"Do not lacerate your bodies for the dead, and do not tattoo yourselves. I am the Lord."
~Leviticus 19:28~
Ok Folks I think you can already see where this one is going. I got my first Tat when I was 18 yrs. old back in 05'. Since then I've been getting slack from all types of people. Aunts and Uncles mostly, but most recently I've been in the mists of conversations regarding the Bible and the fact that "Having Tattoos is a sin." I knew of the Leviticus passage before I got my Tattoos but I got them anyway. But before you get out your pitch forks and plan on crucifying me lets look at things from all angles here: Remember what age/year we are living in. If your argument here is "Only Sailors and or Gangsters have tattoos" then sorry to break it to you but everyone has tats now-a-days. Your Doctors, your lawyers, and even the teacher that teach your children. You see like a lot of things tattoos have come to have a bad reputation over the years but its nothing more then a persons expression of how they feel, think and believe. It is literally a living piece of art and judging someone on sight based on nothing more than the ink on their arms is no different than judging them based on the color of their skin.
Now getting into the Religious aspect: People will be very quick to get thier Bible and Preach to you and tell you "It says it right there that your not supposed to have tattoos." But what that person will always forget to tell you and will close the Bible before they have a chance to be challenged is this:
"*Do not clip your hair at the temples, nor trim the edge of you beard."
~Leviticus 19:27~
Ah-Ha. Now its getting interesting right? See what this means is a man is not supposed to Shave or in anyway remove his Beard nor the hair that grows from his Temple. This is why Muslims do not shave their beards and this is why Hasidic Jews do not cut the Long curled up hair that grows from their temples. But correct me if I'm wrong, there is more men walking around with smooth clean shaven faces and Dark ceasers than there is with Jew Curls and Beards. Am I right or wrong? So whats that about? The way I see it is all these preachers are being hypocrites because they'll tell me I'm a sinner for having Tattoos but they'll say it to me while sitting in the barbers chair with their faces lathered up with shaving cream. The only message your sending me is: You can pick and choose which rules in the Bible you want to follow. And here I am a 21 year old who for the past twenty-one years thought you had to follow them all.
Another thing that grinds my gears is that people rarely take the time out to see what my tattoos are and what they represent. Never mind the fact that I have Virgin Mary and Baby Jesus on one arm and Angels with Psalms 23 on the other. As soon as they see me I'm automatically a criminal or some sort of heathen that should be ignored and exiled from society.
Heres all I'm saying: Its 2008, we live in a different world then we did when our Bible was written. If your gonna shove religion down my throat then make sure you've had a taste for yourself. Go by the Bible all across the board and not half way through it. See I've done my research I'm not just your average sinner who does things out of spite.
To all my peoples who have tattoos please remeber this blog next time someone tries to put you down because of it. Remember its your Body and if your a sinner then the guy on the train next to you who just shaved this morning is a Bigger sinner. Lev 19:27 was an established rule before Lev 19:28.
With all that said Im gonna leave you guys to think and discuss this amongs yourselves. Come back soon.
^^ My Sleeves that I proudly showcase.