Pick my brain?

This has more to do with culture than religion. However I do remember reading in the Bible that it is a sin to defile the body.

Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the LORD.

Leviticus 19:28

This one seems ambiguous. Is it referring to tattooing dead people? I think it has to do with mourning the dead, like getting a tattoo of a dead relative perhaps.

1Co 3:16-17 "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are."

This is a nice quote but I interpret it more on a spiritual level. If it were taken on a purely physical level, even eating a donut, getting injections and wearing purple and orange can be seen as defiling. So if God dwells with in you then it follows that if you get a tattoo it is God's Will and if you don't that that is God's Will too.

There are, of course, many ways of looking at it. Some say that because this "old tent is decaying" that it doesn't matter what you do with your body [as long as it is respectful and in good taste], since there will be a new, glorified body to replace it. Others say that since our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, that we must not alter it unduly.

A great-uncle of mine was a conscientious objector in a world war, and was assigned to identification of corpses. He later worked for IBM, then became a preacher. He was very, very PRO-tattoo, since those with tattoos were the easiest to identify.

I think that this is an area that is between you and God, and your husband as well. Pray about it and study the Word, and obey what the Holy Spirit tells you. And be sure to research the tattoo and artist carefully, if you decide to get one.

Whatever you end up doing, remember that even if you make a mistake and disobey God's will for you [ABOUT ANYTHING], that He is loving and merciful. Nothing is outside of His forgiveness if you ask.

Organised religions are generally very oppressive with their rules, and threats of punishment for non-compliance. It is common for religious people to want to 'break out' from this oppression. In these cases people often have a lot of repressed desires that they have not allowed themselves to express because their religion deems these things to be "wrong".

As you are asking - I say, express yourself, do what you want to do. Create your own rules. Don't accept everything you're told about god, about the bible, about what is right and what is wrong. Question everything. Think for yourself. Make up your own mind.

I say, allow yourself the freedom to do what you want, and express yourself, but only to the extent where you do not infringe upon other peoples' freedom. Be considerate of other people. Do your best to treat other people well. Within these confines, I say, do what you want.

If you go throughout your whole life repressing every natural desire you have - to get a tattoo, to out and get drunk and enjoy yourself (responsibly) with friends, to get stoned (in moderation) with friends, to have sex with someone you're close to (but not married to), to get a piercing etc - then you will live a very frustrated, unhappy life.

Don't fence yourself in because the bible says you should or shouldn't do something. There is as much reason to believe in god as there is to believe in the tooth fairy. "Faith" - belief in something without proof. One of the main reasons why religion is so widespread is because it has been very useful to authorities over the years as a method of social control. The threats and promises of the bible (heaven and hell etc) are very powerful notions if you can convince people to have "faith".

Do what makes you feel good. Do what you enjoy. Do what you want. If this means getting a tattoo. Get a tattoo.

im a christian too and i have 2 tatoos they r very tasteful and they are on my shoulder and ankle so they can be covered i dont regret having them. what matters to god is what is in your heart i dont think its wrong if u want one. And i certainly dont think he would reject you for having one.

I think you are going through a mid life crisis.

Do you enjoy being poked with hundreds of needles?

If you get a ta too that is what you will have to go through.

The choice is yours to make.

You are the one who has to live with it for the rest of your life.

If you get it, how will it make your life better??

i dont think its wrong but some people will say that your body is a temple. all in all i would get it because you only have one life to live

Think what that tattoo will look like when you are 70, your skin has sagged, and your grandkids say, "Gramma, what is that?"

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I am not quite sure how He would think of it, however I do not think that He would take offense, however ask a priest or whoever closest that you have.