Tatoos?

[Christina]

I've been thinking about getting one....but, I don't want to if the Church says it's a sin. I really can't find any comments from the Church about tatoos and was wondering if any of you know.

My mother and father both ride Harleys and have them lol.

[MorphRC]

Im not sure, ive seen plenty of Priests with tats.

[MichaelFilo]

Mistakes of a past life. Tattoos aren't sinful in their nature, however excessive use of tattoos, and/or peircings is a sin. Tattoos that don't belong in certain places is a sin.

Tattoos are not natural to the human body, why add on more to it?

God bless,

Mikey

[Quietfire]

Try to imagine yourself at 90 with a tat.
That tat of Tweety will look more like a vulture!

Not too pretty, huh?

Piercings are temporary. Not that one needs 30 of them spread out over the body.
Pierced ears are nice. Change your mind? Simply dont wear earrings anymore, simple solution.

Tats. Change your mind...lottsa money to have it removed.

Personally, I dont find them attractive.
Talked my husband out of one. He wanted my name on his arm with an Indian band (Im half Cherokee).

I explained to him that he already had the best part of it....ME!!!

They now have temp tats that last for about 6 months to a year, dont ask were though, cause I cant remember.
Most people who get those are glad once they finally fade. After spending that long with a tat, they appreciate them more on someone else, he,he.

Look into it.

Peace.

Edited August 6, 2004 by Quietfire

[Fiat_Voluntas_Tua]

[img]http://geocities.com/seapadre_1999/swordflames.jpg[/img]

I believe this is a tatoo from a deacon but I am not sure.

[url="http://oldforum.catholic.org/discussion/messages/41/24718.html?1010507974"]Question and Answer about Tatoo's from 'Catholic on-line Forum'[/url]

I am not sure that there is any Church teachings about tatoo's specifically...However:

(CCC 1004) [i]In expectation of that day, the believer's body and soul already participate in the dignity of belonging to Christ. This dignity entails the demand that he should treat with respect his own body, but also the body of every other person, especially the suffering:

[b]The body [is meant] for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. And God raised the Lord and will also raise us up by his power. Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? . . . You are not your own; . . . So glorify God in your body[/b].[/i]

This shows we must respect our bodies...whether or not you say that having a rosary tatooed to your arm is Glorifying God I am not sure. Maybe someone can tag team off of this.

Pax,

Andy

[Carrie]

I believe the Church has no stance on tattoos, so long as you don't get excessive amounts of tattoos. I have one and love it.

[Ash Wednesday]

That is a very grey area and probably depends on the situation.

I've read field workers in India that were Christian had crosses tattooed on them so that if they needed a priest and/or proper Christian burial, someone tending to them would know this.

Getting a tattoo to testify on behalf of your faith, I've known many Catholics who have done this. I don't view smaller amounts of tattoos as being any more sinful than a person changing their appearance with makeup, wigs, getting your teeth capped and straightened, etc.

Getting too many tattoos and piercings to the point where you desecrate your body is an indication that something is seriously wrong and you're in need of help. In that case taking it too far is a serious sin.

The same would go for obscene tattoos.

[Christina]

I just don't see why it would be a sin.... we color our hair, pierce our ears and other parts of our bodies (yes that can be concidered bad if done to extreme as is having your body covered with tatoos... I do think this is sinful), put makeup on to alter the way God made us look (no, I don't wear makeup)....so why not get a tatoo? I would get something small and one that glorifies God (I was thinking a Holy Spirit symbol). Plus, I would put it in a place not visible because it would be personal to me.

[Tora-Musume]

Tattoo is art. The only difference between tattoos and paintings is that you are using your body and not a canvas. And what is the difference between one tattoo and 15 tattoos? What is the difference between one piercing in each ear as oppose to 6 in each ear? And what is the difference between someone who is diabetic pricking their fingers to check their sugar level and a tattoo needle with ink in it to create a picture besides the fact that one will turn out looking like a picture and the other one will look like fingers with holes?

Gotta Love Me!

[Christina]

lol OK...

I want to add that although I am thinking about getting one, if I found that the Chruch was against tatoos and if I got one it would be a sin.....well, I would not get one. I would forget it and move on. My faith and my salvation matter more to me than a tatoo.

[MorphRC]

Cobra Tattoo.

[MichaelFilo]

It would be good to point out that our bodies don't belong to us. Altering them is not a "right". Our bodies are temples for the Holy Spirit. I would like to go so far as to say it is in vain, and that of peircings as well. Please someone remind me of a saint who dyed her hair to look pretty, or a saint who tatooed his arm to profess his faith, even one who peirced their ear uncontrollably?

Quite simply, tatoos aren't natural to the body. All things to make ourselves look prettier are vain, as our bodies will someone go back to dust. When they are raised, they will be glorified. Vainity is wrong, and pointless.

God bless,

Mikey

[IcePrincessKRS]

Mikey, I agree that this *can be* vanity but I think you're going a little extreme. Not everyone gets their ears pierced, or whatever, out of vanity. When I was about 3 my older sister got school supplies for Kindergarten, including a pair of scissors, she took them to our hair to the point that my mom was afraid people would think we were boys and got our ears pierced to avoid confusion. When I was older I added a couple more holes because I thought it was cool, but I wasn't doing it to get extra attention or because I thought it made me prettier or whatever. If someone told me I was being vain I would have thought they were nuts. (For the record, I rarely wear earrings except for special occasions when I'm really dressed up because I am allergic to most metals.)

I guess I'm having trouble with the phrase "All things to make ourselves look prettier are vain" because to a certain point we *should* take pride in our appearance and try to look nicer/prettier, sure it can be over done, but not everything that we do to look nice should be written off as vanity. I mean, with that statement all of us married folk were just being horribly vain on our wedding days when we adorned ourselves in white dresses and tuxedos to celebrate our special day (and forced other people into vanity by asking them to be in our wedding parties). Those of us who dress up a little extra on Sunday for Mass are just being vain instead of wanting to look our best for Our Lord. Do you get what I'm saying? Does it make any sense?

[MorphRC]

....

[MichaelFilo]

[quote name='IcePrincessKRS' date='Aug 7 2004, 04:31 PM'] Mikey, I agree that this *can be* vanity but I think you're going a little extreme. Not everyone gets their ears pierced, or whatever, out of vanity. When I was about 3 my older sister got school supplies for Kindergarten, including a pair of scissors, she took them to our hair to the point that my mom was afraid people would think we were boys and got our ears pierced to avoid confusion. When I was older I added a couple more holes because I thought it was cool, but I wasn't doing it to get extra attention or because I thought it made me prettier or whatever. If someone told me I was being vain I would have thought they were nuts. (For the record, I rarely wear earrings except for special occasions when I'm really dressed up because I am allergic to most metals.)

I guess I'm having trouble with the phrase "All things to make ourselves look prettier are vain" because to a certain point we *should* take pride in our appearance and try to look nicer/prettier, sure it can be over done, but not everything that we do to look nice should be written off as vanity. I mean, with that statement all of us married folk were just being horribly vain on our wedding days when we adorned ourselves in white dresses and tuxedos to celebrate our special day (and forced other people into vanity by asking them to be in our wedding parties). Those of us who dress up a little extra on Sunday for Mass are just being vain instead of wanting to look our best for Our Lord. Do you get what I'm saying? Does it make any sense? [/quote]
In your first scenario, you being in kindergarten, you had to get your ear peirced for a reason. The single peircing is a cultural thing, and it can be accepted. I'd even say today, more than just one peircing on the ear is cultural (while personally I'd wish no one peirced anything really, as the idea of putting holes in anyones body should make you wonder where such a practice comes from). Thinking something is cool, and then getting whatever that said something is, is indeed vain. Getting things that look cool have the direct intention of making you look cool (and looking cool can be seen as an attempt to look pretty).

Outside of what we were given, everything we do use to make ourselves look prettier are indeed vain. Not yielding the desired outcome; fruitless, is the defenition I have for vain. What fruit can come from looking prettier (cooler as well). You get compliments, and compliments lead to pride.

God commanded us to celebrate certain feasts, and Jesus was at a wedding. Looking your best for a celebration, however is vain. (Note: Looking your best for God at church isn't vain, in that there are eternal rewards for considering God in all that we say and do) Vainity isn't in itself a sin, mind you.

The book Ecclesiastes in the Bible maybe a good read to see why all those things are vain. If good, honest, hard work is vain, then how can silly things like tatoos not be vain?

God bless,

Mikey

Edited August 8, 2004 by MichaelFilo

[franciscanheart]

I would assume that a tattoo would not be a sin but I am not sure. However, tattooing your body is a way of enhancing it in a lot of people's eyes. This was discussed on open mic and the point made in there was that if you are doing it for the enhancement of yourself then you are wrong because you are perfect the way God made you.


I personally believe that it is destroying a temple of the Holy Spirit. You are mutalating your body. Now I dont completely oppose tattoos but there has to be a limit. And what's the point anyway?

[Ash Wednesday]

[quote name='MichaelFilo' date='Aug 7 2004, 02:31 PM'] Please someone remind me of a saint who dyed her hair to look pretty, or a saint who tatooed his arm to profess his faith, even one who peirced their ear uncontrollably? [/quote]
I understand your points, though I don't think the previous statement holds a lot of weight. There are a lot of things we could have a hard time imagining a lot of the saints to be doing that did not live in the 20th century. It goes back to the argument in the thread about cross dressing -- women wearing pants and what dress is acceptable, and the fact that St. Gianna wore pants. As a matter of fact I thought her hair was styled nicely, too. The saints were not the wooden and plaster statues that we view when we pray.

[Carrie]

Regardless of what you may personally think about tattoos, the Church does not state that tattoos are a sin. So long as they are not in abundance, they ARE NOT a sin.

Many people do not get tattoos to be vain. Not everyone who gets a tattoo shows them off. Many people get a tattoo because it has a special significance to them.

And I especially don't see anything wrong with someone getting a tattoo with religious meaning. It is a way for that person to express their faith, just like someone who wears a cross, scapular, or rosary. It is just a different form of expression.

And MichaelFilo, I agree with Ice...your examples are to the extreme. By your definition of vain and "looking prettier" then I guess I shouldn't comb my hair in the morning because I look prettier with combed hair than with messy hair. See how silly that sounds?

[MichaelFilo]

Personal Hygene and taking care of your body is not vain. However, making it pretty would be vain, in the sense that you spend an extra effort on these things, and in the end they are fruitless. It would be extreme, yes, but remember I did say alot of things are vain, and that it is nearly impossible (mind you, not impossible) and highly impropable that you can and will avoid all vanities. However, my view of vain, as I said before, isn't totally founded in extremist logic, but in the Bible.

You said that you did not intend to get the tatoo to show it off (while I can point out, there is little else a tatoo is used for, I won't), you said however it holds meaning for you, and that is the primary (and hopefully only) reason you are getting it.

One needs to look further then as to how a tattoo is placed, by using a needle, to break the skin. To get a tattoo, you HAVE to agree to allow someone to pierce through your skin repedeatly. That means one would have to consent to mutiliation of their body. THAT is a sin. Therefore, to get a permanent tattoo, you'd have to commit a sin.

God bless,

Mikey

Edited August 10, 2004 by MichaelFilo

[Aloysius]

so it would appear, as always, it all comes down to [color=blue]intention[/color]

so i'll vote no, it is not of its own a sin, but as with anything can be a sin if done for the wrong reasons.