Tattoo's

[ernest_theweedwhackerguy]

Since the piercings thread is up and running, lets stick this one right next to it. I want to see what people think about tattoo's since I've seen what some have thought about piercings. Are tattoo's good or evil?

 

[Canuckmom]

I voted yes. It seems to me that if one has to go to such extremes to decorate the body, it's like saying to God, "I don't like the way You made me."

 

[Mikeb85]

Depends on what's depicted in the tattoo...

 

[ernest_theweedwhackerguy]

Why should the picture matter? A tattoo is a tattoo, regardless.

 

[daveleau]

There should be a "It depends" choice in the poll. I believe the intent of the tattoo determines if it desecrates the body or not.

In regards to decorations, items such as jewelry, cutting one's hair, and nice looking clothing (not excessive, just nice) could fall under the same category of implying to God that His creation of us was not pretty enough. We have a tendency to dress our bodies up.

I see nothing wrong with tattoos. Tattoos are a decision that must be taken seriously, and our ability to testify should be taken into account. There are some that would be turned off by tattoos, while others would be more accepting of a person if they have tattoos. I have seen both in my personal life.

The content is key, as well. My wife has two tasteful cross tattoos. I have none. My wife is a very devout Christian, and serves God in her work as an artist, in the church and in the community. I have seen people react uncharitably to her tattoos, which to me highlights their weakness in the faith than anything else, as I know of her dedication to Jesus.

Regardless of your personal view of tattoos, I would encourage people to not judge "the book by its cover" when it comes to people with tattoos. The intent of the tattoo says more than the mere existence of a tattoo.

In Christ,
Dave

 

[Mikeb85]

Why should the picture matter? A tattoo is a tattoo, regardless.

Are you saying that a tattoo of a cross on your body is the same as a tattoo of a pagan symbol?

Galatians 6:17 - From now on let no one trouble me, for I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus.

Interpret it how you want, I'm not necessarily saying that this passage is condoning tattoos, but obviously Paul has some marks (scars, injuries?) on his body from preaching the gospel. And what is a tattoo, but a scar, a symbol of events in our lives, or our personal beliefs?

I'm just saying that if someone goes out and gets a tattoo for the RIGHT reasons, I don't think they're going to be judged harshly by the Lord for having a tattoo.

PS. If you want to quote Leviticus, then at the very least take into account the CONTEXT that the laws were written in, and how we view the rest of the laws...

 

[Hisbygrace]

Do they desecrate the body, I don't know. But from most I've seen they do multilate the skin. Believe me my youngest son is covered with them.

 

[arunma]

No, I don't believe that tattoos (or piercings, for that matter) desecrate the body. At least no more so than pig's flesh. Only what comes from within can defile the body. So if a person were to get blasphemous tattoos or other markings that are dishonoring to God, then such a thing would desecrate a person. But in principle, I see nothing wrong with a tattoo.

No way I'd ever get one, though...

 

[Richard]

There should be a "It depends" choice in the poll. I believe the intent of the tattoo determines if it desecrates the body or not.

In regards to decorations, items such as jewelry, cutting one's hair, and nice looking clothing (not excessive, just nice) could fall under the same category of implying to God that His creation of us was not pretty enough. We have a tendency to dress our bodies up.

I see nothing wrong with tattoos. Tattoos are a decision that must be taken seriously, and our ability to testify should be taken into account. There are some that would be turned off by tattoos, while others would be more accepting of a person if they have tattoos. I have seen both in my personal life.

The content is key, as well. My wife has two tasteful cross tattoos. I have none. My wife is a very devout Christian, and serves God in her work as an artist, in the church and in the community. I have seen people react uncharitably to her tattoos, which to me highlights their weakness in the faith than anything else, as I know of her dedication to Jesus.

Regardless of your personal view of tattoos, I would encourage people to not judge "the book by its cover" when it comes to people with tattoos. The intent of the tattoo says more than the mere existence of a tattoo.

In Christ,
Dave

Well said. I selected yes because there wasn't a "depends" on there. I think it really depends on what the tattoo actually is.

 

[ernest_theweedwhackerguy]

Are you saying that a tattoo of a cross on your body is the same as a tattoo of a pagan symbol?

Galatians 6:17 - From now on let no one trouble me, for I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus.

Interpret it how you want, I'm not necessarily saying that this passage is condoning tattoos, but obviously Paul has some marks (scars, injuries?) on his body from preaching the gospel. And what is a tattoo, but a scar, a symbol of events in our lives, or our personal beliefs?

I'm just saying that if someone goes out and gets a tattoo for the RIGHT reasons, I don't think they're going to be judged harshly by the Lord for having a tattoo.

PS. If you want to quote Leviticus, then at the very least take into account the CONTEXT that the laws were written in, and how we view the rest of the laws...

I'm sorry, but you're the one that needs to interpret correctly when you're trying to read a verse:

"Galatians 6:17 - From now on let no one trouble me, for I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus."

Now take a look, and see how it says "IN my body the marks of the Lord Jesus."? This verse goes along more with what arunma said and how I believe. So, thanks actually, for posting it.

I don't think that tattoo's would desicrate the body because your holy temple is inside you, and it's how you feel about God rather than it just being your body.

And why would what the tattoo is matter? Everybody makes mistakes, so do you think if somebody who had a bunch of alchemaic symbols on their neck, arms and chest converted to Christianity, that they wouldn't be accepted by God because they desicrated their body?

 

[Mikeb85]

I'm sorry, but you're the one that needs to interpret correctly when you're trying to read a verse:

"Galatians 6:17 - From now on let no one trouble me, for I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus."

Now take a look, and see how it says "IN my body the marks of the Lord Jesus."? This verse goes along more with what arunma said and how I believe. So, thanks actually, for posting it.

I don't think that tattoo's would desicrate the body because your holy temple is inside you, and it's how you feel about God rather than it just being your body.

And why would what the tattoo is matter? Everybody makes mistakes, so do you think if somebody who had a bunch of alchemaic symbols on their neck, arms and chest converted to Christianity, that they wouldn't be accepted by God because they desicrated their body?

First of all, there are several translations for Galatians 6:17, and many of them actually do refer to scars/branding ON the body. For instance, the NASB version reads, "From now on let no one cause trouble for me, for I bear on my body the brand-marks of Jesus."

http://www.blueletterbible.org/cgi-bin/versions.pl?book=Gal&chapter=6&verse=17&version=KJV#17

Second, if someone who's already a Christian knowingly gets un-Christian tattoos, that's not doing God's will. Keep in mind many symbols are also thought to have magic powers, and tattooing yourself with them is thought to give you powers...(in certain pagan practices) So yes, the tattoo itself does matter.

That being said, if someone with tattoos converts TO Christianity, I don't think their tattoos matter as far as salvation goes.

 

[ernest_theweedwhackerguy]

Can you get the Greek text, and then the translation for that verse, Mike? I'm interested in what that would say...

 

[Mikeb85]

Can you get the Greek text, and then the translation for that verse, Mike? I'm interested in what that would say...

Yes, you can access the Greek text from that same website. The word in question is ἐν, which can be translated meaning "in, on, by, with, among, at, etc..." Which is why you get slightly different english translations. The word στίγμα (stē'g-mä)is translated as marks or branding, however more precisely it refers to marks put on the body to show ownership (ie. soldier, slave, belonging to a certain god, etc...)

http://www.blueletterbible.org/cgi-bin/c.pl?book=Gal&chapter=6&verse=17&version=KJV#17

Beside each Greek word you can follow a small link which provides more information on the word in question.

 

[ernest_theweedwhackerguy]

So, unless you know Aramaic, then you don't know how to interpret it, basically.

But why would you think that Christians would brand themselves back in the day? It seems pointless, but then again, it would show that God doesn't care if you'd get tattoo's or piercings, doesn't it?

 

[Mikeb85]

So, unless you know Aramaic, then you don't know how to interpret it, basically.

But why would you think that Christians would brand themselves back in the day? It seems pointless, but then again, it would show that God doesn't care if you'd get tattoo's or piercings, doesn't it?

The EXACT interpretation, IMO, isn't really that important (which is why I didn't elaborate much in my first post). All Paul is saying is that he bears the marks of Jesus (could be a literal brand, could be in his heart, etc...) - the important part though is that he's saying he belongs to the Lord, so no one can bother him (ie. he's not afraid of persecution). Either way, he's 'wearing' his faith in a way that's visible, which does tie into the topic...

Why would Christians brand/tattoo themselves? Why do the Copts still do it in Egypt? It's to show defiance in the face of evil - to represent the fact that they're Christians to everyone, and to show that they're not afraid of persecution and martyrdom...

 

[jds1977]

Paul's marks, I believe, were his stripes and wounds he got from the beatings and scourgings.

 

[ernest_theweedwhackerguy]

See? Those aren't tattoo's, and I could see why he would wear them. But, I still haven't really heard a good reason why tattoo's are considered bad. I mean, defacing your temple? Isn't your heart the root of emotions, and not your flesh? The bible says many times that God looks at your heart, and that he made us to make our own decisions.
So, if the way your hair is done, or how a girls nails are painted, how you dress, wouldn't that have the same effect as getting a tattoo?

 

[Tony Merritt]

Since the piercings thread is up and running, lets stick this one right next to it. I want to see what people think about tattoo's since I've seen what some have thought about piercings. Are tattoo's good or evil?

I for one believe them to be wrong. The bible states the the body is a temple. I do not believe that God likes his temple "decorated" in this manner.



Tony

 

[arunma]

I for one believe them to be wrong. The bible states the the body is a temple. I do not believe that God likes his temple "decorated" in this manner.

Not trying to be contentious, but I think we can all agree that our beliefs should be based on the Bible. What is the Biblical support for the idea that tattoos (especially God-honoring tattoos) constitute a desecration of God's Temple? I'd be interested in an explanation that doesn't make an improper exegesis of Leviticus 19:28.


That Scripture is the only one in the Bible which, to my knowledge, discussess tattoos. And if we take it as a genuine moral principle as opposed to an Israelite civil rule, then we would be forced to conclude that medium-rare steak is also sinful, as it says a mere two verses earlier,

You shall not eat any flesh with the blood in it. (Leviticus 19:26)​

Indeed the latter would have a stronger Biblical case, since this law was also commanded to the church by the Apostles (Acts 15:29).

So again if I may be so bold: what reasoning do we have to condemn tattoos which relies on the Bible, and not human logic or bad theology?

 

[DerSchweik]

Personally? Don't like them. I think they are unattractive, detracting from a person's God-given looks. But then, I'm an old fart too...