Drinking in moderation?

[Delphinus85]

Then, to be honest, you weren’t really trashed…trust me.

Funny enough that’s what everyone said, except i blacked out about 15 minutes of memory, and I threw up. The only weird thing I did was lose the abilty to walk, and since i was wearing heels, my friends made me take me shoes off. This is the last thing I really remember until about 15 minutes later, but I remember seeing gum on the sidewalk of the street and freaking out because I knew people has spit it out and I was walking on it. I am a huge clean freak germaphobe so I said “ahhh!!! There’s AIDS on the sidewalk!!” my husband and friends laughed and said “no, sweetie, there isn’t” and I said “Yes there is!! I can SEE THEM!” then I went rather limp LOL.

They all told me I didn’t do anything weird except when my husband went to use the restroom I cuddled up to my rather obese male friend (who is engaged to me friend" and laid there moaning because I was nauseas. And I apologized endlessly for getting so drunk.

Obviously, THAT was too much. I never did that again, and I HATED it. Went to confession too, because I knew that much was too much. But to this day all my friends ask me if I am still seeing AIDS on the ground…

 

[rboo124]

Understandable. My mother was an alcoholic, and drug addict. Obviously I’ve gotten over it though LOL

At any rate, what I said before is that we NEVER drive if we have anything more than ONE drink. We are both cautious about that, and we are careful to never bei n that situation. We either have a designated driver, catch a cab, or drink on a cruise ship where there is no cars to tempt us it’s back to that who mom thing. She used to drive drunk all the time.

I understand about the inhibition thing, and I find it to be a good thing, especially if I am around new people. I am naturally an outgong fun person, but because of some rather nasty events I have become REALLY painfully shy. My friends admit that when I’ve had even a smidgen of alcohol they can see that I relax and it makes them cheer up a little. Secondly. my husband generally have an unspoken rule that when we drink we are together. We figure there isn’t much we will do wrong with the other there!

And I hear the health factor thing, but is have 2-3 drinks every few months going to do that? (bear in mind I’ve only been REALLY drunk once, and I hated it. so I usually only get mildly buzzed to the point where my speech is hardly even effected)

I don’t think having 2-3 drinks every few months is anything to worry about.

I guess I clung to the sentence where you said your husband will ‘drink the night away’…as a recovering alcoholic, that has a very different meaning to me than 2-3 drinks. When I ‘drank the night away’…I LITERALLY drank the night away. 2-3 drinks was like having a cracker before a 7 course meal! lol

All I can really say is, there’s a reason you’re questioning it. Examine your motives behind it…it’s not a sin to enjoy life. If I could have a couple drinks occassionally, I would. As long as it’s a ‘couple’ drinks. I may start out just having a couple drinks, but I’m certain over time I would end up consuming heavy amounts of alcohol as I did in the past…so I abstain completely, one day at a time.

My father was an alcholic, too. And, I felt I was over it enough to drink safely, but over time I realized I was wrong. It is a hereditary disease. That’s not to say you’re an alcoholic…but, you are at FAR greater risk than others to become alcoholic as a result. Nobody wakes up and says ‘I’m going to become an alcoholic today’. It progresses, and it always becomes realized long after it’s set in. Just be careful.

I’m by no means an authority on the topic. The Bible discusses alcohol consumption quite a bit, but doesn’t refer to every passage in terms of ‘drunkenness’…so, obviously moderation is perfectly fine. If it wasn’t, Jesus certainly wouldn’t have performed his first miracle at his mother’s request.

 

[Delphinus85]

I don’t think having 2-3 drinks every few months is anything to worry about.

I guess I clung to the sentence where you said your husband will ‘drink the night away’…as a recovering alcoholic, that has a very different meaning to me than 2-3 drinks. When I ‘drank the night away’…I LITERALLY drank the night away. 2-3 drinks was like having a cracker before a 7 course meal! lol

All I can really say is, there’s a reason you’re questioning it. Examine your motives behind it…it’s not a sin to enjoy life. If I could have a couple drinks occassionally, I would. As long as it’s a ‘couple’ drinks. I may start out just having a couple drinks, but I’m certain over time I would end up consuming heavy amounts of alcohol as I did in the past…so I abstain completely, one day at a time.

My father was an alcholic, too. And, I felt I was over it enough to drink safely, but over time I realized I was wrong. It is a hereditary disease. That’s not to say you’re an alcoholic…but, you are at FAR greater risk than others to become alcoholic as a result. Nobody wakes up and says ‘I’m going to become an alcoholic today’. It progresses, and it always becomes realized long after it’s set in. Just be careful.

I’m by no means an authority on the topic. The Bible discusses alcohol consumption quite a bit, but doesn’t refer to every passage in terms of ‘drunkenness’…so, obviously moderation is perfectly fine. If it wasn’t, Jesus certainly wouldn’t have performed his first miracle at his mother’s request.

Well the “drink the night away” really does mean 3 drinks at most. We are both REALLY slow on the consumption of those drinks. It’d take us about an hour to get one down. Plus it’s rare for us to be any later than 11 LOL

The reason I am asking is I am having ahard time finding a balance. I was a protestant in a tee-totaler church. I went to a school where even having a small vial of cooking wine in your apartment (I am talking about enough to make a fly buzzed) was an expulsion worthy offence, with several people telling you you were al alcoholic and you needed God. Alcohol was not to be used in communion, recreationally, toasting, weddings, not even cooking (You can’t imagine how bland a pot roast gets without a splash of red wine). I had to get a special dispensation from the campus life people to take communion when I became catholic. I had to have an arguement with one administrator for almost an hour because he said I should just SKIP communion.

So yeah, the only guilt I feel for it is the idea that I was raised with in the church, that even a drop of wine will send you straight to the bowels of hell.

 

[Magicsilence]

Thank you ManualMan and BlestOne for your responses!

In al honesty I have no problem with staying at home with my husband and getting blind drunk and watching comedy movies. We don’t do this though, since we don’t like being THAT drunk, chances are we have about 3 beers a piece, get a little giggly and put on some Jim Carrey.

I also think that going out with friends and getting tipsy is a good stress reliever and is quite fun, especially for people like me who are so naturally uptight anyway! hehehe

as to BlestOne’s comment, I agree with you COMPLETELY this is why I wonder if having a beer or two with friends to loosen up and imagine that we can dance once in a great while is okay, since it is once in a GREAT while.And obviously it isn’t interfereing with work, or family.

I guess the question i really have is what is the church’s stance on “in moderation” does that mean NEVER get drunk or tipsy AT ALL, or only do it occasionally for the right reasons. Using your example BlestOne, it’s like you eat to live, and occasionally eat a little more than you should on special occasions like christmas and thanksgiving. Is this moderation?

I don’t really understand the qualification of behaviour because it is done once in a while.

If the amount of alchohol being consumed impairs your ability to think, or reason, or move, or see, or hear in any way, you are having too much.

To me, moderation means one glass of wine / one beer with a meal. Or one beer every couple of hours when with friends.

Getting drunk and its associated sinfulness are not measured by the extent to which your actions influence or degrade others. I believe the sinfulness is inherent within the act of willfully impairing your ability to reason and think morally.

Remember the words of St Paul:

1 Cor 6:10 Nor the effeminate, nor liers with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor railers, nor extortioners, shall possess the kingdom of God.

I think spiritual maturity will dictate what is, and what is not acceptable before God.

In Jesus Christ,

 

[rboo124]

Well the “drink the night away” really does mean 3 drinks at most. We are both REALLY slow on the consumption of those drinks. It’d take us about an hour to get one down. Plus it’s rare for us to be any later than 11 LOL

Gotcha!

My alcoholic interpretation led me to believe it was more excessive than a few drinks.

Again, if I could safely have a ‘couple’, I would…I see nothing morally wrong with that whatsoever. Enjoy!

 

[StCsDavid]

As with all sin, one has to examine what is in the will. From what the OP has described and clarified, it sounds like an activity between her and her husband that they do together; don’t seem to abuse; and may draw them closer together. It doesn’t seem like they’re using the drinks to mask anything or escape a reality.

IMHO, I don’t see sin here. By the way, seeking to do all things in moderation is from Aristotle versus Christ. One could dive into a whole philosophical discussion on that. Not all things are good to do in moderation, for example something like fornication, but let’s save that for a different thread.

 

[hasikelee]

I have a question about this phrase.

As I understand it, drinking alcohol is totally fine by the Catholic church but “in moderation” in a little foggy to me.

Does this mean that you may have some alcohol and never get drunk, or is it okay to get a little tipsy once in a while.

For example: My husband really like to, maybe once every 6 months, get a case of beer, put on a good comedy and drink the night away in our own house between just us to. We also like to go out with friends once in a great while and have a few drinks. Sometimes we’ll have a little much (getting tipsy) but usually just get buzzed (and we NEVER drive when we have anything more than ONE drink). We do have rules, we never drink alone (one of us drinking, the other is gone), we never drink to escape any emotion, and we never use alcohol to kill any physical pain (more for me since I have medical issues involving pain), and we never drink to get to sleep.

So, is getting drunk (or on the heavy buzzed side) sinful or is drinking so much that you become an alcoholic the sinful action?

I’ve never been drunk, I guess that invalidates my post here lol.

Anyways, I just got back from my honeymoon which was all-inclusive so I swear from noon to midnight I had a drink in my hand.

But I never got drunk or even tipsy.

I think it’s sinful to get to the tipsy part for one main reason: it indicates a higher level of alcohol in the blood which can indicate damage to the body.

If the alcohol has reached such a level as to penetrate the BBB plus cause symptoms, then that is simply abusing your body. And as Catholics, we believe our bodies are gifts from God, temples of the Holy Spirit. There’s no ifs ands or buts about it!

Now, if science can define and p(name removed by moderator)oint more accurately when damage occurs or how much damage is done, that would change things. For example, if it could be shown that a BAL of 0.18 caused symptoms of impairment but not damage to the body, then it wouldn’t be sinful. (Assuming someone wasn’t doing other dangerous things such as driving).

 

[rlg94086]

I’ve never been drunk, I guess that invalidates my post here lol.

Anyways, I just got back from my honeymoon which was all-inclusive so I swear from noon to midnight I had a drink in my hand.

But I never got drunk or even tipsy.

I think it’s sinful to get to the tipsy part for one main reason: it indicates a higher level of alcohol in the blood which can indicate damage to the body.

If the alcohol has reached such a level as to penetrate the BBB plus cause symptoms, then that is simply abusing your body. And as Catholics, we believe our bodies are gifts from God, temples of the Holy Spirit. There’s no ifs ands or buts about it!

Now, if science can define and p(name removed by moderator)oint more accurately when damage occurs or how much damage is done, that would change things. For example, if it could be shown that a BAL of 0.18 caused symptoms of impairment but not damage to the body, then it wouldn’t be sinful. (Assuming someone wasn’t doing other dangerous things such as driving).

Better Business Bureau?

 

[hasikelee]

Better Business Bureau?

Blood brain barrier

 

[ElizabethPH]

I think drunkeness is sinful. Getting drunk on purpose is sinful. Sitting around your house and getting drunk on a case of beer is sinful to me. Now having a couple of those beers is not. Or going out socially with friends and having a drink is not. I think if you have to start putting limits on how much you drink; when you drink it; how you drink; why you drink etc etc…there just might be a problem. For some people they can’t drink without getting drunk; that’s a problem. If it turns into all about the "buzz’’ it can turn into a problem.