Posted on 05/11/2005 7:35:22 PM PDT by agenda_express
No Sense! Daily Drink Does WHAT?
This seems counterintuitive, but researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Mass., have determined that consuming moderate amounts of alcohol may prevent kidney function decline in men, reports HealthDayNews.
Before you run out and celebrate with a six-pack, know this one important fact: Moderation means about one drink a day. (Also, the researchers stressed that no one should take up drinking as way of protecting the kidneys.)
In this study, patient blood samples and questionnaires were collected from more than 11,000 healthy men who are enrolled in the ongoing Physicians' Health Study. Those who drank at least seven alcoholic beverages a week had a 30 percent lower risk of elevated levels of a compound called creatinine in the blood, compared to men who had one or no drinks per week. High blood creatinine levels are a strong indicator of kidney dysfunction, notes HealthDayNews.
While previous research has found that alcohol consumption is beneficial for the cardiovascular system, such research has also shown alcohol has a harmful effect on the kidneys, notes lead study author Dr. Tobias Kurth. "This is the first study to show a consistent reduction in the risk of chronic kidney disease with light to moderate drinking," he told HealthDayNews. "Given the new findings that traditional cardiovascular risk factors are associated with kidney disease, the data is not surprising. This study may be broadening our knowledge of alcohol and disease prevention." The research findings were published in the Archives of Internal Medicine.
Damn straight!
Visions of "Sleeper," by Woody Allen!
Mark
Beer is one of Gods ways of saying he loves us and wants us to be happy.
The problems come when people drink too much alcohol...just like when one:
- eats too much, they get fat and die from cardiovascular disease;
- get too much sun and die from skin cancer;
- sleep too much and have muscular atrophy
Too much of anything is not good.
Beer and Other Alcoholic Beverages in the Bible
You may be surprised to find that the word beer is used in the Bible. In the New International Version of the Bible the Hebrew word "shakar" is translated as "beer". In the King James versions of the Bible the Hebrew word "shakar" is translated as "strong or intoxicating drink." They made these drinks from dates or other fruits (grapes excepted) or barley millet, etc.
Drinking alcohol today has become common place, and many Christians see nothing wrong with it. They use the Bible to condone their actions-saying, "Didn’t Paul tell Timothy to take a little wine for his stomach’s sake?" They question, "Didn’t Jesus drink wine?" Then they insist that Jesus made alcoholic wine at the wedding in Cana of Galilee.
These sound like convincing arguments until you understand that the main Hebrew word for "wine" (yayin) or the main Greek word (oinos) can refer to a fermented or unfermented drink. The wine spoken of in the Bible is a generic term. The context in each case indicates whether it was speaking of fermented wine or not.
You might ask, "Could people in Bible times keep their juices from fermenting when there was no refrigeration?" The answer is , "Yes". To preserve their sweet juices in a hot climate, people often boiled the juice down until it was thick like syrup, and later when they were ready to use it they would add water to it. Also they would boil their juices and, then seal the air out. There were other methods to prevent fermentation like filtration or by drawing off the juice from the subsided yeast, and by the use of sulfur. They could, at times keep juice in a cool place such as in a cave, under ground or in water. For more on this subject read, Bible Wines, by William Patton or Wine In The Bible: A Biblical Study On The Use Of Alcoholic Beverages, by Samuele Bacchiocchi).
So to assume that every time the Bible uses the word "wine"-it is talking about a fermented drink is not looking at the facts! Isaiah 16:10b says, "…no treaders will tread out wine in their presses…" As soon as the juice was pressed out of the grapes it was called wine. In fact in Isaiah 65:8, it is called wine when it is still in the grapes, "…As the new wine is found in the cluster," but in Genesis 9:21 it is clear that fermented wine is what Noah drank to get drunk on. (It is well to note, however, how it got him and his son Ham into trouble drinking it!)
Now the argument, Paul told Timothy to take a little wine for his stomach’s sake. Yes, Paul told Timothy, "Drink no longer water, but use a little wine for your stomach’s sake and your often infirmities." 1 Timothy 5:23 This text clearly implies that Timothy did not drink any wine before this time. The recommendation by Paul was strictly medicinal, so to quote the advice of Paul to Timothy to justify drinking is to distort the intent of the passage! Again because the word "wine" is used many people jump to the conclusion it is fermented, when in fact Paul and the rest of Scripture have already warned against the use of fermented wine.
Then you ask, "was unfermented wine ever used as a medicine?" Yes, Athenaeus states, "Let him take sweet wine, either mixed with water or warmed, especially that kind called protropos (juice coming from the grapes before they are pressed), as being good for the stomach…"(Athenaeus, Banquet 2:24).
The question, "Didn’t Jesus drink fermented wine?" comes from what the false religious leaders said about Jesus in Matthew 11:18,19. "For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ "The Son of Man came eating and drinking (Jesus was not fasting like John, and did drink unfermented wine), and they say, "Look, a gluttonous man and a winebibber (wine drinker), a friend of tax collectors and sinners! NKJV
John was a Nazarite and was not to drink grape juice or fermented wine Luke 1:15. Jesus on the other hand had a different type of ministry. Jesus did talk with drinkers who were considered sinners and this made the religious leaders angry. These were the same men who said Jesus was a glutton and had a demon. These leaders were jealous and upset because Jesus was becoming so popular. They were lying about Jesus being a glutton, about Jesus having a demon, and they were also lying when they said Jesus was a winebibber (or alcoholic drinker)!
The Bible says Jesus always did the will of the Father who is in heaven. So He would not disobey God the Father who said by the Holy Spirit, "Do not look on the wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup, when it swirls around smoothly; at the last it bites like a serpent, and stings like a viper." Proverbs 23:31 and 32NKJV
Now, "Did Jesus make alcohol for the wedding in Cana?" The term used in, John 2:1-11, is "oinos" the generic Greek word for both fermented or unfermented juice. We must determine from the context whether it is a fermented or unfermented drink here.
The person in charge of the wedding party remarked, after he had tasted the wine, "…you have kept the good wine until now." Good wine was fresh grape juice, the fermented grape juice was considered inferior. Also Jesus would know about Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (being God as well as man), and would not give alcohol to a wedding party, which probably included several pregnant women. No, Jesus did NOT make a fermented wine at this wedding. What He did do was to give a wedding gift of at least 120 gallons of fresh grape juice.
The Hebrew word (chemah) is translated as "poison" when speaking of fermented wine in Deuteronomy 32:33. Alcohol is a toxic mind-altering drug. Alcohol causes ill effects on the digestive, muscular, skeletal, nervous and circulatory systems. It causes cirrhosis of the liver, jaundice, pancreatitis, and blackouts as well as many other sicknesses.
About sixty percent of all traffic accidents and seventy percent of all murders are alcohol related. Then there is the untold domestic violence it has caused. Proverbs 20:1, warns, "Wine is a mocker, intoxicating drink (beer) arouses fighting, whoever is led astray by it is not wise!
God’s Word is consistent, it does not tell us not to drink fermented wine in one part of the Bible and in another only drink a little. Here are three types of New Testament references that people think are saying it is all right to drink a little fermented wine or beer, etc. First, Ephesians 5:18, in some versions the word "excess" is used. The New King James Version more accurately uses the word "dissipation" (meaning intemperance or the opposite of temperance-which is total abstinence from alcoholic liquors).
Second, in other references such as 1 Timothy 3:2,3 and Titus 1:7, we have the phrase, "not given to wine"1 this is taken by some to mean, "not to be addicted" to alcohol. But in reality the Greek word used here is, "mee-paroinon", literally, not at, by near, or with wine (alcohol). According to Paul, total abstinence is an indispensable qualification for a pastor.
The third type of reference that has caused confusion to some, are the ones like 1 Timothy 3:8 and Titus 2:3…"not given to much wine"2. In order to understand this verse we will need to understand a popular vice of that time. That was to drink a lot of unfermented wine. They used various methods to promote thirst. These drinkers might continue drinking all night at their feasts. Excessive drinking, even of non-alcoholic drinks corresponded to gluttony-the excessive use of food. Paul is simply guarding the deacons against a vice of the day. It would be similar in our day to "bulimia" (eating or drinking to the point of being gorged and then vomiting). This is unbecoming behavior for a Christian in any age! (1 The New International Version says here, "not given to drunkenness" 2 "not given to much wine" these translations do not make sense in light of Proverbs 23:31 and 32 and the rest of the injunctions against any drinking of alcohol).
In Revelation 1:6, we are called kings and priests, according to Scripture kings or princes were not to drink fermented wine or intoxicating drink. In Proverbs 31:4,5 we are also told that priests were not to drink any wine or intoxicating drink when they went into the tabernacle (or temple), Leviticus 10:9 and 10. Then 1 Corinthians 3:16 says, "Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?"
For more study on this subject read also: 1 Samuel 1:13-16, Proverbs 4:14-17, 23:29-35, Isaiah 5:22, 28:7,8 Jeremiah 35:1-6,18,19; Daniel 1:8-16, Amos 2:12 Habakkuk 2:5,15-16; 1 Peter 1:13; 1 Thessalonians 5:6-8.
My kidneys sure seem to work better after I drink, as my autograph in snowbanks worldwide can attest.
The difference--one can live perfectly well never having encountered ethanol. For some people, it's that first unnecessary taste that does them in.
(That muscular atrophy one is a bit of a stretch!)
Too much of anything is not good.
Money? Sex? Happiness? Intelligence? Vision? Air? Jessica Alba?
Interesting that the same Jesus who knew about fetal alcohol syndrome didn't catch the fact that the word for grape juice was practically the same as the word for wine, a missed prohibition which has resulted in the death of millions of Christians worldwide, while Mohammad's clarity on the point likely saves thousands of Islamists from alcohol-related deaths yearly.
What was that omniscient Lord of ours thinking!?!?!
Tis true. Methinks you need a Texas sized glass.
Better not eat too much or drink caffeine. The Bible warns strongly against gluttony and, as you stated, your body is the Temple of God.
Proverbs 23:2 "And put a knife to thy throat, if thou be a man given to appetite."
The Bible warns us of many things for our own good. Too much of ANYTHING is bad.
Got one... thanks to you. :-)
Never forget that He turned water into wine. (I'm real sorry about that there, bless the pygmies down in the rain forest)
Also, the researchers stressed that no one should take up drinking as a way of protecting the kidneys.
No one should take up reading as a way of protecting the brain, either.
One should be able to hold one's vitamin E. An old manual composed by personal confessor of Ivan the Terrible specifically warned that those who could not hold the vitamin were liable to collapsing in a stupor, soiling themselves and their clothing, having all their valuables (and even unsoiled clothing) stolen from them and on top of it all they were likely to become laughingstocks.
not sure it's as big as I was thinkin' you might want it.
Takes a lot of practice!
Practice makes perfect, both in holding the vitamin and in many other fields.
What if I can't have my daily drink for one reason or another? Can I save my daily drinks up for a few weeks and drink "moderately" by having 14 of them all on one day?
Misleading semantics game based on literal (and even that is hedged with a misleading element) definitions without providing for syntax and context.
The statement is false.
You might ask, "Could people in Bible times keep their juices from fermenting when there was no refrigeration?" The answer is , "Yes". To preserve their sweet juices in a hot climate, people often boiled the juice down until it was thick like syrup, and later when they were ready to use it they would add water to it. Also they would boil their juices and, then seal the air out. There were other methods to prevent fermentation like filtration or by drawing off the juice from the subsided yeast, and by the use of sulfur. They could, at times keep juice in a cool place such as in a cave, under ground or in water
They could, perhaps, under the best of circumstances during the era (and it's obvious technological limitations); the problem is that there is NO historical OR Biblical evidence--zilch, zero, nada--that they did so, or even wanted to do so.
This statement also is false.
So to assume that every time the Bible uses the word "wine"-it is talking about a fermented drink is not looking at the facts!
Ah, the Fallacy of Weak Analogy rears it's predictable head. It usually does at this point with the Carrie Nation types.
The statement is false. This is because its original premises are also false. 'Nuff said.
Isaiah 16:10b says, "…no treaders will tread out wine in their presses…" As soon as the juice was pressed out of the grapes it was called wine. In fact in Isaiah 65:8, it is called wine when it is still in the grapes, "…As the new wine is found in the cluster," but in Genesis 9:21 it is clear that fermented wine is what Noah drank to get drunk on
This is a well-honed tactic of those actively engaged in perpetuating an argument based upon false premises: "cherrypicking," it's called, and within the context of an "Appeal to Authority" is as easy to spot as it is to dismiss.
The bundling of disparate Scriptures is meaningless, since the premises in which they are being employed to "prove" are false on their face.
Again because the word "wine" is used many people jump to the conclusion it is fermented, when in fact Paul and the rest of Scripture have already warned against the use of fermented wine
As ditto here (see above).
The person in charge of the wedding party remarked, after he had tasted the wine, "…you have kept the good wine until now." Good wine was fresh grape juice, the fermented grape juice was considered inferior. Also Jesus would know about Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (being God as well as man), and would not give alcohol to a wedding party, which probably included several pregnant women. No, Jesus did NOT make a fermented wine at this wedding. What He did do was to give a wedding gift of at least 120 gallons of fresh grape juice
This statement is false. The truth is the exact opposite: The "Good Wine" referred to that which had had time to ferment to a level of alcoholic drinkability. The "Bad Wine" was served last precisely because it's alcoholic fermentation had not had time to come to full flavor. The water Jesus turned into wine was probably of an excellent, miraculous vintage--100 B.C., perhaps. But it was most certainly not some watery version of grape juice. It was fully fermented, alcoholic wine.
The rest of the post is simply more cut-and-paste Carrie Nation gibberish along these lines; all of it is abuse of the Scriptures by an individual to grind a silly axe, and is as equally contemptible in its means as it false in its conclusions.
I never cease to be amazed by those who feel it necessary to distort the textual content of Holy Writ as a means to ride their cherished hobby horses over such a trivial issue. It is disgraceful, in every sense of the word.
I noticed the same thing.
BTW -- what latest total on your weight loss? Are you still low-carbing? Haven't "seen" you around FR for a while.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.