There are many vegetarian and fruitarian
passages in the Jewish scripture, including
the part Christians call the Old Testament.
Isaiah said "He that slays an ox is as he
that slays a man' and 'they shall not hurt
nor destroy in all my holy land' There is
a Bible quote 'break not the bruised reed.'
Genesis 1:29 is "Behold I have given you
herb yielding seed. To you it shall be for meat.'
Mennonites, Amish, Quakers
are known for nonviolence and
conscientious objection as pacifists
to war. But those faiths have not
as groups extended nonviolence to
animals by not eating them. Tfo Salvation
Army was founded by vegetarians John
and Catherine Booth and their son
Bramwell and had great success in
ending alcoolism by putting those who
voluntarily came to them for treatment on
a vegetarian diet. However for many
decades the Salvation Army has no longer been
vegetarian. Only the 7th Day Adventists
have promoted vegan diet from thei
beginnings. There is a split among Adventists
re conscientious objection to war. Adventists
may be the only worldwide food charity
distributing only vegan food.
Many Adventist men were conscientious objectors
in World Wars I and II. But many were not.
There are now a number
of Adventist centenarians.
Christianity was started as a totally
pacifist religion. Early Christians for
the first 325 years followed the Essene
Jesus' vegetarian diet until in 325
the pagan nonvegetarian Constantine
became emperor and convened the bishops,
presiding over the conference and demanding
removal of vegetarian passages from the Bible..
Vegetarian passages
remained in texts of the apocrypha such
as the Gospels of Mary and of Thomas.
The Dukhobors, followers of Leo Tolstoy's
pacifism were like him vegetarian. Many
migrated from Russia to Canada.
In 1947 the CIA when founded began
a program to militarize Christianity in the US.
In contrast to that program are the words of former
nonexecuting Minnesota governor Jesse Ventura who
said "'Thou shalt not kill" is not asterisked
with exceptions.'
Eastern religions.. Hindus, Jains,
Buddhists have a higher percentage
of vegetarians, such as the 540 million
vegetarians in India.
The Sufi Bawa Muhaiyaddeen lived well beyond 100 years. He taught
nonviolence in life and diet to his followers. His love was so strong
that babies would crawl to him from their mothers. A psychic friend
saw that the room when he was present in it was fillled with white light.
The article on vegetarianism and Sufism link-cited below recorded that
the Qadiri shaikh Abdul Karim Jili, said "animal fat strengthens animality, and its principles will dominate the spiritual principles."
Mohammed told his followers not to make their stomachs into graveyards.
The poems of the famous Sufi poet Kabir are full of compassion
and universal respect for all beings. He warned against burning driftwood
without checking to make sure no insects were harmed. Sufi teachers warn
that eating animal flesh causes the growth of animalistic qualities (No
disrespect to innocent animals is meant.)
Any one who says that meat can be medicine ignores the violence of
slaughter, the diseases in corpse food, the low acreage yield of flesh food.
There is debate about the translation of the Pali text recording Budda's
death. Did he die of pig flesh or of pigfound flesh which is truffles.
He taught nonviolence and abstention from meat. Sai Baba said that
in a previous life the Buddha had come across a starving tigress and
her cubs and had laid down in front of her sacrificing his life for them.
Some have experienced spiritual heights in meditating within the head of
the Amita Buddha in Kamakura Japan.
plumvillage.org
https://www.hinduwebsite.com/sacredscripts/other/kabir_main.asp
https://poetandpoem.com/Kabir/poems
bmf.org
Vegetarianism and Sufism
http://www.superluminal.com/cookbook/essay_vegetarianism.html