusion. As I guess is obvious, the jewish god is the same as the christian god, which is probably why I wrote "my god" in my post. :)

Oops, looks like the following is what caused the confusion.

...then you can eat meat dedicated to the god of my religion.

But no worries, I'll have to ask someone else then, I guess :)

And hey, no matter what religion or belief (including non) anyone follows, they are the same to me. What matters is respect as human beings. You seem to be an understanding person and we need people like that here. Welcome to RF :)
 

Eliab ben Benjamin

Active Member
Premium Member
I'm sorry but I still don't understand the answer. Is going vegetarian or vegan an acceptable alternative when no halal meat is available? A simple yes or no answer will suffice. :)

Yes, I am a Hebrew and Kosher food is required, i became a vegetarian long ago ...
strangely enough not because of Kosher laws, but because killing an innocent animal became
abhorrent to me at age 10 ..
 

wormwoodbush

New Member
Oops, looks like the following is what caused the confusion.



But no worries, I'll have to ask someone else then, I guess :)

And hey, no matter what religion or belief (including non) anyone follows, they are the same to me. What matters is respect as human beings. You seem to be an understanding person and we need people like that here. Welcome to RF :)

Definitely, I totally agree, that no matter what religion or beliefs people choose to follow, respect for everyone is THE most important thing.

You are quite correct in your quote from my post, in that me saying "my religion" was definitely the misleading bit. I should have chosen my words better LOL. I'm just glad you are an obviously educated and understanding person. I try to like and get along with everyone, not always possible, but I do try. Religious extremism is just silly, like northern Ireland Afghanistan. If people stopped fighting in the name of religion, the world would be nice and peaceful. Why force anyone to follow the religion you choose? It's great that you (you in the generic sense, meaning the general populous, not you as in who I'm replying to. Just wanted to clarify that, as I don't want to confuse anyone a second time LOL) like your religion, but it a guarantee that not everyone will like it like you do. It's your right to follow any religion you want and I'll fight to the death to protect that right. No one has the right, however, to force their religion on others.

I have really enjoyed discussing this topic with you smart_guy, I appreciate your educated, open mindedness. Maybe we can chat some more? I'm very intetested in facts on the islamic religion from a direct source other than the koran and similar scripts. I have read some of the koran, not able to make direct quotes, but can remember general topics, much like I can from the bible. The main thing I don't understand is how Muhammad is held in such esteem given his practises and ideals. Such as marrying Ayesha as a 5 year old and having sex with her when she was 9, despite her looking fully grown, she was just a child. Given the era they lived in, if you go by the biblical descriptions, people lived for hundreds of years, it meant, so I understood, people didn't marry till they were much older. Unless I have my time frames mucked up. Even if I have, I just can't wrap my head around marrying a small child when he was a much older man. Then there was his war mongering ideals. I'm honestly just after a real Muslim's opinion and thoughts on this. An educated person like yourself, who is able to give perspective without emotion. I'm not trying to spark an emotional reply by my questions, I am genuinely curious is all. Thanks in advance.
 

Smart_Guy

...
Premium Member
Definitely, I totally agree, that no matter what religion or beliefs people choose to follow, respect for everyone is THE most important thing.

You are quite correct in your quote from my post, in that me saying "my religion" was definitely the misleading bit. I should have chosen my words better LOL. I'm just glad you are an obviously educated and understanding person. I try to like and get along with everyone, not always possible, but I do try. Religious extremism is just silly, like northern Ireland Afghanistan. If people stopped fighting in the name of religion, the world would be nice and peaceful. Why force anyone to follow the religion you choose? It's great that you (you in the generic sense, meaning the general populous, not you as in who I'm replying to. Just wanted to clarify that, as I don't want to confuse anyone a second time LOL) like your religion, but it a guarantee that not everyone will like it like you do. It's your right to follow any religion you want and I'll fight to the death to protect that right. No one has the right, however, to force their religion on others.

I have really enjoyed discussing this topic with you smart_guy, I appreciate your educated, open mindedness. Maybe we can chat some more? I'm very intetested in facts on the islamic religion from a direct source other than the koran and similar scripts. I have read some of the koran, not able to make direct quotes, but can remember general topics, much like I can from the bible. The main thing I don't understand is how Muhammad is held in such esteem given his practises and ideals. Such as marrying Ayesha as a 5 year old and having sex with her when she was 9, despite her looking fully grown, she was just a child. Given the era they lived in, if you go by the biblical descriptions, people lived for hundreds of years, it meant, so I understood, people didn't marry till they were much older. Unless I have my time frames mucked up. Even if I have, I just can't wrap my head around marrying a small child when he was a much older man. Then there was his war mongering ideals. I'm honestly just after a real Muslim's opinion and thoughts on this. An educated person like yourself, who is able to give perspective without emotion. I'm not trying to spark an emotional reply by my questions, I am genuinely curious is all. Thanks in advance.

Hello again :)

It takes and educated open minded person to know and educated open minded person you know :) (tho I believe simply open mindedness would suffice)

I never heard of Ireland Afghanistan by the way. I'll have to search about it.

It is unfortunate that there is high percentage of Muslims doing atrocities, in comparison to other groups. I'm working on stopping that on a personal level hoping it would go over and spread with others. It is unfortunate that not so many moderate Muslims know English well to help. Even the educated ones are have their education with insufficient conversational English.

As for Ayesha, I'd appreciate if you open another thread, in this same Islam DIR to avoid vandals, so this one stays on topic. Tag me with the @ sign followed with my username without a space in the thread so I get a notification and rush to you :D
 
Hey everyone. I am just wondering about something. If a person becomes a Muslim but there is no halal meat available it is justified to become a vegetarian or vegan?

To the best of my knowledge Allah has given to me, even if you have halal meat available you can skip it and keep on vegetables.

Meat is somethitng that is not necessary, if you did not like it , skip it. The only thing is if you did not like any food then just donot say something bad for it.

Islam is simple and ease and not hard.
 
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