Ahh… answers finally, after a fashion.
For those just tuning in I have been wondering about a couple of specific subjects during my trek to Orthodoxy. One of these was the issue of Piercing and Tattooing, being that I am of the pierced, tattooed freak variety of person.
I have received varying answers to this query ranging from “That is mutilation and therefore BAD.” to “There is always a certain amount of grace afforded to those coming into the Church, these things having transpired before Chrismation.”
While both are valid answers.. one better than the other, neither of them reflect a firm stance on the subject by the Church only conjecture on the part of individuals. I was hoping for clear, or at least a less murky stance that would clearly communicate the decision of the Canonical Orthodox FaithTM. Well today it seems that I finally have that, one of the features that I love most at the OCA.org is the Further Q&A on the Orthodox Faith by Fr. John Matusiak. Fr. Matusiak is a wonderful choice for this task, I have found his correspondence wonderfully succinct and focused, and today I was blessed by running across this entry, & A - Piercing & Tattoos">Piercing & Tattoos.
Here is a snippet from his answer to the question: Many young people in our community are looking at traditional/cultural body piercing and tattoos, and are wondering what view the church has on such practices.
Unfortunately, there is little in the way of precedent on the matter of body piercing and tattoos. There is nothing, at least to my knowledge (which is somewhat limited), in the Holy Fathers on such matters, and I do not believe that any hierarch or Synod has addressed this currently popular practice.
What we do find throughout history, however, are some proscriptions on self mutilation, and I have seem some writings lately which condemn piercings and tattoos on the grounds that they constitute self mutilation. On the other hand, there are those who see piercings and tattoos as a passing fashion fad, much like teased hair and white wet-look lipstick in the 1960s or purple spiked hair and black lipstick in the punk era. Yet the Church has always warned against undue concern for one’s appearance or undue concern for calling attention to the self, especially when doing so becomes obsession and, therefore, a sin.
In my book you have to give credit to any Priest who references the Punk era.. If you have the time I would highly suggest reading Fr. Matusiak it is well worth your time, and if you read it for no other reason then you simply must read it for the story he relates from his own parish concerning this subject.
Stroll on over and visit James
March 1, 2007
Yeah :-)
Stroll on over and visit James
March 1, 2007
Coming from the Roman Catholic Church (or coming from Anglicanism after a brief sojourn in the land of Rome is more accurate), I don’t like inallible statements by one hierarch. On the other hand it bothers me when I ask someone a question and I get an answer that is non-committal or in some cases seems to contradict what another person told me. It makes me nervous. For example, when I asked Fr. David about the rule concerning marrying one’s godsister, I had already written to Fr. Matusiak, who said that that rule is more cultural than anything. He also said that the practice of picking a saints name and referring to yourself by that name afterward isn’t really an Orthodox practice, yet you’d be hard pressed to find any Orthodox church where converts don’t take the name Demetrius, Basil, Adrian, Simeon and so forth.
In other words, I’m confused!
Stroll on over and visit Chris J. Davis
March 1, 2007
One thing to always keep in mind when you are dealing with the OCA is that you are dealing with one Church made up of many Cultural Churches, this neccesarily means that alot of the cultural customs and views are brought in, and many of them seem to contradict one another.
That being said, there are subjects that are, like taking a Saints name, personal and for the individual in conjunction with his or her Father Confessor to work out, saying that is not “Orthodox” is a bit much… it is not an official teaching of the Church but one can hardly say that it is not Orthodox.
We in the OCA don’t process around the Temple on Pascha and then beat on the doors as the Antiochians do (I realize that we process around the Temple, my point was that there is an extra ritual in the Antiochian service.), does that mean that it isn’t Orthodox because it isn’t encouraged in the OCA? Of course not, it is a cultural difference that adds flavor to the Faith not one that detracts from it.
Stroll on over and visit James
March 1, 2007
Well, you’re right in saying that to say something “isn’t Orthodox” is a bit much. But the contadictions still stun me sometimes.
What? They don’t beat on the door at Pascha? I did not know that! I’m diappointed.
Stroll on over and visit Scottish
March 1, 2007
So…what did you decide in regards to your own piercings? (Clearly, you can’t do anything about the tattoos.)
Stroll on over and visit Chris J. Davis
March 1, 2007
hey Scottish, Basically I had already felt that at this point in my life the piercing’s had to go.
I would like to get a decent job, and in some cases they can be a hinderance to this. Do I regret having them, no; do I think that piercing’s are wrong for a Christian, a year ago I would have said no of course not, but today the Jury is Still Out. I have alot of information that would seem to support that tatooing and piercing should be avoided by the Christian especially the Orthodox VarietyTM, but I still have held on to some of my stance on individuality and self-expression of the Christian in todays society.
It will be intersting how this changes in the near future.
Stroll on over and visit Simeon
March 1, 2007
A lot of beliefs from head coverings to body piercing come from cultural norms. Men were looked down for pierced ears, normal for slaves in the time of Paul and Jesus. Slavery was normal in the time of the first century, Paul even exhorted Christian followers to be good slaves. What does this mean for today?
1. We must look at all things in cultural context. Is it positive or negative, how will it be perceived. Despite the individuality thing in the U.S., there are certain things still held to in regards to what is culturally acceptable.
2. Of course, what is our reason for doing it? To be cool, to make a statement (what kind of statement?) or to do it because we like the look (which is not wrong). 15 years ago, a friend of mine told about a visiting preacher to our Christian & Missionary Alliance, upper-middle class church who had an ear ring (actually it was a gold post). At that time, that was considered very out of the ordinary, but people thought the preacher was innovative and “with it” (I date myself) because of that.
3. When I have met people who dressed alternatively (body piercings, ear rings, etc.) and you find that they are really good people, it really changed my outlook. In fact, I like these people, because in a lot of ways, these are people who do seek after truth. Now there are those who as I have alluded to before, use it to hide the truth, then there has to be some questioning.
4. Paul makes reference to the fact that some things are sins for some and some are not. For example, if piercing your ear is not a sin for you, the go for it. Now if it is a sin for someone else, don’t do it lest you cause the other guy or girl to stumble in their faith. As Christians we must not condemn each other as to what is right or not right in this manner, but be sensitive to the other guy’s walk. We can survive if we don’t have that ear piercing, but they may not be able to survive if I do.
5. Some piercings and tatoos are okay. I laugh at the ones who look like the front end of an old Ford. One guy had big posts going through his lips that made him look like a wild boar (he was a big dude too). If you do it, becareful how it may make you look.