Why did pagans take their meat to pagan priests before eating?
Pagans took meat to pagan priests because they feared demons of the air could enter their bodies through the meat. They believed a priestly blessing would keep the demons off the food, allowing them to eat it safely without satanic influence.
The context explains that these idolatrous pagans in Corinth were steeped in superstition and deeply aware of the power of demons of the air. Their superstitious minds reasoned that if a demon wanted entrance into the body, the easiest way would be through meat. To counter this fear, they took their meat to pagan priests, who put some kind of blessing on it to keep the demons off so they could eat it safely. The teaching notes this reflects how real and pervasive demonic power was in the pagan world, just as voodooism in Haiti demonstrates satanic power that people recognize as real.