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Is our body a temple?

Bishka

Veteran Member
What does this scripture mean to you?

1 Corinthians 3:16-17
16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

Do you think it means that we should respect our bodies? I have opinion on it, I'm just wondering what everyone elses opinion is.
 

dawny0826

Mother Heathen
I do feel that our bodies are temples and that we should do our best to take care of ourselves.

(And on a side note, bless your heart...I just noticed your new signature. I'm praying for you, girl! :))
 

Bishka

Veteran Member
dawny0826 said:
I do feel that our bodies are temples and that we should do our best to take care of ourselves.

(And on a side note, bless your heart...I just noticed your new signature. I'm praying for you, girl! :))
Thanks dawny. So how do you think we should treat our bodies, is that mean for example

No alcohol, no tattoos, no smoking, no drugs. :) Sorry, I'm just curious what other people think.
 

dawny0826

Mother Heathen
beckysoup61 said:
Thanks dawny. So how do you think we should treat our bodies, is that mean for example

No alcohol, no tattoos, no smoking, no drugs. :) Sorry, I'm just curious what other people think.
I used to smoke heavily, quit about two years ago. I do have tattoos and although I enjoy the artistic quality of them...now that I'm a Christian...I've toyed with the idea of getting more but I think the idea of NOT disgracing my temple wins over my own desires.

Biblically speaking, I think it's probably best not to smoke, drink, get tattoos and do drugs.

Personally, I do have a glass of wine on occasion and I haven't had my tattoos removed and I don't particularly feel guilty about this either.
 

Bishka

Veteran Member
dawny0826 said:
I used to smoke heavily, quit about two years ago. I do have tattoos and although I enjoy the artistic quality of them...now that I'm a Christian...I've toyed with the idea of getting more but I think the idea of NOT disgracing my temple wins over my own desires.

Biblically speaking, I think it's probably best not to smoke, drink, get tattoos and do drugs.

Personally, I do have a glass of wine on occasion and I haven't had my tattoos removed and I don't particularly feel guilty about this either.
That's how the LDS feel pretty much about it too. :) Except the alcohol. :) No alcohol for us, but that's okay, I wouldn't care, I don't like the taste anyways.
 

dawny0826

Mother Heathen
beckysoup61 said:
That's how the LDS feel pretty much about it too. :) Except the alcohol. :) No alcohol for us, but that's okay, I wouldn't care, I don't like the taste anyways.
Well, trust me. It's not a bad thing that you steer clear from alcohol.
 

jeffrey

†ßig Dog†
I think of it as more of our souls. Were our soul is, God's spirit lives. My body is not a temple... It's more like 'The projects!' :eek: You have people born with birth effects, and I don't believe God's love for them is anything less. Our body is just an shell, has a hermit crab. What's important is what's inside that shell.
 

dawny0826

Mother Heathen
jeffrey said:
I think of it as more of our souls. Were our soul is, God's spirit lives. My body is not a temple... It's more like 'The projects!' :eek: You have people born with birth effects, and I don't believe God's love for them is anything less. Our body is just an shell, has a hermit crab. What's important is what's inside that shell.
NIce post. I think I could compare my body to "the projects" as well.:biglaugh:
 

Buttons*

Glass half Panda'd
For me, its not because I view my body as a temple. It's temporary anyways... but I just dont see any common sense in doing those things, which is why i choose not to do them. *shrugs*
 

Master Vigil

Well-Known Member
When I was younger, I was privelidged to watch a chruch burn to the ground. Why was I privelidged you might ask? Because I understood impermanence. So the question then becomes... Does my body hold my spirit, or does my spirit hold my body? If my body holds my spirit, then of course, the body must be respected. But if my spirit holds my body, then the body may be seen as a spiritual hindrance. However, if one views them as one... then physical health becomes just as important as spiritual health.

I also do not believe tatoos, peircings, body modification, etc... are wrong or evil. Because, they are just decoration. :D However, I see drugs, eating unhealthily, etc... as complete unnecessaries in the path to Tao oneness.

But one must not become attached to this body, for just like that church, it is impermanent.
 

YmirGF

Bodhisattva in Recovery
Is our body a temple?

You bet your sweet bippy it is.

For this reason, I do not wear any form of jewelry, or watch etc
I also would never get a tatoo
I am not a health "nut", but I lead a fairly healthy lifestyle.

I have always taken, the Corinthians quote quite literally.

16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
You bet I do! It is quite real.

17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

I treat my body very much as I treat a car. I want to get to realize my full investment, and so I don't pamper it, but I do treat it rather well. It is after all, the manifestation of my essence in physical reality.
 

dawny0826

Mother Heathen
YmirGF said:
Is our body a temple?

You bet your sweet bippy it is.

For this reason, I do not wear any form of jewelry, or watch etc
I also would never get a tatoo
I am not a health "nut", but I lead a fairly healthy lifestyle.

I have always taken, the Corinthians quote quite literally.

16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
You bet I do! It is quite real.

17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

I treat my body very much as I treat a car. I want to get to realize my full investment, and so I don't pamper it, but I do treat it rather well. It is after all, the manifestation of my essence in physical reality.
Well said.
 

MdmSzdWhtGuy

Well-Known Member
beckysoup61 said:
Thanks dawny. So how do you think we should treat our bodies, is that mean for example

No alcohol, no tattoos, no smoking, no drugs. :) Sorry, I'm just curious what other people think.
Wouldn't you paint the temple if it were a literal building? My temple has 5 tattoo's, and they are adorning one of the premier examples of the male of the species, if I do humbly say so myself.

I feel like there is nothing more in this world or any other that I "own" more than my own body. If I want to build it up through exercise, it is my right to do so, if I want to use it to gain sexual pleasure, again, it is mine to do with as I see fit.

To me a life of no drinking, no smoking, no tattoo's, no drugs, etc etc etc doesn't sound like much of a life. Denying myself the things that make this mortal coil pleasurable seems illogical. If there is a God, and If that God provided me this body, then I don't have any understanding of why that God would not want me to utilize this body to get around, and do some good for myself and others.

A stick in the mud God who freaks out if I smoke some weed, or have a martini on occasion just doesn't appeal to me. If there is a God who is concerned about this stuff, then it leads me to think he has too much time on His hands. He needs to do something about the starving, and the disease, and the torture that goes on around the world, and needs to worry less about how I spend my Saturday night.

B.
 

Aqualung

Tasty
I don't think our body is temporary, though when we are resurected I think it will be a perfected body. However, I don't think that means we can just do whatever we want with it. God gave us a body (yes, different bodies for different people, some with birth defects) to see how well we could do. If we show that we can take care of that, we will be given more (like the bible story,"because you ahve been faithful with little I'll give you a lot), and if we show god that we don't care at all, or are too lazy to take care of our body, he's not going to give us much. Why would he let us take care of anything else if we can't even take care of ourselves?
 

sojourner

Annoyingly Progressive Since 2006
A temple is a place of sacrifice. To defile a temple is to make it unfit for sacrifice. We should sacrifice our own will to the will of God. If we make ourselves unfit to do that, then we have defiled the temple.

I don't think it particularly has anyting to do with pietistic abstenance.
 

XGraceX104

New Member
sojourner said:
A temple is a place of sacrifice. To defile a temple is to make it unfit for sacrifice. We should sacrifice our own will to the will of God. If we make ourselves unfit to do that, then we have defiled the temple.


:yes: I agree!!!

Amen!



___________________________________________
Grace & Peace,
God Bless,
Carrie

"Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you."
*Luke 6:38 *
 
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