Saturday, July 02, 2005

Health and Words of Wisdom

As most of us know, if anything eaten that is not eaten sparingly is against our word of wisdom, how do we account for all the overweight people (members) out there? Are we lying when we are having our temple interviews when asked if we are following the words of wisdom? Is that too much like splitting hairs? Very few people have a medical diagnosis that would allow them to have a different reason to being overweight then just from overeating, so what about the rest of us?

In D&C 88:124 it starts off as saying "...cease to be idle..." does that mean couch potatoes are considered idle? Do we think that if we worked hard at our jobs all day that we can justify sitting around all night instead of working at our physical bodies to keep in shape? What constitutes ceasing to be idle?

3 comments:

Mary Siever said...

I think the Word of Wisdom isn't as explanatory as some people would like :) Most people have a tendency to look at the "dont's" more so than the "dos". We all know that smoking and drinking alcohol and drinking coffee and tea are not healthy, but the mention of foods in their season, grains and meat sparingly, etc etc seem to be often overlooked. When I go to Church events, there are always LOTS of high sugar, high fat, very refined, processed junk and sweet foods present. Pop is the mainstay drink, either that or high sugar drinks. These are foods that should be minimal, when fruits and vegetables and grains (and nope, white refined flour isn't a grain...at least certainly not a helathy one!) should be the primary nutrition source. I think it comes from a misunderstanding of what health really is. The Lord expects us to use common sense when taking care of our bodies, and this fast food world makes it harder to do that. But not impossible of course. Just takes some determination and education. As far as Temple Recommends are concerned, I do think that is highly individual, but once someone KNOWS what is important to take care of their bodies, they really should do so. Splitting hairs? Maybe. But we know what a lifetime, or half a lifetime of crappy eating can cause to health. We see it all over the place. When type II diabetes is become rampant, heart disease and other lifestyle created illnesses are rising at an alarming rate and obesity in children is climbing as well, it's time people took responsibility for their health and started understanding what the Word of Wisdom truly means. I think it is purposely "vague" because we need to become more aware of our own responsibility in the area. Daniel and his friends were a great example of what healthy eating will do for the mind and the body. And we see what others in the scriptures have done through living healthy and I personally believe this is a part of learning what the Word of Wisdom is all about.

Anyway, as far as exercise is concerned, again, we live in a highly convenient world. There are computers, TVs (with Satellite and cable, who needs to be entertained elsewhere?), delivery of almost anything you want, shopping on the internet or by phone, cars everywhere, escalators, elevators. Almost anything to STOP us from moving. Now, of course there are people who are unable to do too much physically, for reasons that are very understandable and very necessary to take into consideration. But there is always something that can be done, and I know that I always feel better after a good workout (my own definition of a workout) even if I am not feeling up to it before hand. Again, discipline and dedication. It's worth it of course, and I think the "cease to be idle" is related to this, as well as referring to "work"...being lazy and not doing our part in life generally. I think ceasing to be idle means exactly that, get up, do something, be proactive, take measures to be healthier, get more out of life.

Easy as Epicure said...

I think for me it has always been that the vagueness of that passage has been because that was what was "bad" at the time. Did Heavenly Father know that McD's or BK or that pizza was going to be delivered in 30 minutes or less? I firmly believe that even had Joseph Smith had a clue to what was going to happen to our food intake 100 years ago he would have a chat with someone and say hey, I think we need to revamp this WoW thing..

Good points though Mary as always!! Looking forward to chatting with you all the way to Sask and back next month wooohooo

rick said...

Doesn't it sometimes bother you that the 70 don't just come out with a list that would define what was okay, and what was taboo?

This would clear up all sorts of hurt feelings and misunderstandings between members, as well as giving members a proper yardstick upon which to measure themselves.

(Sorry for the drive-by comment, but I only stumbled upon your blog today.)