Mormon dietary restrictions

[YPestis]

I was reading an article about the Mormons dietary restriction on coffee, tea and alcohol. It appears that caffeine is ok? But not coffee? I'm confused. I thought the Mormon Church's objection to coffee and tea was the caffeine! And yet the article states that caffeinated sodas are ok. They mentioned their Word of Wisdom, which is where the dietary restrictions are noted, that mentions ban on "hot drinks" which was interpreted to be tea and coffee. However, ice tea and iced coffee are still not allowed for Mormons. And somehow cocoa is ok. Now, I'm really confused. If it's not caffeine but the fact the drinks are warm, then why is drinking it cold a bad thing? I wonder if someone could clarify this?

 

As for me, I LOVE coffee and wine. I can't imagine a day without a coffee in the morning and a wine with dinner. Actually, I can't imagine life without coffee. This is probably why I will never be a Mormon. Forget the large family, the SAHM thing or the undergarments. Their dietary restrictions would ruin my life. Also, as a Chinese, I would have to give up my ethnicity if I gave up tea.

 

Anyway, I know there are some Mormons and ex-Mormons on the board. Perhaps someone can clarify this for me? Also, what are your experiences and opinions of the tea, coffee and alcohol ban in the Mormon Church?

[snarktastic]

Don't try to apply too much logic to the rules on this, it's a religion we're talking about :lol:

Mormonism's founder Joseph Smith said something along the lines of, if they men had to give up drinking beer, the women would have to give up their tea and coffee.

So, tea and coffee, hot or cold, are bad. Some Mormons will drink decaff, which I believe technically is allowed, but many want to avoid 'the appearance of evil' and abstain altogether.

Caffeinated sodas are a bit of a grey area. Some Mormons interpret the rules to say that coke etc is banned as well. I think most Mormons still drank it and felt that they were taking a bit of a walk on the wild side. I believe that one of the Mormon bigwigs clarified a little while back that coke was OK.

I'm not actually a Mormon so someone who is on the board may be able to clarify better.

(Also as a Brit I'm also someone ethnically unable to give up tea).

[miffy]

As an Australian of British extraction my body requires a certain amount of tea. If I don't have it I get bad cravings. Also I get headaches if I miss my coffee. I have both strong & black.

Don't Mormons drink cough syrup for fun? (everything I know about them I learned from Big Love & FLDS escape documentaries)

[uber frau]

Not allowed: hot drinks ie tea or coffee in either heated or chilled form. Herbal tea and cocoa products are acceptable at any temperature.

Alcohol in any form. The most TB of TBMs will not allow things like vanilla extract since it includes alcohol. The text of the WOW prohibits 'strong drinks' ie distilled liquor. 'Mild drinks' (based on barley such as beer) are deemed to be acceptable. Most TBMs will argue that 'mild drinks' refers to postum (basically home made caro like substance) but there are multiple primary sources recording early leaders drinking beer and wine.

Multiple parts of the WOW are ignored completely including the recommendation to eat meat sparingly amd on times of depttivation (like winter ) and the official word is that caffienated drinkd (other than tea or coffee) are A-okay.

You're looking for logic in a place you won't find any. Mormonism is even more inconsistent than orthodox Christianity.

[miffy]

What if you mixed some marijuana with butter & heated it to release the THC & then put it in a cup of water & drank it? Technically it would be herbal tea.

[mausi]

What if you mixed some marijuana with butter & heated it to release the THC & then put it in a cup of water & drank it? Technically it would be herbal tea.

I never want to think of marijuana, butter or tea in such a manner ever again. :hand: Although maybe this is why ZsuZsa buys so much butter; she needs her herbal teas! ;)

[DistantStar]

I have heard from a Mormon friend that whatever it is, it's not about caffeine. Nor is it about logic. I don't get it.

Though there are worse ideas in the world than avoiding alcohol. Coffee, though? Hells no.

[uber frau]

I have heard from a Mormon friend that whatever it is, it's not about caffeine. Nor is it about logic. I don't get it.

Though there are worse ideas in the world than avoiding alcohol. Coffee, though? Hells no.

To quote Steve Benson, the motto of Mormonism is, "Pray, obey, pay" (with the emphasis on the second two), or to paraphrase a FJian, "mormonism =scientology with added Jesus". It makes fundie Christianity look deep. Almost.

[ThatSnark]

This has bothered me more than it should. Their Word of Wisdom, which is a part of their sacred text, has a prophet warning against hot drinks. Hot drinks. That seems pretty clear, and yet they're all slurping hot cocoa. Maybe it wasn't a thing back when Joseph Smith was prophesying, but it seems so inconsistent to say that NEW hot drinks are fine, but tea and coffee aren't.

I read a sort of charming blog about clothes, mostly, and little children, written by a Mormon woman called "La Vie Petite." Somewhere in there, she has a post about how tea is harmful to the body, and that even if she weren't Mormon, she wouldn't risk harming her body with tea. And yet, a click away are countless medical and dietary studies piling up the health benefits of tea, green tea especially, and coffee as well. Both are natural, plant-derived products that are much healthier than processed, sweetened cocoa or chemical-laden soda.

A large part of my husband's extended family are Mormon, so I've been interested in the culture for a few decades now. Logic is not their strong suit.

[hywelis]

I can't fathom why God/dess would be displeased if someone drank a hot drink. It seems so petty to me. What's the harm in a hot drink, either to others or to oneself? I can't wrap my mind around this one.

Hywelis

[samurai_sarah]

This has bothered me more than it should. Their Word of Wisdom, which is a part of their sacred text, has a prophet warning against hot drinks. Hot drinks. That seems pretty clear, and yet they're all slurping hot cocoa. Maybe it wasn't a thing back when Joseph Smith was prophesying, but it seems so inconsistent to say that NEW hot drinks are fine, but tea and coffee aren't. (snip)

Only, hot chocolate wasn't new. Drinking-chocolate used to be the only form of chocolate available till 1830, when solid chocolate was invented. Before that, chocolate had been around in Europe since the 16th century in Spain, and obviously a good deal longer in America. In that sense, tea and coffee are the "new" drinks, although coffee had also been around for a while. Yep, terribly Western-centric way of viewing the world on my part, based on the assumption that settlers to the US took their "drinks-history" along. So from that angle, it's logically inconsistent to slurp hot chocolate, but eschew tea or coffee.

[Joan of Snarc]

A Mormon told me they don't consume anything that ends in "-ine." No caffeine, nicotine, or codeine.

The Mormon church where I go to research my genealogy has decaf coffee available.

:doh:

[rezski44]

Tis is not unlike the Jewish kosher laws. They are not really about health. They are about a lifestyle that marks one as Jewish due to the obeying of the religion's rules. A set apartness.

[ladyaudley]

Tis is not unlike the Jewish kosher laws. They are not really about health. They are about a lifestyle that marks one as Jewish due to the obeying of the religion's rules. A set apartness.

the term is "orthopraxy", correct action/behaviour. Judaism, Islam to an extent, Mormonism and many other religions thrive on orthopraxy; the idea that "if I do x, y, z, I'm a good follower of *insert religion here*". It can be both combined with and used instead of "orthodoxy", correct belief/mindset.

[sarahbrownie]

http://www.buzzfeed.com/erinlarosa/19-t ... olygamists

Funny thing is, FLDS doesn't follow this rule as this was set after they had split from the Church of LDS.

(not breaking the link cus it's buzzfeed)

[emesbe]

Not allowed: hot drinks ie tea or coffee in either heated or chilled form. Herbal tea and cocoa products are acceptable at any temperature.

Alcohol in any form. The most TB of TBMs will not allow things like vanilla extract since it includes alcohol. The text of the WOW prohibits 'strong drinks' ie distilled liquor. 'Mild drinks' (based on barley such as beer) are deemed to be acceptable. Most TBMs will argue that 'mild drinks' refers to postum (basically home made caro like substance) but there are multiple primary sources recording early leaders drinking beer and wine.

Multiple parts of the WOW are ignored completely including the recommendation to eat meat sparingly amd on times of depttivation (like winter ) and the official word is that caffienated drinkd (other than tea or coffee) are A-okay.

You're looking for logic in a place you won't find any. Mormonism is even more inconsistent than orthodox Christianity.

Jack Mormon here. Yes, it's confusing. I wish I could figure out how to multiquote. Too fat, too stupid.

I actually don't know anyone who doesn't use vanilla extract, and I know some very TBMs. Including my ex inlaws, who will not drink Sunkist soda, since it has a tiny amount of caffeine. For myself, I love Diet Coke.

It's actually a no on beer. Any kind of drinking alcohol is a no no. However, cooking with it is a grey area. I make a mean vodka sauce.

And yes, the recommendation to eat meat sparingly, is ignored by most of us. :naughty: Some Mormons tend to use sugar as somewhat of a replacement for the things we don't use.

[emesbe]

[quote="miffy"

Don't Mormons drink cough syrup for fun? (everything I know about them I learned from Big Love & FLDS escape documentaries)

[indygirl76]

I can't fathom why God/dess would be displeased if someone drank a hot drink. It seems so petty to me. What's the harm in a hot drink, either to others or to oneself? I can't wrap my mind around this one.

Hywelis

One of my high school history teachers was quite anti-religion, and regularly soapboxed about it. (This was a loooooong time ago, so there was no Internet to get him fired.) He said that at the time the WoW was written, coffee was VERY expensive, to the point that the early Mormons were spending so much money on coffee, it was affecting their tithing. Hence: God hates coffee.

I never did any of my own research to see if this was true; it could very well be total bs. But it sounds about right, based on the other behavior of the early LDS church....

[emesbe]

A Mormon told me they don't consume anything that ends in "-ine." No caffeine, nicotine, or codeine

:doh:

Psssht. I can't even tell you how many temple going members I have known that are prescription drug addicts.

http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=20345297

[Morton Fan]

Psssht. I can't even tell you how many temple going members I have known that are prescription drug addicts.

http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=20345297

It's not called Happy Valley for nothing!

[emesbe]

It's not called Happy Valley for nothing!

[Hane]

When I was a teenager volunteering at a camp for kids with developmental disabilities back in the '60s, one girl informed me, "I'm a Mormon. That means we can't drink Coke."

the term is "orthopraxy", correct action/behaviour. Judaism, Islam to an extent, Mormonism and many other religions thrive on orthopraxy; the idea that "if I do x, y, z, I'm a good follower of *insert religion here*". It can be both combined with and used instead of "orthodoxy", correct belief/mindset.

Exactly what I thought! It seems that most religious dietary restrictions have nothing (at least nowadays--ancient kosher restrictions are an exception) to do with health or physical wellbeing--they're more about "What To Do To Fit In As 'One of Us.'"

[ADoyle90815]

I also think it could be compared to kosher laws, in that it's a way to test one's obedience and faith. There is a section of the Word of Wisdom that is largely ignored, which is that meat is only to be consumed in winter or in times of famine, as most Mormons I've known tend to be major carnivores. One thing I remember is that several years ago, National Geographic magazine had an article about the people who lived the longest, and Utah wasn't on that list, but a community of Seventh Day Adventists living in Loma Linda, CA was. The reason for that is that Seventh Day Adventists are vegetarians because it's part of their religion. Other regions mentioned were areas where people drink red wine in moderation or green tea.

[PennySycamore]

[quote="miffy"

Don't Mormons drink cough syrup for fun? (everything I know about them I learned from Big Love & FLDS escape documentaries)

Ew. I have never come across that one. What fun is that?

[mausi]

I also think it could be compared to kosher laws, in that it's a way to test one's obedience and faith. There is a section of the Word of Wisdom that is largely ignored, which is that meat is only to be consumed in winter or in times of famine, as most Mormons I've known tend to be major carnivores. One thing I remember is that several years ago, National Geographic magazine had an article about the people who lived the longest, and Utah wasn't on that list, but a community of Seventh Day Adventists living in Loma Linda, CA was. The reason for that is that Seventh Day Adventists are vegetarians because it's part of their religion. Other regions mentioned were areas where people drink red wine in moderation or green tea.

I'm going to be immortal! :D