I don't know if you are familiar with this sort of argument against alcohol, frequently put forward by baptists, but I think Lewis Carroll in "Sylvie and Bruno Concluded", addressed it fairly neatly when he wrote the following:
"So Lady Muriel took up the cudgels. “Do you hold the theory”, she enquired, “that people can preach teetotalism more effectually by being teetotalers themselves?”
“Certainly I do!” replied the red-faced man. “Now, here is a case in point,” unfolding a newspaper-cutting: “let me read you this letter from a teetotaler. To the Editor. Sir, I was once a moderate drinker, and knew a man who drank to excess. I went to him. ‘Give up this drink,’ I said. ‘It will ruin your health!’ ‘You drink,’ he said: ‘why shouldn’t I?’ ‘Yes,’ I said, ‘but I know when to leave off.’ He turned away from me. ‘You drink in your way,’ he said: ‘let me drink in mine. Be off!’ Then I saw that, to do any good with him, I must forswear drink. From that hour l haven’t touched a drop!”
“There! What do you say to that?” He looked round triumphantly, while the cutting was handed round for inspection.
“How very curious!” exclaimed Arthur when it had reached him. “Did you happen to see a letter, last week, about early rising? It was strangely like this one.”
The red-faced man’s curiosity was roused. “Where did it appear?” he asked.
“Let me read it to you,” said Arthur. He took some papers from his pocket, opened one of them, and read as follows. To the Editor. Sir, I was once a moderate sleeper, and knew a man who slept to excess. I pleaded with him. Give up this lying in bed,’ I said. ‘It will ruin your health!’ You go to bed,’ he said: ‘why shouldn’t I?’ ‘Yes,’ I said, but I know when to get up in the morning.’ He turned away from me. ‘You sleep in your way,’ he said: ‘let me sleep in mine. Be off!’ Then I saw that to do any good with him, I must forswear sleep. From that hour I haven’t been to bed!”
Arthur folded and pocketed his paper, and passed on the newspaper-cutting. None of us dared to laugh, the red-faced man was evidently so angry."
The book is a fascinating fairy tale mixed up with some eloquent and profound moral arguments, and is highly recommended. To the point Batman!
The point is, a grocery store opened nearby with an entire aisle of beer.
1 comment:
Here's the thing: the moral reformers are trying to modify the behaviour without addressing the sin. Yes, the argument is silly, but the reformers are wasting their time anyway. The drunkard needs to repent and trust in Jesus, and the reformer just wants him to stop drinking. Which, as he is in bondage to sin, he doesn't want/ can't do anyway.
The moral reformers of the 19th century consistently made this mistake. They mostly wanted to have a moral society with strong family values (like the "Moral Majority" wanted in recent decades), but they approached the problem from the outside, and failed. Instead of a more virtuous society, we ended up with the Roaring 20's- let's hope this cycle doesn't repeat itself...
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