What should be the Christian orthodoxy and orthopraxy in regards to tattoos?  This is a subject that I knew was going to come up at some point, but hadn’t decided whether to write about before it did, or to just cut it off at the pass and address it proactively.  Well, while I was contemplating this, it seems that it came up in the conversation over at C?N, via this article.

So, what does the Bible say about tattoos?  We have one verse to go on:

‘Do not cut your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the LORD.’ Leviticus 19:28

OK, you might say to yourself, that seems pretty clear.  Now, just to follow good hermeneutics, though, perhaps we should examine the scriptures in all of Leviticus 19, just to see the context of this particular passage.

For instance, here is the passage right before this verse:

‘Do not cut the hair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard.’ Leviticus 19:27

Hmmmm.  OK.  Does that mean that trips to the barber should be equated with a trip to the tattoo parlor?  Should we view the person above as being in violation of a similar command as this man, who has obviously cut the hair at the sides of his head and shaved his beard clean off?

Or, how many of you reading this right now are in violation of the command in v. 19 of Leviticus 19 (have someone else look at the tag for you, to avoid being semi-naked, which would also be a problem)?

‘Do not wear clothing woven of two kinds of material.’

If we read the verse right after v. 28, we get this command:

‘Do not degrade your daughter by making her a prostitute, or the land will turn to prostitution and be filled with wickedness. Leviticus 19:29

Good, sage advice.  How many of us, though, go about doing this, or does it even cross our mind?

Now, before I am accused of not taking the Bible seriously, perhaps I should suggest that there is something else going on in Leviticus 19 – something that is still relevant to us, but not something in which we play a game of literalist pick and choose.

Within Context of Leviticus

When you read Leviticus, one important thing to do is to tie each command back to the ‘preamble’ or ’summary’ of the Law, which we often call the Ten Commandments.  In Hebraic thought and teaching, all of the Laws of God tie back to these commands.  Additionally, Jesus (and just prior to Jesus’ ministry, Hillel) indicated that all of the Torah could be summed up in the shema (Love the Lord your God) and “love your neighbor”.

So, when interpreting Torah, it is important that we tie it back to the precepts from which it came.  In the instance of Lev 19:27-29, these tie back to “You shall have no other gods before me”, with a direct reference in Lev. 19:28 to Exodus 20:2 “I am the LORD.”  In the case of cutting hair, ritual cutting/tattoos and prostitution of children, all three of these were part of the Baal worship in Caanan and the surrounding area.  We have Biblical, as well as archaeological evidence for cutting (Elijah and the prophets of Baal) and temple prostitution (Tamar and others).  Additionally, creating a cutting or graven image (both encompassed in the same Hebrew word) was something done to create an object which could be worshipped as a god.

So the admonition against cutting hair, cutting for the dead/tattoos, and child prostitution would speak to us today in urging us to avoid those things which would lead us in to worshipping other gods, or – at the very least – would serve in the purpose of worshipping other gods, even if we were not. 

Additionally, the references to dress, hair and body appearances in Leviticus 19 would also relate to ritual purity.  The ritual purity required of Jews to serve in the Tabernacle (at the time Leviticus was written) or the Temple (in later times), required the person be free of blemish (”leprosy” included many skin diseases, not just Hansen’s disease) and whole (no missing fingers, limbs, etc.).  This was why many scholars believe that Peter cut the ear of the Temple worker – it would disqualify him from working in the Temple.  So, if you wanted to participate in Temple worship, you had to be free of blemishes, which cutting and tattooing would negate.

With Relationship to Christianity

One thing to consider when reading Old Testament law is the relationship of Old Testament laws to Christianity, particularly in light of the Council of Jerusalem ruling in Acts 15, which affirmed that gentile Christians need not follow Mosaic law, but that they were still bound by Noaic law.  This ruling meant that gentile Christians should not be expected to keep ritual purity, ceremonial and festival laws. 

This is why we are not required to keep a kosher diet, wear prayer shawls, follow all of the Hebrew festivals, or celebrate the weekly festival of Shabbat.  Instead, we are to keep to the laws given before Moses (called the “Noahide Laws”):

1. Do not worship other gods.
2. Do not blaspheme.
3. Do not murder.
4. Do not steal.
5. Do not commit sexual immorality.
6. Do not commit animal cruelty.
7. Establish courts of justice.

The answer received by the gentile church in Acts 15 is considered to be short-hand for the Noahide laws (and includes the tentpoles of Noahide law), and the answer from the Jerusalem Council, upon which Peter, James and John all sat, should still suffice us today. 

Tattoos Today

As with many other freedoms we have in Christ, the key, I believe, to good orthopraxy regarding tattoos is in the heart.  What is the reason for wanting a tattoo?  Mere ‘relevance’ does not seem to suffice, nor to a number of temporal issues, just based in common sense.  Since it is something permanent (or semi-permanent), the decisions should be made soberly with that in mind.

It is a trap for a man to dedicate something rashly and only later to consider his vows. Proverbs 20:25

One reason I held off writing this article is because it would require some self-disclosure, which I had not completely prayed through yet.  However, I see the timing of some of the conversations speaking to me that the time is right.  Last year, at the age of 38, I decided to get a tattoo, primarily for my own reminding and repentence when I look in the mirror each morning.  It is one I designed (see left) as something that would be both honoring to my creator and meaningful to me – something I do not ever wish to disagree with.

If you meet me, you would never see it in normal circumstances (unless you were swimming – which actually gave me a chance to witness in San Diego earlier this year), and it is not something I wear clothing which would reveal.  But it is there, nonetheless.  I considered it long and hard, particularly in light of Leviticus 19, and it is something I sought counsel on more than a year before it was done. 

So, obviously, I believe that we have the freedom to have pierced ears, tattoos, etc., but I think that the concert of heart, soul, mind and strength love for God must play a part, and that any such decision not be made rashly.