Bob Thiel, the non-ordained self-appointed false prophet of the Continuing Ed Church of God is lashing out at tattoo's. Never one to come up with an original thought, Thiel is recycling old WCG writings in order to impress his 30 some church members and hopefully sound good to church members in other groups. Tattoo's is just another in a long line of things the church has no business sticking it's nose into.
Thiel starts out writing about Nicole Richie who regrets getting a tramp tat years ago.
Thiel writes:
Although she thought her inking was a good idea aged 16, now, 15 years later she now wants it gone. http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/entertainment/why-nicole-richie-is-on-a-mission-to-remove-her-teen-tramp-stamp/story-e6fredpu-1226633013911
As it turns out, when she was told it would take multiple treatments and about one year for it to be removed, she decided against getting it removed now, but stated that she would likely do it some time in the future.
Lower-back tattoos are also perceived as an indication of promiscuity by some, and so that is likely how the term “tramp stamp” developed. When one considers that the tattoo is not in a place that the woman getting it can see without mirrors or some other aid, this is also consistent with the view it is there to be seen by someone looking at her nude/nearly nude body (or fairly low cut slacks while wearing a short top/blouse).
Whether related to increased promiscuity or not, more and more seem to have tattoos. When I grew up, it seemed it was mainly bikers and men who had been in the military.
Thiel then has to find some connection to paganism that people apparently still worship today:
The Smithsonian report mentioned Egypt and the dwarf god Bes. Here is some information about him:Then to bring Jesus into the picture he says this:
Bes (Bisu, Aha) was an ancient Egyptian dwarf god. He was a complex being who was both a deity and a demonic fighter. He was a god of war, yet he was also a patron of childbirth and the home, and was associated with sexuality, humour, music and dancing. Although he began as a protector of the pharaoh, he became very popular with every day Egyptian people because he protected women and children above all others. He had no temples and there were no priests ordained in his name. However, he was one of the most popular gods of ancient Egypt and was often depicted on household items such as furniture, mirrors and cosmetics containers and applicators as well as magical wands and knives. It is also thought that sacred prostitutes may have had a tattoo of Bes placed near their pubic area in order to prevent venereal diseases…(Gods of Ancient Egypt: Bes. Copyright J Hill 2010. http://ancientegyptonline.co.uk/bes.html)Thus, tattoos provided a religious connection with this Egyptian deity. Throughout the Bible, God’s people are warned to come out of Egypt and not have images of heathen gods (e.g. Exodus 20:1-6). Since Bes was supposed to be a protector and fighter against demons, this may well be why prostitutes had tattoos–apparently some were mistakenly led to believe that the tattoo would protect them from sexually-transmitted diseases and other problems. God did not want His people to follow such practices.
Although the Church of Rome does not discourage tattoos, and some Protestants seem to believe that displaying certain ones (normally with symbols such as crosses or scriptural verses) gives a public testimony to Christ. Yet, Jesus never had a tattoo.Now that you know the truth about tattoo's you should not go out and get any more.
Actually, His word condemned them:
28 You shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor tattoo any marks on you: I am the Lord. 29 ‘Do not prostitute your daughter, to cause her to be a harlot, lest the land fall into harlotry, and the land become full of wickedness. (Leviticus 19:28-29)The fact that the admonition against prostitution comes right after the admonition to not have tattoos reminds me of the view that certain tattoos are signs of a tramp, hence the modern term “tramp stamp.”
Of course, if you have one or more tattoos this does not mean that you are doomed or that you have to rush out and try to get it removed. But certainly, you should not get more of them. Nor should anyone who claims to believe the Bible actually go out and get them.
13 But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived (2 Timothy 3:13, KJV)The growing acceptance of tattoos in Western societies is consistent with the above.
15 comments:
Riddle me this:
How come it's so easy to worship pagan gods that you can do it properly without even knowing it, and so difficult to worship yahweh that no matter how hard you try, you can never quite manage to do it properly?
If, by some weird twist of fate, after I die I somehow am assigned the role of a pagan god, I am gonna make it super-easy to worship me. I like the idea of people worshiping me by accident. I think if you need a huge temple and all these priests in order to be a god, that actually puts you in a much weaker position. The powerful gods are the ones who don't need any of that crap, but in fact, you can't get rid of them. They're always buzzing around like a pesky fly that cannot be swatted.
Of course, no mention of Garner Ted Armstrong's tattoos obtained while in the Navy. He was allowed to continue wearing his tattoos while in good standing with the WCG and while being the public face of the Church.
I guess like anything else WCG related, it depended upon ones rank in the Church whether or not Church doctrine applied. For example, Ramona Armstrong, HWA's second wife, was allowed to wear make-up despite the Church's ban on the use of cosmetics by women.
Wasn't Garner Ted's tattoo appropriately one of a naked woman?
Richard
I have begged young people that I know NOT to get tattoos.
The main reason, is that they are permanent. Very few things in life do you want to be with you that you cant "product recall". Heck, virtually every single reader of this page was a ready, willing and able baptized member in the HWA empire. Obviously, times have changed!
Just recently was talking with an old guy in line down at Pinnacle Bank in Cody. He was a WWll navy vet, and had an anchor tattooed on his forearm carried by a screaming eagle. My own dad was a WWII navy vet too, so we got to talking. Guy told me he always regretted getting it, but got it because of peer pressure when they were out at port on liberty. It looked pretty saggy and sorry for the wear some 70 years later!
Saw a tourist gal in town not too long ago, who with a bare mid-driff on had the word "Juicy" tatted just above her butt crack. Yeah... that will be a a great thing for the grand kids to see someday! LOL!
Tats are still considered lower class, and it will hurt you in a professional career. It still has a hard, biker, prison look to it, and again, it will cause discrimination, whether you like it or not.
When it comes to appearance, hey, its a free country. However, the marketplace is seldom fair. Should people judge by appearances??... NO. Do they...
YOU BETTER BELIEVE IT!
For that reason alone, I advise against anyone getting a tattoo. Now dont flame me here, if you got one, well then so be it. However, I would be interested in hearing your input about having it, after several years, and if there is any regrets, or any real benefits.
Byker Bob... Im going to guess you have a couple of them. Interested in hearing your input.
Luv,
Joe Moeller
Cody, WY
No, Joe, I never got any tats, because my father had been subject to skin poisoning, and I knew some people who's skin had reacted so badly to the inks that they ended up with scar-like skin grafts. Never did want to take that chance. In my ego, at the time, I felt as if I already looked badass enough without them. And I was into guns and martial arts.
But, it just amazes me to no end that someone like Bob Thiel, who claims as a prophet to have a special relationship with the book of Revelation would miss or ignore Jesus' tattoo!
Rev.19:16. On His robe and on his thigh he has this name written: King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
As a general comment, I like tattoos, so long as they are tasteful, and not overdone. Littering one's body with them, so that one looks not unlike a serere burn victim whom it is painful to look at really goes too far. Probably if I had gotten a tat myself, it would have been a portrait of Ronnie Van Zant, because I was deeply into Lynyrd Skynyrd, and the whole Southern Rock thing. That music provided a wonderful soundtrack to the whole motorcycle experience. Think of the "Free Bird" guitar solo, add some barely muffled Triumph or Harley pipes, and you get the general idea.
Although I know some really well respected executives who have tats, my advice to a young person would be to think very carefully before taking the plunge, and above all, don't do it to the point where you glass ceiling yourself into a lifestyle
BB
The Prophet Bob's own appearance convicts him as an enemy to the law!
PBT cites Leviticus 19:28 “Do not cut your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves.
However, he ignores Leviticus 19:27 "Do not cut the hair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard.
Bob cherry picks his law favs and wantonly disobeys whatever he chooses.
By cutting the sides of his hair, PBT is rejecting the law and the law giver so that he can look like the ancient pagans and worship their Gods. And he wants to be our Prophet!
Jesus never cut the sides of his hair or the edges of his beard because, unlike PBT, he kept the law perfectly.
Bob is a typical COGlodyte - they use law to oppress others but won't wholly apply it to themselves.
I was never a fan of tattoos, for the simple fact that it was permanent. The idea of doing something permanent to my body has never appealed to me.
But having said that I am not going to throw my religion at anyone to make them feel guilty about it.
And I especially am not going to use some bizarre Armstrongite superstition, partly fueled that absurd book The Two Babylons, that anything even halfway acceptable is somehow Satanic and wicked and must be banned among "true Christians".
That sort of superstition nonsense is downright nutty and offensive.
It only shows once again what a useless thinking this false prophet Thiel actually is.
29 ‘Do not prostitute your daughter, to cause her to be a harlot, lest the land fall into harlotry, and the land become full of wickedness. (Leviticus 19:28-29)"
You mean like that great Hero of Faith , just Lot, of Hebrews 11 fame did?
If those great faith warriors can make it...anyone can.
Why has the Boobinator suddenly obsessed with tattoos - Has be been watching the NBA finals?
And, how would the Boobinator react if he knew that HWA had this tattoo on his "no-no special place"?
But, joking aside, I've never gotten a tattoo. Probably because at age 12, I looked back on what I thought was really cool at age 10, and those things no longer seemed so cool. Then, at age 14, I looked back on what I thought was really cool at age 12, and those things no longer seemed so cool. Same with the age 16/14 thingie.
So, I learned early that as the years passed, my sense of what was cool/relevant/important was always evolving, and one viewpoint in time is just a stepping stone to the next.
It's like the fact that, for me, a belief in Christianity has been a stepping stone to agnosticism.
So, I'm glad I never got any tattoos, whether they would have been of Supercar, Speed Racer, hot rods, Duane Allman, the WCG, Farrah Fawcett, Jesus, or anything else that's enamored me during various times in my life.
This just came back to me, probably because of the post about Bob Thiel using the thoughts of a non-sabbatarian, non-Armstrongite theologian to support one of his positions. The WCG would do this by rote in days gone by. I remember someone, after reading the pertinent Old Testament Passages adding the little zinger that: "Oh, and did you know that during World War II, the Germans used to put out their cigarettes on their prisoners' tattoos?"
BB
Only putting this here since Joe asked. I got my tattoos about 17 years ago. They are still personally meaningful to me and they still look great because I take care of them. I have had a great professional career throughout and no regrets. They were custom designed for me based on something I hold very important and the idea that no one will be able to take it away is part of the appeal.
To be completely honest, if anyone's ever discriminated against me because of my tattoos, I haven't really noticed. I can't think of any way in which it has impacted my career or personal relationships for better or for worse.
Clearly, I don't find anything inherently wrong with tattoos. If done right they can add something to your life. But I will absolutely agree that there are an awful lot of bad ink jobs out there and most people don't think through the decision nearly enough, and in some situations those decisions can cost people.
But I've rambled too long, gotta go scribe some hieroglyphs on my altar to the Pharaonic deities. (That was a joke, Thiel).
Head Usher said...
How come it's so easy to worship pagan gods that you can do it properly without even knowing it, and so difficult to worship yahweh that no matter how hard you try, you can never quite manage to do it properly?
And since it's impossible, why try to do it at all? If going to church on Sunday means you are worshiping the sun god, doesn't it follow that going to church on Saturday is worshiping the god Saturn?
But then, there's this "grace" vs. the law thing that ACoGers don't seem to grasp. To tattoo or not tattoo, that is the question - it doesn't matter, that is the answer. If "God" exists...you can't beat him at his own game.
I guess if they can't express their opinion by flapping their meat at each other they might as well have it stamped! Grade A B.S.
For whatever reason people get tattoos, if you have something to say, use paper NOT meat!
another seekeroftruth
"But these aren't just any tattoos, they have magic powers. When I uncover them, they expose small-minded judgmental people."
It's true that many people will automatically assume the worst about a person based on how they look or dress. For example, if I see someone wearing a suit, I assume they're either about to engage in mortgage-backed securities fraud or give a startlingly narcissistic sermon about Haggai.
I really enjoyed the last two anonymous comments. What is being missed here is the point I see being made over and over, the younger generations are forging a new path, while the older generations cannot get over their deeply ingrained beliefs. Who is right or wrong is negligible. Really open your eyes to the changes going on in the world today. Can you see how things are shaping up and who is causing the changes. These younger generations are moving away or towards religion, race, discriminations, etc. at the same time these polar opposites are occuring I see them embracing tatoos, inter-racial couples, homosexuality and different lifestyles in general. I think we will all be surprised by what the future, and the concepts of what is deemed acceptable, has in store for all of us.
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