Christian Views On Alcohol

Christian views on alcohol are varied. Throughout the first 1,800 years of church history, Christians consumed alcoholic beverages as a common part of everyday life and nearly always used wine (fermented grape juice) in their central rite—the Eucharist or Lord's Supper. They held that both the Bible and Christian tradition taught that alcohol is a gift from God that makes life more joyous, but that overindulgence leading to drunkenness is a sin. In the mid-19th century, some Protestant Christians moved from this historic position of allowing moderate use of alcohol (sometimes called moderationism) to either deciding that not imbibing was wisest in the present circumstances (abstentionism) or prohibiting all ordinary consumption of alcohol because it was believed to be a sin (prohibitionism). Today, all three of these positions exist in Christianity, but the historic position remains the most common worldwide, due to the adherence by the largest bodies of Christians including Anglicanism, Catholicism, Orthodoxy, and significant segments of Protestantism.

Read more about Christian Views On Alcohol:  Alcohol in The Bible, Winemaking in Biblical Times, Alcohol in Christian History and Tradition, Current Views

Famous quotes containing the words christian, views and/or alcohol:

    Washington’s birthday is as close to a secular Christmas as any Christian country dare come this side of blasphemy.
    Alistair Cooke (b. 1908)

    Political correctness is the natural continuum from the party line. What we are seeing once again is a self-appointed group of vigilantes imposing their views on others. It is a heritage of communism, but they don’t seem to see this.
    Doris Lessing (b. 1919)

    No power on earth or above the bottomless pit has such influence to terrorize and make cowards of men as the liquor power. Satan could not have fallen on a more potent instrument with which to thrall the world. Alcohol is king!
    Eliza “Mother” Stewart (1816–c. 1908)