Did you all see the article, “50 Reasons Why I Don’t Drink,” make its way around Facebook? Typically when I see stuff like this I just roll my eyes and carry on with my business. But for some unknown reason I decided to give this article a quick glance. Most of the points were predictable. Although this is the sort of article that really doesn’t warrant a response, I feel a little compelled to address one of the issues in particular.
I’m referring to point number 12. Here it is below:
12. Show me a family that alcohol has made a positive difference in their lives. You won’t be able to.
When I read through this list I was most upset at this point. Let’s just set aside for now the Wedding at Cana in John 2 and the way that Jesus saved his mother from public shame for running out of wine. Instead, I want to offer a personal anecdote since this point is personal to me and since the author is so adamant that alcohol must destroy families.
Now let me begin by being perfectly clear. I am totally fine with people having their own convictions about not drinking. Ostensibly that’s the point of this article since it’s about “why I don’t drink.” Yet it’s clear that the author wants all Christian readers to agree with her. However, alcohol is a matter of conscience (cf. Romans 14). If a Christian cannot say “Thanks be to God” with an IPA in their hand then they should not be drinking. Alcohol is not the sort of thing that is either entirely fine or entirely bad. It all depends on the conscience of the one drinking. This is why the Wisdom Literature in the Old Testament enjoys exploring the topic of wine/alcohol so much; it was such a ripe image for both blessing and folly. The difference between the two requires wisdom and discernment. In addition to conscience, there is also the issue of abuse. At the outset of this alcohol article the author admits up front to being an “ex-alcoholic.” If anyone has a tendency to abuse something—no matter what it is, including sleep, food, sex, etc—that is grounds for rethinking it’s role in your life. No doubt the abuse of alcohol has led to some serious evils that cannot be condoned or promoted. And in some familial contexts, which is the heart of point number 12 noted above, this has been particularly egregious. But we must keep in mind that the abuse of alcohol does not nullify the proper use.
When I read point 12 I was personally frustrated because I have often commented on the exact opposite fact for my own family. For this article I’ll leave aside the tremendous joy it is to share new craft beers with my siblings, brother-in-law, and future sister-in-law (though she’s not the biggest fan; we’re still working on her), or the wonderful little tradition of “Wine Wednesday” that I’ve started with my Mom. Instead, I’d like to briefly talk about My Dad.
My Dad and I brew beer together. This is a fun little hobby of ours. On top of that my Dad will often go out and grab some very special/rare beers for me to try. Sometimes we will have conversations that center entirely on making beer, the business side of craft breweries, new beers that have come out, or other beer related topics.
But here’s the thing: my Dad doesn’t drink.
My Dad says he can count on one hand all of the instances that he tried beer. He often recalls a story where he hurled in the bushes outside a bar in Oklahoma City after having half a Heineken. He just doesn’t like it at all. He’s not once sampled even a slight taste of the beers that we’ve made together. But he knows a lot about beer. He knows owners and head brewers by name; in conversation he’ll refer to Russian River as “Vinny” and Dogfish Head as “Sam.” He knows beer styles, tasting notes, ingredients, techniques, etc. He reads homebrew forums, and goes to the homebrew store without me sometimes. So why does he invest the time, mental energy, and money into all of this?
Because my Dad loves me.
Even though it’s not something that he’s personally partaking of, my Dad’s just that devoted to his family. His main reason for not drinking is deeply personal. His own relationship with his father absolutely sucked (to put it mildly). His father was an alcoholic who left the family when my Dad, the oldest of five children, was only 9 years old. My Dad received a letter from his father saying that he would be the man of the house now. This really messed with my Dad; it sent him down a tough path and he found himself in trouble now and again growing up. And at this point it looks like point number 12 above is right; alcohol simply destroys families. Indeed, it can. But with my relationship with my Dad alcohol is not a source of division but rather a source of bonding. What was an area of destruction for the father-son relationship my Dad had with his own father, has become redeemed in our father-son relationship.
This I believe is rooted in one of the most profound biblical pictures of alcohol as well; when the created order is restored and all things are reconciled to God, the prophets in particular often described this period by speaking of an abundance of alcohol. I believe that all good things in God’s good creation can be misused and warped, but I also believe that the reconciliation and redemption and healing that alcohol points forward to can be experienced even now.
2 Comments
Leave your reply.