NOTES for Dan 1:1-21
The first chapter of the Book of Daniel gives considerable attention to observing kashrut, abstaining from non-kosher food. In a pagan household, an observant Jew can eat only vegetables and drink only water without fear of breaking the dietary laws. Such attention to kashrut is unsurprising when we remember that the Book of Daniel was written during the persecutions under Antiochus Epiphanes and the Maccabean wars. Having first defiled the courtyard of the Jerusalem Temple with pagan altars built there on his orders, Antiochus then began persecuting the Synagogue.
Circumcision, the study of the Torah, and the preparation of kosher food were forbidden. In such a situation, a reminder of the need to observe kashrut sounded like a call to remain faithful to God and to the faith of one's ancestors. It seems that the author of the Book of Daniel is calling for uncompromising adherence to the religious norms and rules of Judaism — in contrast to those who believed that, in the circumstances, it was better to compromise. Of course, religious observance is not an end in itself, and religious norms and rules are not absolute; after the coming of Christ, this became clearer than ever before.
But it is one thing when religion becomes a principle upheld for its own sake, and quite another when it becomes a way of remaining faithful to God. This often happens in times of persecution: religion then becomes a kind of protective case, one that is more or less sturdy and suitable for preserving spiritual life itself and spiritual tradition — the experience of communion with God and the spiritual and ascetic practices associated with it.
Of course, all religious observance tends to become absolutized, to become something self-sufficient; yet when external pressure is strong enough, this process affects spiritual life less noticeably than in peaceful, quiet times. Religious discipline in a sense resembles military discipline: in wartime, military discipline becomes not only appropriate but absolutely necessary, whereas in ordinary life in peacetime it only does harm.
The same is true of religious discipline: in times of persecution, it often proves to be the only means of preserving both the community and Tradition itself, while in ordinary times it tends to harm spiritual life rather than benefit it. The Book of Daniel, however, was written precisely in a time of persecution, which explains its author's corresponding attitude to religious discipline, including strict and uncompromising observance of the norms and rules of ritual purity.