Why do Catholics believe that it is okay for you to drink alcohol?

Question

Catholics serve wine during church is this not seen as a sin?

Answer 1

Drinking is not a sin. That's why. Jesus turned water into wine AND SERVED IT.

Answer 2

You claim drinking alcoholic berverages is sinful, but you fail to provide reasons as to why. You failed to follow up with an explanation because you were either unwilling to or you were unable to.

Perhaps this will help:

Matt. 26:27,29; Mark 14:23,25; Luke 22:17-18; 1 Cor. 11:25-27 - Jesus instituted the Eucharist using wine and commanded us to "do this in remembrance of me." We know that Jesus instituted the Eucharist at the Jewish seder meal, which required the use of wine. Yet some Protestant churches forbid drinking wine. Such a prohibition is not based on the Scriptures.

Luke 7:33-34 - God the Son drank wine and was accused of being a drunk. Are those Protestant churches that forbid the drinking of wine doing the same?

John 2:1-11 - Jesus' first miracle was turning water into wine which was drunk at the wedding at Cana. Wine is a symbol of the life of the Church, in both the Eucharist and, here, the sanctification of the sacrament of marriage. Verse 10 also indicates that the people drank enough wine at the feast to the point that they might not have recognized good wine from bad wine. Yet Jesus creates for them more wine to drink.

1 Tim. 5:23 - Paul tells Timothy to drink not just water, but a little wine for the sake of his stomach and frequent ailments. If Paul under divine inspiration encourages the drinking of wine, why do some Protestant churches prohibit it?

Gen. 14:18 - Melchizedek offers a bread and wine sacrifice, and Jesus is the Priest in the same manner. Heb. 5:6,10; 6:20; 7:15,17.

Gen. 27:25 - Isaac brought Jacob wine, and he drank, with God's favor.

Neh. 8:10 - Nehemiah commands the faithful to drink sweet wine to celebrate the Lord and His holy day.

Psalm 104:15 - the Psalmist writes that "wine gladdens the heart of a man." God gave us the fruit of the vine to enjoy.

Ecclesiastes 9:7 - "drink your wine with a merry heart, for God approves what you do."

Wisdom 2:7 - "Let us take our fill of costly wine and perfumes!"

Sir. 31:25-28 - "Wine is like life if drunk in moderation." God created wine to make us glad, so we rejoice in heart, and have gladness of soul.

Sir. 40:20 - "Wine gladdens the heart."

Isaiah 25:6 - God will provide a feast of rich foods and choice wines.

Amos 9:14 - God declares that His people shall plant their vineyards and drink their wine.

Zech. 10:7 - God says that when He saves His people, their hearts shall be glad as with wine.

2 Mac. 15:39 - this verse also describes the pleasure of drinking wine. The point is that all God made is good, and we are called to enjoy His good gifts, including drinking wine, as long as we do so in moderation. And while we drink in moderation, the miracle that Jesus performed at the wedding feast at Cana suggests that we can have a second glass!

Answer 3

Jesus told them, "Fill the jars with water." So they filled them to the brim. Then he told them, "Draw some out now and take it to the headwaiter." So they took it. And when the headwaiter tasted the water that had become wine, ... (John 2:7-9)

Wine is used throughout both the Old and New Testaments. The first recorded miracle of Jesus was to turn water in wine at the wedding in Cana.

It is true that we should not become drunk but used in moderation, wine is a biblically acceptable beverage.

Go, eat your bread with joy and drink your wine with a merry heart, because it is now that God favors your works. (Ecclesiastes 9:7)

What would Jesus do? Jesus had a cup of wine with dinner.

If some people wish to totally forego alcohol to eliminate the temptation to over indulge, that's fine. But I don't think they should force that unbiblical teaching onto others.

With love in Christ.

Answer 4

"Fruit of the vine and work of human hands, it will become for us the Blood of Christ."

It's been a long time since I went to mass but I always loved that line, maybe because I'm a farmer's daughter and I appreciate the work that goes into making wine, or any other food.

And no, it's not a sin. It's transubstantiation -- the belief that the bread and wine actually turn into the body and blood of Christ. It's an integral part of the mass.

Happy to help.

Answer 5

First of all, we don't SERVE WINE. That is the Precious Blood of Christ.

Having said that- it is 20 proof ( or whatever)

Drinking is not a sin. Read your Bible. Being DRUNK is a sin....but JESUS drank wine!

He even provided wine at the wedding at Cana- His first miracle....are you saying Jesus would contribute to sinning????

And what exactly do you think was in the cup at the last supper? Sunny-D?

Answer 6

Many Protestants serve wine at communion as well - Lutherans, Episcopals, and no doubt others.

Jesus himself made wine at Cana - good wine, too. He served wine to his disciples at the Last Supper. What's the problem?

I respect those who feel that teetotaling is an important act of obedience (like my grandparents) and who justify their position using Scripture, but drinking alcohol does not make you any less Christian.

Answer 7

First of all, it is not okay for Catholics to drink alcohol, only a lot of Catholics believe that they can do anything they like, but it is not necessarily correct and those are Catholics who are actually not into serious spirituality. And they are the one that the fundamentalists are targeting to set an example that the Catholic faith is wrong. Catholics are free people and they believe that they will be answerable to whatever they're doing. It doesn't necessarily mean that it is right in the eyes of God but because of too much freedom, Catholics tend to overdo it. but can anyone judge them. Those who judge them might even be the first to reach hell because God said that you will all be weighed in full. So, to nonCatholics, don't waste your time watching Catholics because they can answer for their own selves but instead watch your own, you might get too engrossed with fingerpointing and might miss the train yourselves.

Answer 8

I am not Catholic. Never was and don't intend to be. If it is a
sin to drink alcohol, then we have NO SAVIOR!!! The Lord
Jesus drank alcoholic wine, not grape juice at the Last Supper.
I Corinthians 13;8a, Love never fails!!!

Answer 9

For the most part, wine is a symbol of abundance and the finer things in life in the Bible, and it is frequently used as a libation. So while drinking alcohol is not a sin, there are some specific instances when it is noted as wrong in the Bible:

1) Le 10:9 "You and your sons are not to drink wine or other fermented drink whenever you go into the Tent of Meeting, or you will die. This is a lasting ordinance for the generations to come.

And, just in case you are wondering what a "Tent of Meeting" is ...

Ex 33:7 Now Moses used to take a tent and pitch it outside the camp some distance away, calling it the "tent of meeting." Anyone inquiring of the Lord would go to the tent of meeting outside the camp.

So, if you have a date to meet God face-to-face in one of His physical forms for a little tete-a-tete, its forbidden to show up drunk. And really, that's just exhibiting good manners.

However, if you see the Tent of Meeting as analagous to a Temple or Church - which it isn't quite - it is important to note that Leviticus is Old Testament, and most Christians feel that the coming of Christ negated most of these rules. This would clearly be one of the rules that is negated on account of the Miracle of the Wine at the Wedding in Cana, which is so central to the story of Christ.

2) Nu 6:1 The Lord said to Moses, 2 "Speak to the Israelites and say to them: 'If a man or woman wants to make a special vow, a vow of separation to the Lord as a Nazirite, 3 he must abstain from wine and other fermented drink and must not drink vinegar made from wine or from other fermented drink. He must not drink grape juice or eat grapes or raisins. 4 As long as he is a Nazirite, he must not eat anything that comes from the grapevine, not even the seeds or skins. ...

19 "'After the Nazirite has shaved off the hair of his dedication, the priest is to place in his hands a boiled shoulder of the ram, and a cake and a wafer from the basket, both made without yeast. 20 The priest shall then wave them before the Lord as a wave offering; they are holy and belong to the priest, together with the breast that was waved and the thigh that was presented. After that, the Nazirite may drink wine. 21 "'This is the law of the Nazirite who vows his offering to the Lord in accordance with his separation, in addition to whatever else he can afford. He must fulfill the vow he has made, according to the law of the Nazirite.'"

The Nazirites were ascetics - so only those who took vows of ascetism were required to abstain from wine. And even then, for only a period of time - called separation - as determined by their vow. The separation was ended when the priest blessed them as a sign of officially accepting their separation as a form of sacrificial offering to God.

3) De 32 suggests that drinking wine *in excess* is a form of gluttony and a sign of decadence.

4) Jud 13: 2 A certain man of Zorah, named Manoah, from the clan of the Danites, had a wife who was sterile and remained childless. 3 The angel of the Lord appeared to her and said, "You are sterile and childless, but you are going to conceive and have a son. 4 Now see to it that you drink no wine or other fermented drink and that you do not eat anything unclean, 5 because you will conceive and give birth to a son. No razor may be used on his head, because the boy is to be a Nazirite, set apart to God from birth, and he will begin the deliverance of Israel from the hands of the Philistines."

This suggests that if you are pregnant, you are forbidden to drink wine. Modern medicine supports this idea, as even moderate alcohol consumption can lead to fetal alcohol syndrome. Additionally, in this specific story, the child in question was called to be a Nazirite who abstain from any grape-related products during their period of separation (see above). Since not every pregnant woman receives the forsight to know what their child might want to do with their lives, it is perhaps best to err on the side of caution and abstain from alcohol just in case your child would decide its something they would want to abstain from.

4) There are many portions of Proverbs which suggest that drinking alcohol is wrong when: done in excess, one cannot afford it or spends so much money on alcohol that one becomes impoverished, one becomes violent while drunk, drinks so frequently that one loses one's capacity for reason, it has a negative impact on your health, one is in a position of authority and it negatively effects one's ability to fulfill one's duties.

Pr 4:14-19, 20:1, 21:17, 23:19-28, 23:29-35, 31:1-9

How much this sounds like an admonishment against addiction!

5) And Jer 38 tells us that drinking or not drinking alcohol isn't the real issue - listening to God, is.

I could go on, with more scriptural examples - but they all pretty much say the same as the above and hopefully you get the point by now.

Answer 10

Yes but not too much when you get drunk thats a sin but taking wine in mass is a commemoration of Christs Passion.