Is getting plastic surgery a sin?

[SheLovesGod]

I know you think altering God’s work with paint if OK, whle altering it with surgery is not. But that makes little sense. Both are vanity. One is a one time thing; the other is a daily thing. Eyeliner painted on is OK, but eyeliner tatooed on is bad?

So, what is the net present value of all expenditures on make-up and hairstyling that make it wrong. You said $2,000 was the limit for surgery, so what is it for make-up and hair?

Excess appears to be what other people do, while moderation is what we do. Excess is $2,000 spent on plastic surgery. Moderation is $50 per two-week for forty years on hair.

I do know what NPV is. Let’s play. Over ten years at 6% the NPV of $50/two-week is $9,500, with each $1,300 taken at the end of the year. That’s $9,500 in elective hair styling. And it doesn’t even begin to count the make-up. Shall we play NPV at once per week? Is that a sin?

I agree you don’t know what I am talking about. But I do. The patient doesn’t remember the rhinoplasty, but it is not a general.

It’s always interesting to watch people point at the sinners all around them, while they ignore the made-up face and dyed hair staring back at them in the mirror.

Perhaps excess is succeeding while moderation is failing?

You are really hitting the nail on the head GreenJeans. I think there is a lot of hypocrisy among God’s children. And I don’t think we realize it enough.

I truly believe what God is concerned with is our hearts. If a person has cosmetic surgery, this does not mean they are excessively vain (although it could) anymore than a person driving a luxury car. It’s what’s going on in our hearts.

 

[jenreg]

I don’t think I can comment if it is a sin or not…If there is not a definite no-no…such as procedures that cause sterility because one doesn’t want more children, or abortion…
There are many easy and quick procedures done today by dermatologists and they do not involve surgery…but tiny injections of fillers around the mouth or lips, even the eyes. If one can afford to do this, and understands well what is going on, I do not think we can judge anothers’ motives…It might be vanity, but makeup and lipstick and hair curlers are vanity also…I can see being afraid of the ramifications of surgery, but light procedures done in dermatology offices is not the same…any opinions? (please remember, everything on this thread so far is opinion)!

 

[2003GMM]

I don’t know the position of the Church on this, but all of the points that you brought up were very valid reasons to NOT go through with it. Allow me to add to it.

While we may feel that plastic surgery “might” make us feel better about ourselves, the real question is “why don’t we already feel adequate?” We need to stop looking in the mirror and start looking at ourselves through the eyes of God - we are created in His image. We are the crown of God’s creation and if God says that it’s good, it must be really good.

Personally, I could understand plastic surgery for burn victims, breast cancer patients, etc, but simply for vanity is like a slap in the face of God. It’s like the pot saying to the potter, “You didn’t do a good enough job.” We need to stop measuring themselves by society’s standards because society is very fickle and shallow. In addition, a woman obtaining breast implants is opening herself to the sexual objectification which is really the opposite of love. As Christopher West put it, lust is basically the opposite of love - it takes rather than gives. In addition to this, it may also lead other men to sin in their hearts by having lustful thoughts.

For anyone considering plastic surery, I would first recommend reading or listening to some of Christopher West’s comments & books that explain Pope John Paul II’s Theology of the Body. I personally found it very enlightening and empowering.

C.J

I love your statement!!!

 

[onmyknees]

You are really hitting the nail on the head GreenJeans. I think there is a lot of hypocrisy among God’s children. And I don’t think we realize it enough.

I truly believe what God is concerned with is our hearts. If a person has cosmetic surgery, this does not mean they are excessively vain (although it could) anymore than a person driving a luxury car. It’s what’s going on in our hearts.

God is concerned with what is going on in our hearts! If we are trying to look young again or prettier than He made us than we do have vanity in our hearts. And don’t you think that some people who buy expensive cars, big fancy houses, or to many expensive clothes could have vanity or greed in their hearts? You are right that we all fall into these sins but we don’t need to condone them. We need to try and change by replacing them with gratitude for how He created us and acts of charity. Then our hearts will be beautiful on the inside as well as on the outside. Mother Theresa was a wonderful example of this!

 

[RyanC883]

So those of you who are against plastic surgery, are you also against braces? Would this also not be for the sake of vanity? Or is the stigma of “plastic surgery” leading to many of these answers?

 

[JaneGrey]

i dont think that the cHurch considers it to be a sin, although sometimes I wish it was. Lets just say I ve known alot of terrible people in my life, the kind who work in certain industries and who would go out of their way to try and manipulate vulnerable people to undergo plastic surgery so that they would be more ‘marketable’. If i sound strangely vague, it is because I do not feel ready to go into my experiences in detail.

Basically, plastic surgery can be turned into a horrible tool by people who abuse it. Im talking about plastic surgery for purely cosmetic reasons. While I dont think that everyone who goes for cosmetic surgery is automatically destined for hell, I do think it would help if the Church actively discouraged it.

As for the poster who mentioned braces-braces are not usually for purely cosmetic reasons. Those with ‘imperfect’ teeth alignment etc are at risk from suffering from a myriad of dental problems later in life including having an abnormal bite in turn inhibiting speech amongst other things. Further, as unpleasant as it feels to wear braces, they simply cannot be compared to potentially life threatening surgery.

Even routine surgery always carries serious risks with it. At the very least those opting for purely elective surgeries should undergo some form of counselling.

 

[perlamaria]

Ok I see people here defending their views about plastic surgery and it seems nothing will change their mind how about let them deal with that when they face the last judgement and
Caso cerrado

 

[eireannq]

Somebody needs to consult their priest before we start making our own guesses as to what is a violation against the 5th commandment. I doubt that everybody who gets a cosmetic facelift or anything else is idolizing their body, nor that every woman (or man) who gets her (his) ears peirced idolizes the body. Speak to your priest. Is anybody here a priest? Anybody who has any formal training in moral theology at all, not just hearsay?

Now if you get down to how Michael Jackson looks, that is a separate case.

Amen! My sentiments exactly.

 

[perlamaria]

I don’t know the position of the Church on this, but all of the points that you brought up were very valid reasons to NOT go through with it. Allow me to add to it.

While we may feel that plastic surgery “might” make us feel better about ourselves, the real question is “why don’t we already feel adequate?” We need to stop looking in the mirror and start looking at ourselves through the eyes of God - we are created in His image. We are the crown of God’s creation and if God says that it’s good, it must be really good.

Personally, I could understand plastic surgery for burn victims, breast cancer patients, etc, but simply for vanity is like a slap in the face of God. It’s like the pot saying to the potter, “You didn’t do a good enough job.” We need to stop measuring themselves by society’s standards because society is very fickle and shallow. In addition, a woman obtaining breast implants is opening herself to the sexual objectification which is really the opposite of love. As Christopher West put it, lust is basically the opposite of love - it takes rather than gives. In addition to this, it may also lead other men to sin in their hearts by having lustful thoughts.

For anyone considering plastic surery, I would first recommend reading or listening to some of Christopher West’s comments & books that explain Pope John Paul II’s Theology of the Body. I personally found it very enlightening and empowering.

C.J

hi you bring some good valid points I have been thinking in filling deep smile lines I have developed due to being sick im only 34 and i see other people dont have smile lines like me.I have also suffer from low self esteem all my life i was bullied at school so I don’t know if that could be causing me to feel insecure about this I am not going to do this out of vanity but shame of aging prematuly if i would be 45 or 50 and I would have these deep smile lines i wouldn’t care but im only 34 sometimes.I sometimes see them and i get scared don’t know how to deal with this i could talk with a priest but i feel ashamed of what he may think of me that maybe im being vain but im not a vain person.

 

[Lori_Sanders]

In my opinion, plastic surgery is never a sin. People undergo plastic surgery to correct the defects of their body. How can it be a sin? A good looking men/woman may not undergo one because they don’t have to.