Alcohol: Yes or No?

[Sntrose]

This is something I've always wondered...some Christians say they do not drink alcohol because it is against their religion, and some Christians can drink my atheist friends under the table! For my reference, is there an official stance on alcohol in Christianity?

This is of particular interest to me as I live in the USA and turn 21 next month!!!

I need to know who I may be potentially offending.

Thanks!

[mitty]

According to the Gospels Jesus turned water into wine.

How could any Christian claim that drinking alcohol is a sin?

They would be demanding that Jesus himself was a sinner.

According to Paul, Jesus would've been a sinner if he ever met him (1Cor 6:10), given that John 2:1-10 describes how Jesus irresponsibly supplied an already drunk group of friends or wedding cliental with an extra 600 litres of quality wine instead of responsibly suggesting they drink the water to sober up instead and avoid the super hangovers and vomiting and potential alcohol poisoning from guzzling down an extra cart-load of booze in addition to the cart-loads (presumably thousands of litres) they must have already guzzled down; and presumably there were hundreds or even thousands of guests at this wedding and not just a family gathering. This irresponsibility towards alcohol use is backed up by eye-witness accounts of his drinking habits which he didn't deny or refute plus his association with alcohol sellers (ie publicans) and other drinking mates (Matt 11:19). Luke 5:37-9 also adds evidence of his drinking life and says that he was a wine connoisseur. Perhaps Jesus was just like any other bar-room philosopher who solves the world's problems while sharing a glass or three or more.

[Darias]

This is something I've always wondered...some Christians say they do not drink alcohol because it is against their religion, and some Christians can drink my atheist friends under the table! For my reference, is there an official stance on alcohol in Christianity?

This is of particular interest to me as I live in the USA and turn 21 next month!!!

I need to know who I may be potentially offending.

Thanks!

Catholics generally don't take issue with alcohol. Even the priests drink in drinking cultures like those found in Ireland or the UK.

Southern Baptists on the other hand oppose it because they say that drunkenness ruins their ability to witness, aka their Christian integrity.

I'm 24 and I personally rarely drink. Maybe once a year I'll have a few bears or a glass of wine in social settings. The taste appeals to me about as much as rubbing alcohol or horse urine would. I've been buzzed before, but never drunk out of my mind. I tend to dislike any substances or drinks that alter my perception of reality and ability to reason. I'm already hopelessly addicted to caffeinated sodas, so I don't need another vice to deal with.

As for you, that decision is yours of course. I don't have any insight as to what's right for you, and I kinda wish other people would feel the same way. Unfortunately, a lot of people seem to pretend to know what's best for you, whether it's preachers or nanny staters. Both groups might condemn your diet of big gulps, McDonalds, and porn, (gluttony and fornication) but only one group can take those choices away from you.
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[Angel song]

Hi, I'm new and this is my very first post.

Despite having been a non-drinker for over 23 years and a practising Christian, I do not regard my non-drinking of alcohol as Biblical. Jesus clearly drank alcohol during his ministry and turned water into wine which would tend to suggest that he supported drinking alcohol.

Like many things, drinking alcohol is okay in moderation. It is when it gets out of control, leading to impeded thought processes and unwise behaviour that it becomes a problem.

Angel song

[Goat]

Hi, I'm new and this is my very first post.

Despite having been a non-drinker for over 23 years and a practising Christian, I do not regard my non-drinking of alcohol as Biblical. Jesus clearly drank alcohol during his ministry and turned water into wine which would tend to suggest that he supported drinking alcohol.

Like many things, drinking alcohol is okay in moderation. It is when it gets out of control, leading to impeded thought processes and unwise behaviour that it becomes a problem.

Angel song

I'll drink to that..

Earl Grey.. hot.

[woodpen]

Hi, I'm new and this is my very first post.

Despite having been a non-drinker for over 23 years and a practising Christian, I do not regard my non-drinking of alcohol as Biblical. Jesus clearly drank alcohol during his ministry and turned water into wine which would tend to suggest that he supported drinking alcohol.

Like many things, drinking alcohol is okay in moderation. It is when it gets out of control, leading to impeded thought processes and unwise behaviour that it becomes a problem.

Angel song

Sounds a bit like religion.

[Choir Loft]

This is something I've always wondered...some Christians say they do not drink alcohol because it is against their religion, and some Christians can drink my atheist friends under the table! For my reference, is there an official stance on alcohol in Christianity?

This is of particular interest to me as I live in the USA and turn 21 next month!!!

I need to know who I may be potentially offending.

Thanks!

Like most things religious, political, and nonsensical Americans look upon themselves as the ultimate definition of human civilization. The USA is possibly the most conceited nation on the planet, but I digress.*

The requirements of Christianity do not forbid the consumption of alcohol. After all, Jesus turned water into wine as his first miracle. What a guy to have at your next party!!! Americans? Not so much.

Read on for a big shock.

Prior to the ratification of the 18th Amendment of the US constitution and the passage of the Valstead Act, Christians as a whole accepted the use of alcohol socially and in their religious services. Prohibition, as it is now called, put an end to that.

In the 1920s it was forbidden to traffic in anything alcoholic - even 3.2 beer and wine. Many protestant churches got on the bandwagon in a big way (they've always been suckers for trendy issues) and used only grape juice for their communion services. Funny thing, though, is that the technology to prevent crushed grapes from fermenting did not exist prior to American prohibition. Freshly squeezed grape juice isn't alcoholic until you let it sit a while and ferment. An artificial process was needed to keep it from becoming alcohol and a Baptist family by the name of WELSH discovered and marketed it. The Baptists made a bundle of money asserting that only their grape juice is proper to serve at communion services. Despite the repeal of Prohibition by the 21st amendment, the doctrine persists to this day.

But it isn't Biblical.

Quite the opposite. In the book of Numbers, the Bible clearly states that if a man decides to carry out a vow before God he cannot drink wine OR the freshly squeezed juice. Chew on that a while and let me know what it tastes like, ok? Both wine and juice are prohibited in the Bible IF you are performing a vow to God. Otherwise, pick your brand and take a drink......Jesus did.

If it's good enough for Jesus, it's good enough for me. With your next steak dinner I suggest a glass of Sterling brand Cabernet Sauvignon. It's really good wine.

and that's just me, hollering from the choir loft...

(*) I believe the French would qualify for the #2 position.

[McCulloch]

This is something I've always wondered...some Christians say they do not drink alcohol because it is against their religion, and some Christians can drink my atheist friends under the table! For my reference, is there an official stance on alcohol in Christianity?

If you are not a Christian, why would it matter to you what the official Christian stance is? Drunkenness is condemned but alcohol is not. Personally, I agree. Drunkenness is dangerous and stupid. Drinks can be relaxing and refreshing. If you cannot drink without feeling the urge to become drunk, then abstain.

As with many things, the churches have various different attitudes towards the consumption of alcohol.

This is of particular interest to me as I live in the USA and turn 21 next month!!!

You are nearly 21 and have avoided underaged drinking! I find that amazing. The legal drinking age here was 18 (it is 19 now) and I drank before that. I find it hard to reconcile that you can get married without parental approval, make your own medical decisions, sign contracts on your own, enlist in the armed forces and vote yet you cannot be trusted with a drink for another three years.

[Darias]

I find it hard to reconcile that you can get married without parental approval, make your own medical decisions, sign contracts on your own, enlist in the armed forces and vote yet you cannot be trusted with a drink for another three years.

Let's not forget you can operate a motor vehicle, a potentially dangerous weapon, at 16. You can enlist in the armed forces at 17 with parental consent. The US government is either treating grown men like children, or it's sending children to an early grave.

[OnceConvinced]

The only scriptures condemning the drinking of wine in the bible are scriptures which describe drunkenness.

Some Christians have the silly belief that the wine Jesus drank was unfirmented, but then he would have been laughed out of that wedding feast if he'd turned water into non alcoholic wine. Not only that but the disciples were accused of being drunk on the day of Pentecost. What was their response? It wasn't "Hey, we don't drink alcohol because it's a sin", it was "It's too early in the day to be drinking!" That doesn't sound like the words of teetotallers to me!

Not only did Jesus and the disciples consume alcohol, the bible also promotes the drinking of it in these scriptures:

Pro 31:6-7
Give strong drink unto him that is ready to perish, and wine unto those that be of heavy hearts. Let him drink, and forget his poverty, and remember his misery no more.

Psa 104:14-15
He makes grass grow for the cattle, and plants for man to cultivate— bringing forth food from the earth: wine that gladdens the heart of man, oil to make his face shine, and bread that sustains his heart

Ecclesiastes 9:7 Go, eat your food with rejoicing and drink your wine with a good heart, because already the [true] God has found pleasure in your works.


These scriptures are definitely not describing grape juice now!

[Choir Loft]

This is something I've always wondered...some Christians say they do not drink alcohol because it is against their religion, and some Christians can drink my atheist friends under the table! For my reference, is there an official stance on alcohol in Christianity?

This is of particular interest to me as I live in the USA and turn 21 next month!!!

I need to know who I may be potentially offending.

Thanks!

In the New Testament drinking is permitted. St. Paul writes that one should drink in moderation and not refuse to take a little wine for the sake of one's digestion. Proponents of dry religion believe that one should abstain totally even during the celebration of communion. During that time they drink grape juice.

It should be pointed out that the church in America did not have a general doctrine against drinking until the days of prohibition. Loudly and frequently was the consumption of alcohol portrayed as the wide road to hell prior to that time. The doctrine was forced upon America by the 18th amendment and the Valstead Act.

The problem is that the technology to prevent grape juice from becoming wine did not exist until prohibition. In nature, if you squeeze grapes and leave the juice alone, it will ferment and become slightly alcoholic. Even in the Old Testament, drinking and even strong drink was not only allowed by encouraged.

The translation below does not say 'strong drink' although some do. The intent, however, is quite clear.

------------Deuteronmy 14-----------------------
22 Be sure to set aside a tenth of all that your fields produce each year. 23 Eat the tithe of your grain, new wine and olive oil, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks in the presence of the Lord your God at the place he will choose as a dwelling for his Name, so that you may learn to revere the Lord your God always. 24 But if that place is too distant and you have been blessed by the Lord your God and cannot carry your tithe (because the place where the Lord will choose to put his Name is so far away), 25 then exchange your tithe for silver, and take the silver with you and go to the place the Lord your God will choose. 26 Use the silver to buy whatever you like: cattle, sheep, wine or other fermented drink, or anything you wish. Then you and your household shall eat there in the presence of the Lord your God and rejoice. 27 And do not neglect the Levites living in your towns, for they have no allotment or inheritance of their own.

28 At the end of every three years, bring all the tithes of that year’s produce and store it in your towns, 29 so that the Levites (who have no allotment or inheritance of their own) and the foreigners, the fatherless and the widows who live in your towns may come and eat and be satisfied, and so that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands.

It is also curious to note that the matter of tithing is also addressed in this passage. The tithe was to be collected once a year and used to celebrate the blessings of the Lord. Strong drink is allowed. It should also be noted that the tithe is only given to the priests once every 3rd year.

The church in America has its own agenda - similar to the bankers and politicians - to chain its members to habits and behavior that God did not intend.

but that's just me, hollering from the choir loft...