Tattoos?

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Little Eagle,

WOW, this is an old thread! LOL. Thanks for chiming in, though. I’ve pointed out this same fact on other threads (and maybe even this one, too, though I can’t recall). It’s part of the old Mosaic Law, which is not the same as the Moral Law that endures through the ages. If we still followed that code, we couldn’t pork ribs, and all women would have to leave town for one week out of the month!

Something worth considering, of course, is the issue of modesty. Some people get tattoos out of vanity, others (like you) out of rememberance, others, I suppose, because they just like to look at them. And the subject matter is of importance, also. Scantily-clad women, curse words, satanic symbols, etc., are always illicit.
Little_Eagle said:
Sorry for bumping an old thread guys, but I think something is worth noting…

Leviticus also says “Do not wear clothing woven of two kinds of material”, “Do not cut the hair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard” mentioned in the same passage. Having a tattoo (which itself is a series of holes not a laceration) is not against one of the 10 commandments… do all Christians have untamed beards? Does the Pope himself? What are all of your clothes made of? A tattoo, or one in memory of the dead is no worse than those.

I’m fine with my discreet Roman numeral tattoo commemorating the loss of my brother, just as the Pope is fine with shaving his facial hair or any Christian wearing clothing not made of just one material is fine with that. I’m a Catholic not a Jew. Its in the same league as wearing a polyester shirt, not murder.

http://www.catholic-forum.com/churches/luxver/aquinas.jpg

No beard or unclipped side hair either.
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I may as well chime in here.

I do not know if tattoos are sinful. However, they do carry a connotation of immorality.

I would never get one.

I am relieved that my son does not have any.
 
CatholicPoet said:
Leviticus 19: 28 reads “Do not lacerate your bodies for the dead, and do not tattoo yourselves. I am the LORD.”

.
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This above passage does NOT use the word Tattoo in Hebrew at all. In fact, this passage is a Hebrew Parallelism… And, the putting a mark on your body is simply referring to cutting oneself “for the dead”.

I am curious do you also live by,

Leviticus 19:19 (New International Version)
Code: 
  " 'Keep my decrees. 
  " 'Do not mate different kinds of animals. 
  " 'Do not plant your field with two kinds of seed. 
  " **'Do not wear clothing woven of two kinds of material.**
google.com/search?hl=en&q=Hebrew+Parallelism&btnG=Search

🤷
 
DRIVING_BEAR said:
Tattoos are wrong for the simple fact that they are an insult to God. In some way God can best be described as an artist and humans are a masterpiece of god the artist. With tattoos human are saying to God that his masterpiece is good ,but could be improved upon.
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What about Medical tattoos?
 
There’s nothing morally wrong with tattoos (at least, as long as the content is fine).

The only verse in the Bible that prohibits them is in Leviticus and is no longer effective. Besides that, the reason for this verse is related to the pagan cults surrounding the Israelites that decorated themselves with tatts. Obviously not a religious or moral issue in this day and time.

NOW, the one good reason I think one should be cautious in this area is permanence. That means, when you’re old and wrinkly, you’ll have it. When you (possibly) get sick of it, you’ll have it.

Still, I’ve considered getting one on different occasions. Neither of my parents is wrinkly as of yet, and they are in their late forties/early fifties. I also hope to stay fit, which makes a difference.

My old discipleship leader told me about a friend who had a very subtle tattoo on his left wrist that read Ransomed. It can be covered up by a watch for formal occasions, etc. His wife has one like it, except hers reads The LORD’s.

I also have a friend who’s going to be totally tatted up with Christian symbolism in a few years… lol It’s a funny thought, really, but it would suit him.

I’m discerning… 😉 No rush.
 
St_Aloysius said:
There’s nothing morally wrong with tattoos (at least, as long as the content is fine).

The only verse in the Bible that prohibits them is in Leviticus and is no longer effective. Besides that, the reason for this verse is related to the pagan cults surrounding the Israelites that decorated themselves with tatts. Obviously not a religious or moral issue in this day and time.

NOW, the one good reason I think one should be cautious in this area is permanence. That means, when you’re old and wrinkly, you’ll have it. When you (possibly) get sick of it, you’ll have it.

Still, I’ve considered getting one on different occasions. Neither of my parents is wrinkly as of yet, and they are in their late forties/early fifties. I also hope to stay fit, which makes a difference.

My old discipleship leader told me about a friend who had a very subtle tattoo on his left wrist that read Ransomed. It can be covered up by a watch for formal occasions, etc. His wife has one like it, except hers reads The LORD’s.

I also have a friend who’s going to be totally tatted up with Christian symbolism in a few years… lol It’s a funny thought, really, but it would suit him.

I’m discerning… 😉 No rush.
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It’s funny … our old priest, Fr. Frank, had a funny insight about tattoos. One day one of the high school students told him she was thinking about getting a tattoo, and Fr. Frank said, “You can’t do that.” “Why not?” she said. “Because,” said Fr. Frank, “One day you’re going to be somebody’s grandmother, and grandmothers don’t have tattoos.”

I guess my grandkids will just have to understand someday about the surfer tatt around my ankle. At least I’ll be a cool grandma.
 
Here is my thinking on the topic. Before the white man came to the Americas Native peoples in some tribes tatooed their bodies for decorative purposes. They thought it would enhance their beauty. When the missionaries arrived and baptised those they did not force them to remove their tatoos. If they did it would involve more body “disfigurement”. I do not feel my loving God is going to be turn away someone who loves him back just because they have a tatoo. If that was the case then what was the sense in baptising “Pagan” people in the past! I believe the old testament was written for the Jewish people of that time period. Besides, circumsision would be considered “disfigurement”.
 
Personally, I’m not a fan of tattoos, but I think it is fine as long as the tattoo is not crude and is put in a tasteful spot on the body. BUT you must always obey your parents first, even if getting a religious tattoo isn’t a sin. Good Luck!
 
Jesus said “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.” (Matthew 5: 17,18 – N.I.V.) About tattoos, the Bible teaches us “Do not cut your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the Lord.” (Leviticus 19:28 - N.I.V.)

Now, a lot of people will tell you that many Old Testament rules do not apply to Christians today: rules governing the way you cut your hair and rules obliging you to put adulterers to death and rules concerning tattoos and over 600 rules altogether…

But Jesus said they do still apply to us. All of them. So we have two situations concerning tattoos. Let’s take a hypothetical person and call him (her) XYZ:
  1. Let’s assume that Jesus was crucified to save a lot of people but NOT XYZ: In this case, XYZ will be tried, condemned and cast into the lake of fire, on the Day of Judgement. He (she) will be condemned for everything, including having a tattoo. “…The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books.” (Revelation 20: 12 – N.I.V.)
  2. But now let’s assume that Jesus WAS crucified to save XYZ: In this case, XYZ has already been judged, condemned and punished by being put to death, in the person of Jesus Christ as He hung on the cross. So on the day of Judgement XYZ will NOT go on trial again, even if he (she) has a tattoo. It’s the DOUBLE JEOPARDY RULE.
But Jesus said the Law still exists. It has not been abolished. So, when people say that a Christian has been “freed” from the Law, it means that one has been freed from being put to everlasting death for breaking it, by Jesus, when He took our sins upon Himself. It does not mean people are now free to do exactly as they please….

About those He saved from everlasting death, Jesus said ”Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5: 19 – N.I.V.)

So, if XYZ now goes and gets a tattoo, he (she) will be called “least” in the Kingdom of Heaven. That will be one VERY expensive tattoo!

I realize that most of the 600 plus rules and regulations seem illogical to our society, but Christianity is not an intellectual discipline. It is based on Love. There is nothing more illogical than Love! “For the foolishness of God is wiser than man’s wisdom…” (1 Corinthians 1: 25 – N.I.V)
 
A thousand pardons for resurrecting this long dead thread…

… but I just can’t quiet understand the appeal to our bodies being “the temple of God”.

Yes we should not deface, mutilate, or disrespect our “temples”, but aren’t all these verbs inherently culturally loaded?

Who decides what constitutes vandalism and what constitutes genuine “art”? The definition for each will vary with each individual person, and certainly more dramatically between different cultures.

Going along with the temple analogy. Though we don’t spray paint our churches (because we as a culture find that to be gaudy) we nonetheless still paint them! Do we not still decorate them with beautiful stained glass, murals, and religious iconography?

Concerning the body; If we are to read into this so literally, where do we draw the line?

Are ear piercings offensive to the temple of God?
What about haircuts? Hair dye and styling?
Make-up anyone?
My goodness, what about clothing!?

It seems that the only objections to tattoos come from personal taste, and practicality. I cannot fathom how tattoos would be a moral concern.
 
DRIVING_BEAR said:
Tattoos are wrong for the simple fact that they are an insult to God. In some way God can best be described as an artist and humans are a masterpiece of god the artist. With tattoos human are saying to God that his masterpiece is good ,but could be improved upon.
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When people get religous tattoos that is a testament of their faith. Of course he wouldn’t brand us with crosses when we are born because he gave us free will. (He wants us to choose to love him, not be forced into it). So while I’m not saying people should change everything about themselves… maybe he simply made us incomplete… we need to decide who we are, so in the end a work of art may become ugly (like when we choose to hurt other people)… however his work of art may become even more beautiful base on the works of his projects (like when people devote their lives to helping others)… sorry rambling… my words always come out jumbled. I just think that saying absolutly that it is wrong is close minded.
 
xixxvmcm85 said:
A thousand pardons for resurrecting this long dead thread…

… but I just can’t quiet understand the appeal to our bodies being “the temple of God”.

Yes we should not deface, mutilate, or disrespect our “temples”, but aren’t all these verbs inherently culturally loaded?

Who decides what constitutes vandalism and what constitutes genuine “art”? The definition for each will vary with each individual person, and certainly more dramatically between different cultures.

Going along with the temple analogy. Though we don’t spray paint our churches (because we as a culture find that to be gaudy) we nonetheless still paint them! Do we not still decorate them with beautiful stained glass, murals, and religious iconography?

Concerning the body; If we are to read into this so literally, where do we draw the line?

Are ear piercings offensive to the temple of God?
What about haircuts? Hair dye and styling?
Make-up anyone?
My goodness, what about clothing!?

It seems that the only objections to tattoos come from personal taste, and practicality. I cannot fathom how tattoos would be a moral concern.
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Very nice thoughts… but if clothing is ever an issue… I’ll probably continue to wear it because I’m the kind of person that is cold in 70 degree weather! 🙂
 
At the risk of being repetitious:
  1. “This is love for God: to obey His commands. And His commands are not burdensome,” (1 John 5:3 – New International Version)
  2. God’s command in Leviticus 19:28 (N.I.V.) was “Do not cut your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the Lord.”
  3. And Jesus said “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.” (Matthew 5: 17,18 – New International Version).
  4. So we show our love for God by obeying Him, which includes not getting tattooed (or tattooed again.) I cannot imagine anyone trying to bring glory to God by disobeying Him!!!
 
Hey Frank and welcome to the forums. While I understand the point you are trying to make, the crux of your argument depends on strict adherence to Levitical law and that just does not hold water. As Surf(name removed by moderator)ure points out in Post #15:
  1. There are many parts of the Levitical law which we can safely throw out at this point with no stain to our consciences, such as trimming our beards and wearing clothing woven from two different fabrics. Since we know that there were a variety of reasons for these laws - sanitation being not the least of these - we have to look to the Church for guidance. That brings me to …
  2. The Church does not take a moral position on tattoos. This has been addressed more than once in the “Ask an Apologist” forum, and that is always the answer given. There is nothing in the Catechism about tattoos, either for or against.
    The point here is that if you follow your logic you have to obey all the Levitical laws (you can’t just pick the ones that substantiate your personal belief) or you have convicted yourself of not obeying God, and I don’t think that is where you want to go.
As you journey with us here on the forums, keep in mind that any verse or set of verses can be taken out of context and interpreted to justify a view. Catholics use sacred scripture and sacred Tradition coupled with the teaching authority of the Pope and Magisterium under the guidance of the Holy Spirit to understand Jesus’ words to us.
 
Doctor, am I to understand that, when Jesus said “until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished” (Matthew 5: 17, 18) He was, perhaps UNAWARE that there would come a day when there would be many parts of the Levitical law “which we can safely throw out”, as you state? I don’t think so!

The whole point of Jesus is that YES, we do have to follow every single Levitical law whilst at the same time being incapable of doing so. That’s why He hung on the cross: to pay for our incapacities… If you take away parts of the Law to make it bearable by common men then you take away the reason for the sacrifice of Jesus.

I do believe that Jesus knew what He was talking about when He said “not the smallest letter”…
 
Frank_Mitchell said:
Doctor, am I to understand that, when Jesus said “until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished” (Matthew 5: 17, 18) He was, perhaps UNAWARE that there would come a day when there would be many parts of the Levitical law “which we can safely throw out”, as you state? I don’t think so!

The whole point of Jesus is that YES, we do have to follow every single Levitical law whilst at the same time being incapable of doing so. That’s why He hung on the cross: to pay for our incapacities… If you take away parts of the Law to make it bearable by common men then you take away the reason for the sacrifice of Jesus.

I do believe that Jesus knew what He was talking about when He said “not the smallest letter”…
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Hello Frank.

So am I to understand you properly, that you believe the Apostolic Council was wrong in opening the doors of the Church to Gentiles? It was St. Paul, after all, who said the dietary laws are obsolete, and St. Peter who concluded that Christians need not be circumcised.

I’m interested in hearing your opinions. 🙂

ETA: Even more important (I believe) is knowing whether you believe Jesus is God. You state that it’s possible that Jesus was unaware that subsequent generations would at least diminish adherence to the law. This implies either that you believe Jesus isn’t God or that God isn’t omniscient.
 
surf(name removed by moderator)ure said:
It’s funny … our old priest, Fr. Frank, had a funny insight about tattoos. One day one of the high school students told him she was thinking about getting a tattoo, and Fr. Frank said, “You can’t do that.” “Why not?” she said. “Because,” said Fr. Frank, “One day you’re going to be somebody’s grandmother, and grandmothers don’t have tattoos.”

I guess my grandkids will just have to understand someday about the surfer tatt around my ankle. At least I’ll be a cool grandma.
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Well I know a grandfather who has a tatoo. He is in his 70s, clean cut and goes to services at his Dutch Reformed church every sunday in his sunday best. It’s a Navy tatoo, from the unit he was a part of. Part of the tatoo is a big boat anchar.
 
I have five of them, one is the Celtic Cross. If I had it to do over, I would not get tattooed. They make a person look sleasy in my opinion, I find myself hiding mine when I attend Church, although I see other Men there with tats. Dont waste your money, dont defile your body, especially women, as you age, your skin loses it`s tone, & they look absolutely horrible
 
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