Lord,
You are the author of all good gifts, including food and drink.
I confess that I have taken your gifts and turned them in upon myself.
Teach me to receive what you would give me with joy,
But not to turn your gifts into paths to gluttony and drunkeness,
Through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Whoops, I sent the previous comment to the wrong post. Sorry.
Your situation will be sent up in prayer. Something always bothers me, though, when I hear people equate their eating habits with sin, because alot of weight problems stem from genetics. Awhile back, I listened to a woman go on and on about how sinful her eating habits were, which were probably not much different from the way I eat. Eating dessert is sinful for her, but not for me, I guess. Is that how sin works?
As for the drunkeness issue,……I don’t drink, and don’t comprehend the need to. I need more empathy and patience in that department.
Whoops, I sent the previous comment to the wrong post. Sorry.
Your situation will be sent up in prayer. Something always bothers me, though, when I hear people equate their eating habits with sin, because alot of weight problems stem from genetics. Awhile back, I listened to a woman go on and on about how sinful her eating habits were, which were probably not much different from the way I eat. Eating dessert is sinful for her, but not for me, I guess. Is that how sin works?
As for the drunkeness issue,……I don’t drink, and don’t comprehend the need to. I need more empathy and patience in that department.
A couple of points here in response to Jeanelle:
Whatever action one takes that lessens one’s ability to carry out one’s vocations in life, is sin. The implication here is that if one knows that one’s weight is affecting one’s health or shortening one’s lifespan, and one doesn’t take action that can be taken to correct the situation, one is neglecting and hurting one’s God-given vocations.
Of course, there’s a lot of “if’s” implicit in what I just said. How much weight will adversely affect my health? For that matter, dieting can be carried to the extreme, too. Anorexia and bulimia also harm one’s ability to serve one’s neighbor in love (i.e., fulfill one’s vocations). As does trying to abide by a diet that is ill-conceived or which neglects some essential nutritional need. And depending on one’s particular metabolism, medical conditions, etc., what is barely enough for one person may be way too much for another.
Ultimately, as with many of the less “direct” or obvious sins, it has more to do with what is in the heart than with a particular outward action.
A couple of points here in response to Jeanelle:
Whatever action one takes that lessens one’s ability to carry out one’s vocations in life, is sin. The implication here is that if one knows that one’s weight is affecting one’s health or shortening one’s lifespan, and one doesn’t take action that can be taken to correct the situation, one is neglecting and hurting one’s God-given vocations.
Of course, there’s a lot of “if’s” implicit in what I just said. How much weight will adversely affect my health? For that matter, dieting can be carried to the extreme, too. Anorexia and bulimia also harm one’s ability to serve one’s neighbor in love (i.e., fulfill one’s vocations). As does trying to abide by a diet that is ill-conceived or which neglects some essential nutritional need. And depending on one’s particular metabolism, medical conditions, etc., what is barely enough for one person may be way too much for another.
Ultimately, as with many of the less “direct” or obvious sins, it has more to do with what is in the heart than with a particular outward action.