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In terms of the Abrahamic faiths (Juadaism, Christianity, Islam), Leviticus is the book that tells us why we must not eat pork. The pig and the camel are actually the only two mammals forbidden for consumption. First, both of them have cloven feat instead of a split in their hooves. This deems them to be an unnatural animal. The second reason for the prohibition on pig, is the fact that pigs do not spit up their "Chud". Chud is what all cattle produce after their initial stage of digestion. Most cattle regurgitate the Chud, chew it, and digest it once more. Cows are known to do this process several times. The reason most cattle must do this is a lack of proper enzymes to assist in the digestion process.

Seventh-Day Adventists and many of the Eastern Orthodox Churches follow this understanding of the Book of Leviticus. The book was originally written for priests to follow as guidelines. It is placed after Exodus but before Numbers in the Torah or Old Testament. Islam followed Christianity by several hundred years. The sixth and seventh chapter of the Koran (Al'naam and Al-A'raf) are credited with guiding the Islamic dietary laws that we have seen throughout much of the world. The Prophet Muhammad discusses the unsanitary nature that should be avoided in life and in diet, which is unique to few religions other than the Islamic faith. Perhaps the fact that Jesus Christ never made mention of pork directly contributes to its popularity amongst the Christian. Christianity has always been divided by the issue of literal interpretation of the bible, or some sort of academic critique based on the parable nature that Christ spoke in.

In the Hindu faith, the cow is revered for its gentle and docile nature. It is forbidden through-out the holy Vedas, or Indian religious text to harm a cow in any form. Pork is a common food source for India and most of the Hindu world.

It is now a more tolerated belief that most Pagan religions viewed animals as vessels for high powers or Deities. As opposed to the belief that specific animals were worshipped for specific gods and purposes. The reality is that throughout Celtic, Egyptian, and other Pagan lore animals (i.e. the pig) could take contradictory roles in many different tales. A notable example in early Egyptian lore Osiris the Sun Deity and Set the "underworld/chaos" Deity both are worshipped with pig idols. It written that latter Set, in the form of a pig, consumes Osiris's other eye (the Moon). Some say this led to the negative view towards the sacrifice of pigs, that may have assimilated with Greek and other Mediterranean cultures.