U
nlike his self-denying cousin,
15th of the month of Shevat, he
John the Baptist, our Lord, by
would have seen offerings of the
his own admission, came to
first harvests from newly-
us, ‘eating and drinking’.
maturing, young trees being
But what exactly did he eat and
brought to the Temple.
drink?
With the Jewish festival of
A wide variety of produce
grows in the Land of Milk and
first fruits, Tu b’Shevat, just
Honey, (which would probably
around the corner, (January 15-
have been date rather than
16, 2014), now would seem the
bees’ honey). The seven
ideal moment to investigate
foundational species mentioned
what is known, or can be
in Deuteronomy are wheat,
deduced, about Jesus’ diet.
barley, grapes, figs,
If he was in Jerusalem at Tu
b’Shevat, named for its date of
P32
pomegranates, olives and
dates.
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