Leviticus 11 to 15 contain regulations concerning clean and unclean things. The first part of Leviticus established rituals at the tabernacle. Now rituals are being established in the home on a daily basis. Eating is one of them. Why did God tell his people to distinguish between “clean” and “unclean” food? Rituals have the power to shape who we become. The dietary ritual reinforced Israel’s identity & role in relation to God, to other nations and to creation. Since God was dwelling in their midst, God’s people had to order their lives according to God’s holiness, even by how they eat.