{"id":65448,"date":"2018-09-21T10:07:35","date_gmt":"2018-09-21T16:07:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/?p=65448"},"modified":"2018-09-23T18:47:24","modified_gmt":"2018-09-24T00:47:24","slug":"a-note-on-latter-day-saints-and-alcohol","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2018\/09\/a-note-on-latter-day-saints-and-alcohol.html","title":{"rendered":"A note on Latter-day Saints and alcohol"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"BYU,<\/a>
On the campus at Brigham Young University, with the carillon tower prominently visible and the Provo Utah Temple in the background
(Wikimedia Commons public domain photograph)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Several people on the paternal side \u2014 the non-Latter-day Saint side \u2014 of my extended family had fairly serious problems with alcohol throughout their lives. \u00a0In one or two cases, unfortunately, their problems impacted others beside themselves.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

There is evidence that heredity can incline a person to chronic alcohol abuse. \u00a0So, not knowing whether I myself might have been born with a genetic proclivity in that direction, I\u2019ve always been quietly grateful that, when the time came for me to choose whether or not to drink, I had already committed myself on religious grounds, with considerable support from my faith community, not to do so. \u00a0I\u2019ve never regretted the choice even slightly. \u00a0I\u2019ve never been tempted, at all, to go back on it.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

A few years ago, I hosted a rather prominent non-Mormon visitor to BYU for a couple of days. \u00a0(Some here who are political junkies like me would definitely recognize his name; a Democratic activist, among other things, he was continually taking calls on one or the other of his two cell phones from well-known Democrats, including, at one point, Jimmy Carter.)<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Things became just a bit rocky shortly after his arrival in Provo, though. \u00a0I took him to see a short introductory film for visitors to campus which, very briefly, mentioned the lack of booze at BYU. \u00a0As soon as the film ended, he exploded in angry disbelief at what he considered our transparently dishonest propaganda. \u00a0It turns out that college alcohol abuse is a big topic for him. \u00a0When I assured him that, although there are undoubtedly exceptions, it really is true that the vast majority of BYU students don\u2019t consume alcohol, he disdainfully (and rather insultingly) wondered how much I was paid to \u201ctoe the party line.\u201d \u00a0That was, I admit, quite uncomfortable. \u00a0He soon lightened up, though, but, for the rest of his time in Provo, he kept asking surprised students what their favorite drinks were, when they had last attended a \u201ckegger,\u201d which beer they liked to take to football games, and so forth.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Several days after returning to his home base in Washington DC, he wrote me a note of apology. \u00a0His conversations at BYU, and then his conversations back east\u00a0about<\/em> BYU, had finally convinced him that we weren\u2019t lying, or merely striking a pose, and that the University really is an alcohol-free zone.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

I\u2019m rather proud of BYU and my community on that score.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Over the years, though, I\u2019ve wondered about seeming evidence that moderate consumption of wine is actually beneficial to human health. \u00a0In that event, I reasoned, perhaps the chief function of the Word of Wisdom\u2019s bar to alcohol consumption would be to serve as a token or a marker of commitment to obeying the will of God, even without evidence of temporal benefit.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

However, things have changed a bit in recent months. \u00a0I\u2019ve already mentioned this study here on my blog, but it bears repeating because some may have missed the news and because that news is really quite important:<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cNo amount of alcohol is good for your overall health, global study says\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

And, now, this even more recent story should probably be, as it were, added to the mix:<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201c1 in 20 deaths globally are a result of alcohol use\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

And then there are results such as these:<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201c2016 Alcohol-Impaired Driving Fatalities per 100,000 Population by State\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

All in all, the Latter-day Saint practice of abstention from alcoholic beverages is looking very good these days, scientifically speaking.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0 \u00a0 Several people on the paternal side \u2014 the non-Latter-day Saint side \u2014 of my extended family had fairly serious problems with alcohol throughout their lives. \u00a0In one or two cases, unfortunately, their problems impacted others beside themselves. \u00a0 There is evidence that heredity can incline a person to chronic alcohol abuse. \u00a0So, not […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1019,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[2145,1809,2412,1812,55,1667,1510,2409,2147],"class_list":["post-65448","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-alcohol","tag-church-of-jesus-christ-of-latter-day-saints","tag-health","tag-latter-day-saints","tag-mormonism","tag-mormons","tag-religion-and-health","tag-wine","tag-word-of-wisdom"],"yoast_head":"\nA note on Latter-day Saints and 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