Page - 14 - in Limina - Grazer theologische Perspektiven, Volume 4:2

12 | www.limina-graz.eu LIMINA 4:2 | Food – Religious, ethical and philosophical aspects | Editorial in Jewish culture and faith in his article “Food and drink as an expression of identity and diversity in (rabbinical) Judaism”. Starting with a review of Biblical source texts for Jewish dietary laws and their rabbinical interpreta- tion in particular, Langer further analyses their function as identity mark- ers. Externally, they establish and delineate community identity. Inter- nally, they can reflect Jewish diversity, depending on whether and to what extent dietary rules are observed in daily life. Last but not least, Langer also highlights metaphorical aspects attributed to food and drink within the Jewish tradition. Ulvi Karagedik, lecturer for Islamic Theology and Islamic Religious Educa- tion at the University of Education in Karlsruhe, explores the multidimen- sional aspects of Islamic dietary rules with a view to analysing the reason- ing and purpose of dietary ethics in his article “Approaching a dietary eth- ics in Islam according to the Qur’an and hadith. A categorical examination of the primary scriptures to determine the relevance of food traditions to- day”. It becomes clear that any attempt at an Islamic dietary ethics must go well beyond a narrow focus on Muslim food criteria such as ḥalāl and ḥarām to reflect its various nuances. Karagedik further incorporates environmen- tal concerns, sustainability, and animal protection and welfare as central considerations and argues for an environmentally-conscious and animal- friendly shift in Islamic food traditions. Claudia D. Bergmann, lecturer in Hebrew Bible Studies and member of the research team on Songs of the Sabbath Sacrifice from Qumran at the Ruhr University Bochum, reflects on and explores the impact of crisis situations on religiously coded food cultures. In her article “Alone at the table? An- cient and modern Jewish responses to the looming disappearance of com- munal rituals in crisis situations”, she analyses ancient Jewish texts and their eschatological promise that the “meal in the world to come” will re- solve all social and religious struggles experienced in this life. This analysis will be contrasted with a review of current Jewish strategies to celebrate Passover 2020/5780 and unite the community despite the restrictions dur- ing the pandemic. The comparison between ancient and contemporary ap- proaches in the context of meal rituals and community building through rituals in a time of crisis reveals interesting connections and contradictions in search of solutions. Agnethe Siquans, University Professor for Old Testament Studies at the De- partment of Biblical Studies at the Faculty of Catholic Theology in Vienna, delves deeper into the subject matter in her article “‘Eat the food of the word of God.’ The spiritual meaning of eating on the example of Origen’s