Tattoos and Body Piercing
I know this next topic will be a very sensitive one for many in this day and age. As you all know, many people like to get different types of tattoos and body piercing put on the different parts of their bodies.
You will see people getting tattoos on just about any and every part of the human anatomy, even on their most intimate, personal and private parts. The same goes with the different types of body piercing. You have people getting piercing on their noses, navels, eyelids, nipples, tongues and genitalia.
For those of you who are really wanting to know what the Lord may think about this issue, I would challenge each and everyone of you to go before Him in prayer and ask His direct opinion on the matter. I know there is a bit of a rift in the Body on this issue right now.
On the one side are those who believe that God’s command back to the Jewish people in the Book of Leviticus no longer applies to any of us in this day and age since we are now operating under a New Covenant with Jesus and we are now no longer under the law, but under grace. On the other side are those who believe that this command still applies to everyone in this day and age, and that God has not changed His mind on this issue.
For what is worth, we are going to give you our two cents on this subject. In addition to the verse from Leviticus, I believe there are several other verses that you have to match up with that one to get what God’s opinion may really be on this issue.
Again, we do not want to get dogmatic on this issue. This is just our own personal interpretation of what we feel God may be trying to tell us in these specific verses. You are each responsible for getting your own answers from the Lord on this issue.
For the record, we do not believe the Lord wants any of His people getting any kinds of tattoos or body piercing put on any parts of their flesh.
THE SCRIPTURE VERSES

I believe there are 5 key Scripture verses that need to be grouped together to get what God’s opinion may really be on this issue. I will go ahead and run them all together, and then comment on how I feel they may be shedding some light on this very controversial issue.
“You shall not make ANY CUTTINGS IN YOUR FLESH for the dead, nor TATTOO ANY MARKS on you: I am the Lord” (Leviticus 19:28)

“Do NOT think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did NOT come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.” (Matthew 5:17-18)

“Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” (1 Corinthians 3:16)

“Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.” (1 Corinthians 6:19)

“If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.” (1 Corinthians 3:17)
I believe that when you put all 5 of these verses together, one right next to the other, and then study what the Lord is trying to tell you in these verses, I believe it is possible to pick up what God’s opinion may be on this very controversial issue.
COMMENTARY

1. The very first verse is from the Book of Leviticus back in the Old Testament. God was telling His chosen people what they could and could not do in their personal relationship and interaction with Him. As we all know, God gave them quite a bit of rules, regulations and commandments that He wanted them to abide by. This one particular command was one of them.
Notice this verse specifically isolates not only tattoos, but any “cuttings on the flesh,” which I believe relates to all of the different types of body piercing people are now getting these days.
Also note that God was referring to them making any types of tattoos or cuttings in their flesh “for the dead.” Back in those days, many people had the practice of marking up their bodies with tattoos and different types of cuttings as a way of mourning and paying respect for those who had just passed on.
God the Father was flat out telling His own people that they were not to engage in this type of activity. Notice that God uses the word “any” tattoos and “any” cuttings” in their flesh. He was not cutting them any slack on this issue – and He was wanting absolutely no cuttings or tattoos of any kind, shape or form put anywhere on their bodies.
If God was telling them that He was not wanting any kinds of tattoos or body piercing put on their bodies as a way of mourning for the dead, then I also believe that you can extrapolate off of this command and assume that God did not want them doing this for any other possible reason, whether it be for the dead or not.
The wording is just too strong in this verse to think that God was only referring to doing this as a way of mourning for the dead. I believe the tone and intensity of these words are showing us that God did not want His chosen people to be doing this for any reason whatsoever. These people were being called to be God’s special chosen people. They were being called to become separate from the things and ways of this world – especially from some of the pagan practices of many of the people who were still inhabiting parts of their Promised Land.
If God the Father did not want His special chosen people back in the Old Testament to be putting on any kinds of tattoos and cuttings in their flesh, does He still have that same opinion today with all of His New Testament believers? I believe that He does, and this will now lead us into the second verse above.
2. In this second verse above, Jesus Himself is telling us that He did not come to do away with the laws of His Father and the prophets. He says that these laws and commandments are still in effect until “all is fulfilled,” which I believe refers to when we get the New Heaven and New Earth after the 1000 year Millennium Kingdom has passed.
Notice that Jesus says “till heaven and earth pass way.” These words perfectly describe what will happen when we get the New Heaven and the New Earth as described in the Book of Revelation. It says that our earth and heaven as we know it now will pass away, and in its place we will be getting a new heaven and a new earth. Until this glorious, final event actually occurs, Jesus is telling us that all of the laws and commandments of His Father are still fully in play.
This means that all 10 of the commandments are still in effect, along with all of the commands on engaging with any parts of the occult and homosexuality. Unless the New Testament specifically does away with some of these specific laws and commands back from the Old Testament, I believe that we have to assume that God still wants all of us to abide by them. And this command that we are not to tattoo or cut into any part of our flesh still applies to everyone in this day and age.
The Bible says that God does not change, that He is the same today as He was yesterday. If God the Father is telling us that homosexuality and anything to do with the occult are abominations in His sight back in the Old Testament, then He is not going to be changing His mind just because we are in New Testament times.
Granted, we are no longer under the law, but under grace in our New Covenant with Jesus. But this does not mean we can start engaging in activities that were expressly forbidden by His Father back in the Old Testament. As Jesus has stated in the above verse, all of the laws from His Father and these prophets have not been done away with at this time, and they will not all be done away with until we get our New Heaven and New Earth. And until that even happens, I believe God wants all of us to do our best to abide by them.
So if God the Father was not wanting His chosen people back in the Old Testament to be putting on any types of tattoos or cutting into any parts of their flesh, does this same command still apply to all of us in this day and age? I believe that it does, and these next three verses will tell us why.
3. The last three verses listed above are all telling us that our bodies have now become the temple of God’s Holy Spirit. Notice that God is specifically telling us that it is our earthly, physical, natural bodies that have now become the temple of His Holy Spirit.
Think of the ramifications of this statement – that since our earthly, physical bodies are now literally carrying the Holy Spirit Himself on the inside of us once we have accepted Jesus as our personal Lord and Savior, that God is now telling us that our physical bodies have now become the actual “temple” of His Holy Spirit.
Notice in the last verse that God is using the words “defiles the temple of God,” and that anyone who attempts to defile His holy temple will be destroyed. God then ends this statement with talking about our physical bodies being the temple of His Holy Spirit. In other words, God does not want our temples, which are our physical bodies, to be defiled in any way, shape and form. Is putting any kind of tattoo or body piercing on our physical bodies a form of defilement with the Lord? I believe that it may be.
Also consider this fact. The Jewish people did not have the Holy Spirit living on the inside of them. Jesus had not yet come to die for all of our sins, so the Holy Spirit was not living on the inside of the Jewish people like He is now doing with all New Testament believers. This means that the physical bodies of the Jewish people back in those days were not considered to be actual temples of the Lord since they did not have the Holy Spirit living on the inside of them.
So if God the Father is telling His chosen people that He did not want them tattooing or putting any kinds of cuttings into their flesh – and their bodies were not even considered to be His temple back in those Old Testament times – then how much more seriously should this command be taken by all New Testament believers – since all of our bodies are now considered to be the actual temple of the Holy Spirit?
As the above verses are telling us, our bodies have now become the temple of the Lord Himself. We are no longer our own. As a result, we should be doing everything we can to glorify our God – which includes glorifying Him in our bodies as the second last verse above is telling us to do. Marking up our bodies with the different kinds of tattoos and body piercing may not be what the Lord had in mind when He is telling us to glorify Him in both our bodies and our spirits.
Again, you will each have to get your own interpretation as to what all of these verses are trying to tell us.
CONCLUSION

As I said at the top of this article, each Christian will be responsible for getting their own direct answer from the Lord on this very controversial issue. I believe that when you put all 5 of the above Scripture verses together side by side, the answer might be in the correct interpretation of these verses.
Without question, the last three verses listed above are telling us that our physical bodies are now considered to be the temple of our living God since we now carry His Holy Spirit on the inside of us.
I believe that our physical bodies are now more sacred, more precious, and more special in the Lord’s eyes than the four physical walls of any church may be since God is now calling our bodies His actual temple.
And just as we would never consider marking up or defacing any parts of an actual Christian Church building – in the same way I do not believe that our Lord wants us defacing or marking up any parts of our physical bodies. This is why I believe God made sure to put this specific command in His Word.
When God is using the words “any” tattoos and “any” kinds of cuttings in the flesh, He is not making any exceptions with this kind of activity. I personally believe that God is letting all of us know, loud and clear, that He does not want any of us marking up our bodies with these kinds of defilement.
As a side note, I will leave you with a personal testimony from a good close friend who went to God after she had got her navel pierced. When she first called me up to tell me what she had done, I told her about the above verses. However, I told her not to take my word or opinion about this. I told her to go direct to God the Father to get His direct opinion on the matter.
She did, and shortly thereafter God came through loud and clear for her. He told her that He did not approve of it and that He wanted it removed. The revelation she received back from Him was that He was looking at this piercing like a smudge mark or dirt mark on her physical body.
When she called me back up and told me what she had received, I received an immediate vision in my mind’s eye of a young 5 year old boy coming back into his parent’s house. He had just fallen into a mud hole and he had mud caked all of over his face.
I then saw the mother have an immediate and instinctive reaction to want to go and get a wash cloth to wash all of the mud off of his face. Can you imagine a mother just sitting there letting her child have all of that mud remain on his face for the rest of the day? I believe that God may be having the same kind of reaction to many of His own when they start putting tattoos and different kinds of body piercing on various parts of their bodies.
Again, this testimony is a personal and private testimony. You will each have to get your own witness on it, as well as getting your own interpretation on the above verses from our Bible.
I will leave you with one last challenge on this issue:
For those of you who have a good ability to pick up an inner witness from the Holy Spirit on many different matters in your life, simply tap in and see what kind of inner witness you get from Him once you entertain the thought of wanting to tattoo any part of your body, or make an attempt to want to put any kind of body piercing in your navel, tongue, eyelids, or to any parts of your genitalia – knowing full well that you carry His presence right there on the inside of your physical body.
What kind of witness do you get from the Holy Spirit when you tap in to see what His opinion may really be on this kind of a matter?
My inner witness tells me that He does not want us getting any type of markings or cuttings done on our bodies – and that if we do, it is a form of defilement since our bodies are now His Holy Temple.
We have had quite a few people write in asking our opinion on this matter since this is still such a popular trend and fad in our society. For what it is worth, all of the above is our own personal opinion on this matter and the biblical reasons as to why we feel this way.

AT LEAST THIS INSTALLMENT INTERESTING…………YUH EXPLAIN YOUR BRIDGING??? lol…

Are black women less attractive than other women?

By NADINE WILSON All Woman writer

Monday, June 06, 2011

 

AN article carried recently in Psychology Today questioning the perceived unattractiveness of black women has reignited debates of racism and has fuelled international outrage.

The piece entitled Why are black women rated less attractive than other women, but black men are rated better looking than other men? has since been pulled from the magazine’s website following its appearance on May 15 this year. But this has not stopped public criticism of the editors of Psychology Today or the author of the piece, Satoshi Kanazawa, a Japanese evolutionary psychologist.

 

Sociologist Dr Orville Taylor says the bleaching phenomenon is not about people trying to become white, but about people establishing a pattern of beauty that they aspire towards. In this AP photo, from a story titled, Skin bleaching, a growing problem in Jamaica, Mikeisha Simpson poses for a portrait in Kingston. Simpson, 23, hopes to transform her dark complexion to a cafe-aulait- colour common among Jamaica’s elite and favoured by many men in her neighbourhood. She believes a fairer skin could be her ticket to a better life, so she spends her savings on blackmarket concoctions that promise to lighten her pigment. 1/2

 

Kanazawa concluded, based on a study in which several persons were interviewed, that black women were objectively less attractive than white, Asian and North American women, though they “subjectively consider themselves to be far more physically attractive than others”.

“Black women are significantly less physically attractive than women of other races,” said Kanazawa, who works at the London School of Economics.

“The only thing I can think of that might potentially explain the lower average level of physical attractiveness among black women is testosterone. Africans on average have higher levels of testosterone than other races,” he explained.

The claim that blacks are unattractive, while offensive and backward, has not come as a surprise to at least two local academics who said that years of independence from slavery has not changed people’s perception of blacks.

Neither does it surprise counsellor Carla Brookes, who said the way some black women behave, dress and act fuels a perception of “the fat, loud video model type with loose morals”.

“You can’t blame people sometimes for judging us the way they do,” Brookes said. “We cuss, we fight, we’re loud and we act like we’re proud of it!”

Noted Sociologist Dr Orville Taylor said the “seasoning” blacks underwent during slavery has caused many to look at blacks in a negative light, despite our achievements since independence.

“I am not surprised by any type of survey or psychological research that points to negative self-imagery (especially) when you juxtapose that against the bleaching phenomenon which is not about people trying to become white, but about people establishing a pattern of beauty that they aspire towards,” he said.

He explained that like a curry stain, the effects of slavery which saw many blacks humiliated and exploited under European rule cannot be reversed overnight.

“In the United States, it is perhaps a little bit worse, believe it or not, because at least in Jamaica, we managed to achieve something called national identity and status. Black Americans wear this kind of marker where they are called something else, they are called African Americans. Nobody walks around and talks about European Americans or Caucasian Americans,” he pointed out.

Lecturer in the Department of Cultural Studies at the University of West Indies, Mona, Horace Williams, believes that while more blacks are now embracing their ‘nappy’ hair styling, signalling, “an impression of updated appreciation”, there is still a strong indication of a lack of appreciation of self.

“Persons are marketed differently. They wear their hair in a sort of style that speaks to a mimicry of appreciation, but in fact and indeed, there is really no appreciation of self,” he said.

“I really believe we haven’t really gone anywhere different, it is just a matter of new marketing, but same old problem,” Williams noted.

Although the black women in Kanazawa’s study considered themselves beautiful, Dr Taylor has found that blacks in the Caribbean have perpetuated this general belief that something is wrong with how they look.

“It must be seen in the same context of the black hair phenomenon that we use even today. We make jokes that people’s hair look like ‘kiah’ and we make jokes about people’s hair looking like grains of [pepper] or scotch brite. We make those kinds of jokes and we still associate, and I suspect the psychological studies will show as well, we still associate black and ugly,” he said.

“When a very, very dark woman with distinct African features is good looking, they tend to say in a normal way, even when people are not trying to be offensive, ‘oh, she looks nice for a black girl’ or ‘she is a nice looking black girl’. It is almost never said that this is a nice looking brown girl.”

While the study found black women to be unattractive, the same study concluded that black males were considered more attractive than Asian, white and North American men. This finding too does not come as much of a surprise to Dr Taylor who believes this belief is a subtext of colonial discourse where the wives of the white plantation owners or overseers sought out black men for sexual satisfaction.

“They always show stories of the wife of the plantation owner or overseer bringing in the Mandingo through the back door or having sex with the gardener,” said Dr Taylor.

“The idea of a virile man was also part of the stereotype and that has always been engrained in our minds to incorporate a notion of this animal-looking thing, this strong black man, a little bit less than the human, but more than the animal, a stud. The word stud is not a flattering word, but we have embraced it,” he said.

The fact that women are now embracing their natural hair more is a good indication for Dr Taylor that we are slowly accepting various aspects of our blackness, but he doesn’t expect a full acceptance of our black features anytime soon.

“It took several hundred years to evolve in a negative way, so it’s going to take a long time as well for that to change,” he said.

Meanwhile, Williams also believes that it is going to take a while for people to truly accept black features as opposed to just using it as a “marketing strategy to mimic appreciation”.

“The appreciation of black features, I am not sure that time has healed that,” he said. “What has changed is the media marketing and a broader context in which multi-culturalism is fundamental to any type of institutional advancement, educational, work [and] otherwise.”

 

Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/magazines/allwoman/Are-black-women-less-attractive-than-other-women_8949970#ixzz1P3zD2xAd