Tattoos?!

[MINKIII]

I WAS JUST DIS-OWNED BY MY FAMILY WHO ARE TEACHERS, SINGERS, AND EVANGELISTS.  REASON BEING:  ETERNAL LIFE- TOP OF BACK

                              LAST DAYS- BACK OF ARMS

AND                      ROYALTY- ACROSS STOMACH, PLUS A FEW JAPANESE CHARACTERS:  MINK(LAST NAME),JESUS, TO LIVE, TO PROSPER, ECT.

YES MY BODY IS THE TEMPLE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.  IT IS ALSO A GREAT WITNESSING TOOL.

 

 

[fragmentsofdreams]

The OT prohibited tattoos because they were the equivlent of circumcision for some pagans. They indicated ones membership in the pagan cult.

Since these conditions are no longer present, tattoos are fine as long as they are not contrary to Christian values. Your decision to use your body as a sign of your faith is laudable.

 

[KeepTheFaith15]

i dont see anything wrong with tatoos just i dont likw ones like allllllll over

 

[amie]

I am actually rather fond of tatoos...I voted they are OK. If I had one it would be a dolphin on my ankle.

 

[seebs]

*sigh*. I mourn for your loss, and for your family's loss. The worst losses are the self-inflicted; in days to come, your family will regret trying to sever those ties. Pray for them, and if they ask you to forgive them, try to; it's worth it.

 

[Jasco]

I'm sorry about your loss. Personally, I don't understand how people so close to God, can be so unlike him. Is it not correct that we should strive to be more and more like God each day. This way we will become more understanding, more compassionate, less judgemental, more tolerant, less fearful, less aggressive, and more univerally loving? It seems to me that your parents would have quite a foothold on these. However, maybe they are just temporarily blinded since something of the sort struck so close to home?
I hope they go back on their decision.

 

[ScottEmerson]

I agree with seebs. I usually do, except for those fun posts about homosexuality, but I digress...

Keep the faith - I hope that God can use your body as a living sacrifice to further His mission!

 

[feral]

wow..disowned, that must be tough! *hugs* i think tattoos are fine, as long as you are comfortable with them and they are consistent with who you are. don't get them cause your friends do! but..don't mind me..i have a huge tattoo of bastet on my back..and hieroglyphs..

 

[wolfling03]

I also have a tattoo on my arm. It seems to me that there are certain things that remain a constant such as "Love the Lord" while others such as "don't eat pork" are no longer to be lived by. One thing that we must remember is that God is a God of the individual and what may be okay for John is not okay for Jim. We must remember not to box Him in but to let Him have His way in our life.

Paul also said that if we live by the law then we must keep all of the law because if we fail in one aspect of it we break all of it. We are under grace and not the law.

I'm sorry for the problems with your family. Even if they considered you a horrendous sinner, they should as Christians, hate the sin but love the sinner.

 

[Havoc]

HArd to understand how a few Tattoos can make some people so uncomfortable.

My Tattoos are religious in nature. I have two that are protective sigils and one that is the name of a Beloved who has passed over.

 

[Bruno]

I have a tattoo. I got it before I was saved, yet I don't regret having it even though it is not Christian. God judges you for what is in your heart, not on your body. People, on the other hand, tend to do the opposite.

 

[Texas Lynn]

I don't have any but I want some. My wife has a small one on her ankle. My Dad has a bulldog with USMC Sergeant stripes. My Grandpa has a hula dancer and a battleship. My sisters have little ones nobody sess but their husbands. My brother has the Tasmanian Devil and his gf has several.

I think it's a matter of individual choice, though I would not be pleased if my kids, when old enough, went in for a lot of this modern primitives stuff like hanging metal, stretched earlobes, facial tats, genital jewelry, etc., but I sure wouldn't kick 'em out of the family for it.

this attitude comes from a perception that tatoos are "low class" from the World War I and II generations. Except for Native Americans, such wasn't widely practiced before the times of the World Wars, and then mostly by military men. Post 1980, more educated and affluent people began to get them more frequently. It's merely an old prejudice.

Minkiii, I see you are male, which must mean your clan is pretty hard-core in this opinion. I just checked your post again to confirm that. If you were female I might understand the dynamics better----just like a lot of conservative folks do their darndest to keep their daughters under their roof between high school and marriage or else under close supervision (IOW, they don't approve of social autonomy for a girl like they would for a boy, like getting your own apartment, out of sexism and close control----because a lot of people assume tatooed women are by definition 's!utty'. So, much as I respect Seebs, trying to maintain a relationship may be continuing to be problematic for you as I'd suspect they're harsh about other things as well.

Another aspect is anti-tatoo attitudes are mostly "middle class" and the middle class is obsessed with cleanliness. In the 50s there were cases of infections through dirty tatoo needles used by professionals and a lot of cities prohibited tatoo parlors. The AIDS pandemic only worsened that fear, though I can attest I saw a friend get tatooed and the tatooist uses a fresh needle every time that's sealed in plastic and they have become probably cleaner than a lot of medical clinics in response to AIDS.

So, you see, your tats represent an affront to their values because of class, hygeine, and prejudice (they may think disliked minority groups are more likely to get tatooed and in some cases like Hispanics that'd be right).

 

[Auntie]

Originally posted by Bruno
God judges you for what is in your heart, not on your body. People, on the other hand, tend to do the opposite.

Bruno, your post comes close to stating the real problem with tatoo's. Most people have to work, have to go out and find a good job, and hopefully, have a career that makes enough money to pay the bills and save up for the kids college. The job market is fierce, and yes, we are judged by our appearance. Our appearance is the first impression we make on a job interview, and I wouldn't want to possibly miss getting a job because of tatoo's. It's not worth it.

 

[Texas Lynn]

Originally posted by Auntie
Bruno, your post comes close to stating the real problem with tatoo's. Most people have to work, have to go out and find a good job, and hopefully, have a career that makes enough money to pay the bills and save up for the kids college. The job market is fierce, and yes, we are judged by our appearance. Our appearance is the first impression we make on a job interview, and I wouldn't want to possibly miss getting a job because of tatoo's. It's not worth it.

FOR THIS REASON I AGREE concerning visible tatoos in most cases.

However...this begs the question of cultural discrimination in emplyment.  If someone with hiring authority did not want to hire a person with a small tatoo on the arm or leg, it probably is not a good place to work anyhow.  I used to wonder why so many male African-American executives have beards...but then it occurred to me, the places that are willing to hire Blacks are also willing to hire bearded men!

 

 

[budoka]

MINKIII: I don't get it. Does your family only eat kosher food? Are tattoos mentioned anywhere at all in the New Testament?

 

[feral]

tattoos are an expression of individuality, i believe..and therefore if you want one, do it. just think about it..because it's forever.

 

[Havoc]

It took me 19 years between the time I decided to get a tattoo until the time I got my first one. Granted mine took a little more research than most but I think Feral's advice of think carefefully is spot on. Tattoos cannot easily be taken back.

 

[Serving4Christ]

I've always been told "Love the person hate the sin"!!

Even if your parents didn't agree with the tattoo, I'm sure they still love you, and like many stubbornesses we all carry, I'm sure this too will pass.

Some people find it easier to stay in FAITH by getting such tattoos just as some choose to wear the WWJD bracelets.

I do believe your body is a temple, but then again, who doesn't sacrifice their temple by putting all that junk food in it, or medicines, or this list could go on but why...you get the point.

Your tattoos are between you and your maker~! I'm thinking He'd rather see you in something like that than a BIG DEVIL with horns that says 666.

Stick to your faith, your folks will come around! Pray for them! Don't get mad at them. That only hurts yourself.

Dan

 

[Mephster]

I have a tat of someone's initials on my left upper arm. I want a tat of an anchor on my left forearm. (For many reasons, the USN for one... and plus I love the hymn "My Anchor Holds"

 

[brindlepit]

My brother is sleeve tatted with the Chevy Bow Tie on one arm and flames on the other. He's a study leader in CO and a great husband/ father. His comments about his decisions - "The Body is a temple for the Holy Spirit - why did I try to paint it better"?