Friday, August 10, 2012
A disease, or a moral failing?
Are you obese? Is it because of what you put into
your mouth, chew, and swallow, or are you rather a victim of something beyond
your control? Theodore Dalrymple writes in PJ Media, "If they are not so responsible, of course, it is rather
difficult to see what they are or even might be responsible for."
Read the whole thing here: http://pjmedia.com/lifestyle/2012/08/08/is-obesity-a-disease-or-a-moral-failing/?singlepage=true
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3 comments:
I think it's a combination of factors. We all have certain sins that are more of a struggle for us than others.
Overweight happens to be a struggle that carries its own punishment along with it. It's amazing how cruel people can be if what you're battling happens to put you on culture's "black list."
For instance, note the article's assumption that heavy people are stuffing down donuts. Maybe some, but assuming that to be the norm is ... not so accurate.
I woke up this morning thinking about this idea, and I finally came up with an analogy that works.
We can see someone swimming in a river, and we can evaluate their progress (or lack of it) based on what we see.
However, what we have no idea about is the current they're currently swimming against.
I remember a man standing at my office window, commenting on his wife's diet. "She's been dieting ever since we got married, and nothing ever comes of it."
What I tried to tell him was, he had no IDEA what state she'd be in if she had NOT been fighting the battle all those years.
I'm not saying those of us in the "too ugly for polite society" camp ought to just give up. In contrast, we need to keep challenging ourselves to work harder. But what I AM saying is, it's not easy to have your personal struggle with sin displayed out there for all the world to see, and judge.
Nobody mocks those who struggle with immoral thoughts, but if every time the idea passed through their head, smelly green goo oozed out their ears ... they'd have a different battle!
Wiping away the goo, I say bravo to you, Trinka, for coming up with an analogy that truly does work.
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