To beard or not to beard

[steve-in-kville]

I've said this before on the forums, but I think we try so hard to look like a good mennonite that we forget what it is to be a Christian.

[Josh]

I've said this before on the forums, but I think we try so hard to look like a good mennonite that we forget what it is to be a Christian.

Are you sure we all do that? Some people (particularly some of us seekers) prefer to do the minimum to look like a Mennonite and are mostly here in Menno-dom because it’s the best place to remember what it is to be a Christian.

I’m sure there are a few people only focused on appearances. I never seem to actually run into many of these people.

[JimFoxvog]

Is this still the beard thread?

I like beards and mustaches on men but not women; I'm sort of sexist that way.

I think being the way God made us to be is most pleasing to him. However, there are no New Testament commands to have a beard that I'm aware of so I don't think it is in any way a salvation issue. If one's motives to have or not have a beard are those rebellious to God, then it could be.

[steve-in-kville]

I like beards and mustaches on men but not women; I'm sort of sexist that way.

I tend to lean that direction as well

[Grace]

I like beards and mustaches on men but not women; I'm sort of sexist that way.

LOL...I guess we will give you a pass on being sexist this time.

I had a very conservative aunt who had a hormonal issue and grew a beard. Of course she believed that no shears or razor should be taken to a woman's head. It was kind of sad, because the beard on her was so distracting.

[Heirbyadoption]

I was just thinking of the argument that God wouldn't have given men facial hair to be cut. So, who here does not cut their finger nails ? Anyway, I better stick to my personal conviction beliefs.

Sudsy, I meant to reply to this the other day and got distracted, lol. Since you brought it up and this is a web of bunny trails anyway, a couple thoughts for you to mull in your spare time...

Per the idea that God gave men beards, therefore they should accept them, which then somehow evolves into the "thou shalt never trim any of it" concept... You mentioned trimming fingernails (I trim mine, AND some of my beard too, while I'm at it - just for full disclosure). Virtues like cleanliness and practicality do usually lead us to trim things like the fingernails and hair which God has given us, and obviously we (most of us) cover the naked bodies which He first made naked (that's another can of worms, I know...). The underlying question was a valid one, though - how can Christian men (at least those who believe there is more Scriptural support for wearing beards than against it) be consistent in this area? One way is by recognizing that our Creator has given certain physical attributes to BOTH men and women, like hair and fingernails, and we can recognize that BOTH genders trim these sorts of shared attributes for reasons of health, as well as adhering to principles like modesty and stewardship of the body.

The thing is, however, there is a vast difference between A. keeping your fingernails trimmed short versus B. completely plucking them out of your fingers altogether; the first action is exercising care over creation while the other would be the unnecessary eradication of something that is natural and God-given! In the same way, there is a distinct difference between A. trimming a beard regularly to keep it at a certain length, as opposed to B. completely removing any traces of it from one’s face on a daily basis! Just a thought before this "train wreck" (as Steve graciously titled it) rambles on down the track.

[Sudsy]

I was just thinking of the argument that God wouldn't have given men facial hair to be cut. So, who here does not cut their finger nails ? Anyway, I better stick to my personal conviction beliefs.

Sudsy, I meant to reply to this the other day and got distracted, lol. Since you brought it up and this is a web of bunny trails anyway, a couple thoughts for you to mull in your spare time...

Per the idea that God gave men beards, therefore they should accept them, which then somehow evolves into the "thou shalt never trim any of it" concept... You mentioned trimming fingernails (I trim mine, AND some of my beard too, while I'm at it - just for full disclosure). Virtues like cleanliness and practicality do usually lead us to trim things like the fingernails and hair which God has given us, and obviously we (most of us) cover the naked bodies which He first made naked (that's another can of worms, I know...). The underlying question was a valid one, though - how can Christian men (at least those who believe there is more Scriptural support for wearing beards than against it) be consistent in this area? One way is by recognizing that our Creator has given certain physical attributes to BOTH men and women, like hair and fingernails, and we can recognize that BOTH genders trim these sorts of shared attributes for reasons of health, as well as adhering to principles like modesty and stewardship of the body.

The thing is, however, there is a vast difference between A. keeping your fingernails trimmed short versus B. completely plucking them out of your fingers altogether; the first action is exercising care over creation while the other would be the unnecessary eradication of something that is natural and God-given! In the same way, there is a distinct difference between A. trimming a beard regularly to keep it at a certain length, as opposed to B. completely removing any traces of it from one’s face on a daily basis! Just a thought before this "train wreck" (as Steve graciously titled it) rambles on down the track.

I agree we can have our reasons for altering our natural body appearances when it seems the right thing to do. Personally, I have no convictions on what I do to my body other than what the Holy Spirit leads me to do. We are to regard our bodies as the temple of the Holy Spirit and since the Holy Spirit resides in every believer, we do have a direct source of guidance.

I'm careful on what other believers regard as the way all believers should live. I will give an account someday, not on what they believe, but on how I lived as the Holy Spirit guides me. I would not fit in well with a church that had detailed requirements of sanctification and required those be adhered to.

Thanks for expressing your view on this. My belief is to live by your personal convictions and try not to make other believers as converts to my ways of sanctification and how I follow the Lord. I don't do this well at times here as I have some strong convictions in areas that other Anabaptists do not. I am not a first and foremost Anabaptist of any sort as I think my posts show. To me, labels on what group we belong to, is too divisive in nature even when my signature says I'm a 'Charasmatic Evangelical Anabaptist'.

[Soloist]

From the wife.

You might find this funny, but I once googled why Christian churches hated beards (or some variation of that), and turns out we can blame the Catholics for that (Sorry, Max). Sure, early church was pro beards, but at some point, they forbid it for clergy, and then a few centuries later, for the laity. I think the logic was too sensual/vulgar or something. One of the lesser known disputes involved in the Catholic/Orthodox split. Anyway, if I got my facts right (just google it if you care to), the beard might have come back into fashion in the west around the Reformation time, and became a symbol of the break from Catholicism (much like the switch to bonnets/caps, ironically...). Eventually, the first bearded pope was elected, and I think different Catholic churches do different things. Not 100% vouching for all my info, as it has been a few months, but pretty sure that was the story. Maybe someone less lazy than me can research it again. Some other non-Mennonite churches are kinda fussy about beards too, and that might be why.

[ohio jones]

In this post, PetrChelcicky refers to the "Argument of the Beard." It goes something like this:

I shaved this morning. I do not have a beard today.
If I do not shave tomorrow, will I have a beard? Of course not.
One day's growth does not make enough difference to go from "no beard" to "beard."
Therefore, it is logically impossible for me (or anyone else) to grow a beard, because there is not a precise moment when one suddenly has a beard in contrast to not having had one just a short time before.

Sounds like follicular reasoning to me.

[Soloist]

In this post, PetrChelcicky refers to the "Argument of the Beard." It goes something like this:

I shaved this morning. I do not have a beard today.
If I do not shave tomorrow, will I have a beard? Of course not.
One day's growth does not make enough difference to go from "no beard" to "beard."
Therefore, it is logically impossible for me (or anyone else) to grow a beard, because there is not a precise moment when one suddenly has a beard in contrast to not having had one just a short time before.

Sounds like follicular reasoning to me.

I always thought the argument was "how many hairs make a beard?"
1? 2? 5? 10? 50?