Piercing God's ear

[RecoveringKinkoid]

If God had intended for no one to get marked up, he'd have made the Earth out of pillows.

OH! Oh! Can I use this as a sig?

[NightAngel]

*SLIGHTLY MORBID*

Okay, so far so good. As long as this doesn't turn into any type of religious argument or anything.

Now, I can totally get not doing anything to intentionally endanger your life or, say, cutting off your own finger just for kicks. I can see *insert most any deity here* being upset over that sort of stupidity. I could even understand God or whatever deity being upset about smoking- and I'm a smoker- but it kills. Okay, I get all that.

Here's what I, seriously, have always wondered about the body marking thing as in relation to piercings, tatoos and non-deadly stuff like that.
When you finally get to meet God, as a general rule, you're dead. Your body has either been creamated and is ashes in an urn or is rotting away in the ground. So... uh, why would God even care about the flesh you used to inhabit or whether it was pierced or otherwise marked?

It certainly isn't doing you or Him any good by that time.

[Antisocial_Worker]

Here's what I, seriously, have always wondered about the body marking thing as in relation to piercings, tatoos and non-deadly stuff like that. When you finally get to meet God, as a general rule, you're dead. Your body has either been creamated and is ashes in an urn or is rotting away in the ground. So... uh, why would God even care about the flesh you used to inhabit or whether it was pierced or otherwise marked?

What it boils down to, and I'm certainly not trying to start a religious discussion here by saying this, is that with enough determination and the Old Testament, you can make the Bible dance just as pretty as a poodle wearing a tutu on the old Ed Sullivan Show.

As a gay man and a gay Christian I'm quite familiar with that. I can't really help it that some gene or hormone or whatever wired Wire A to Slot B in my brain when it should have gone to Slot A, and now I have a hairy chest and go nuts for same. Seeing as I've been this way since I was a little kid -- if Geraldo had male strippers on, my mother could not keep me away from the TV and that drove her up all four walls -- I can only assume that God does not have a problem with it seeing as that's how He made me. I also can't force myself to believe that God cares one whit about me getting this little stud in my ear (and it looks bitchin!). To my mind, God cares a whole hell of a lot more about Darfur, the little kids selling their bodies to sex tourists in SE Asia, and all the rest of the misery in the world than about me getting an earring and questing ever onward in seach of the right black man with a hairy chest.

But to get away from that, and to go off topic here, when you talk about the body rotting you'd be surprised at how little it does that. Modern American embalming methods are creating millions of soap mummies every year. Go into a modern American funeral parlor, when you come out and get put in the ground you'll be lying pretty for eternity, if a little dessicated. When I was writing my last horror novel, I had to do some research on adipocere -- grave wax -- and learned a lot about the extremely unpleasant things going on underground in your and my local graveyard.

[Gurndigarn]

Here's what I, seriously, have always wondered about the body marking thing as in relation to piercings, tatoos and non-deadly stuff like that.

The best serious answer to that I've seen is that he wants you to impress people with who you are, not with what you've done to yourself.

There are, to the best of my knowledge, no specific prohibitions against markings, but there are instructions to be/dress neatly and avoid the worst of fashion. I could probably find the exact verses, but I'm feeling lazy and, honestly, this isn't the place for it.

[RecoveringKinkoid]

"I can only assume that God does not have a problem with it seeing as that's how He made me."

Thank you.

Your post rocks.

[AFpheonix]

But to get away from that, and to go off topic here, when you talk about the body rotting you'd be surprised at how little it does that. Modern American embalming methods are creating millions of soap mummies every year. Go into a modern American funeral parlor, when you come out and get put in the ground you'll be lying pretty for eternity, if a little dessicated. When I was writing my last horror novel, I had to do some research on adipocere -- grave wax -- and learned a lot about the extremely unpleasant things going on underground in your and my local graveyard.

Heck, we don't even decompose very well anymore just due to all the preservatives that end up in our tissues from all the twinkies we eat.

[Becks]

Wow, good thing I don't LIKE Twinkies.

[blas]

I find the woman from this post disturbing....

My mother (still somewhat of a zealot, but not as bad as she used to be, I don't know what changed her mind) IS a (Lutheran) pastor, and she *gasp* has both of her ears pierced...TWICE! Oh my gosh!

She's not a big fan of tattoos, but she has told me that if she were my age again and if belly button rings had been popular when she was younger, she would have done it. She thinks my belly button piercing is cute.

Then again, maybe we Protestants are nuts....idk.

[Gawdzillers]

If God created us with free will, why does she keep talking out of her ass about us being His property?

[wagegoth]

The Jehovah's Witnesses use the same argument regarding body modification. That's one of the reasons I'm a former JW. I pointed out to my parents that God accepted the jewelry from the Jews to be made into the Ark of the Covenant and earrings were included. And the main way that earrings were worn back then was by piercing.

I'm such a rebel.

[Arcade Man D]

I believe that the specific Bible verse she (the crazy Bible-lady) was referring to was something along the lines of "Do not mark your bodies as the heathens do.", which referred not to piercings, or even tattoos, but the ritualistic scarring many Canaanite religions performed as part of their religion. Basically, it was God's way of saying "you don't need to mess up your bodies to please me. I want you to be able to get a love life, you know." At least in my opinion.

[ContraCorriente]

She must be one of those Bible-thumping know-nothings that just go around spouting off Scripture. Nevermind that she was referring to Old Testament law. Does she still make animal sacrifices, too?

[Mighty Girl]

"Well God says I'm not supposed to reduce you to a crimson stain on the floor either, but I won't let that stop me"

[DGoddessChardonnay]

I'm going to Hell for the use of hairdye alone.

In that case, I'll save you a seat, as I have used hairdye as well as have piercings in both ears (one hole in each) and a scar left that's barely visible on my right hand (the result of a cleaning frenzy in which I was trying to untangle a mess of coat hangers.)

That woman sounds like she's either mentally disturbed and hasn't been diagnosed or she's on drugs, although my guess is the former. While it's perfectly fine well and good to have religious beliefs, when one tries to shove their beliefs (no matter how crazy they may sound to another person) down another's throat, then you have a problem.

If I knew where that nitwit is that rented our back porch from us years ago was at today, I'd fix him up on a date with this woman, as they sound like they'd be a good match (I'll discuss him over on Fratching one day.)

[Pagan]

As a gay man and a gay Christian I'm quite familiar with that. I can't really help it that some gene or hormone or whatever wired Wire A to Slot B in my brain when it should have gone to Slot A, and now I have a hairy chest and go nuts for same. Seeing as I've been this way since I was a little kid -- if Geraldo had male strippers on, my mother could not keep me away from the TV and that drove her up all four walls -- I can only assume that God does not have a problem with it seeing as that's how He made me. I also can't force myself to believe that God cares one whit about me getting this little stud in my ear (and it looks bitchin!). To my mind, God cares a whole hell of a lot more about Darfur, the little kids selling their bodies to sex tourists in SE Asia, and all the rest of the misery in the world than about me getting an earring and questing ever onward in seach of the right black man with a hairy chest.

EXACTLY what I've always thought! And can I just say that, although I am not a black man with a hairy chest, I love you!!

Slightly OT - The one I can't figure out is "God created Man in his own image". If so, please to explain why everybody looks different?