Overeating

Poverty and poor eating habits lead to obesity, a complicated problem with physiological, genetic, and economic components. A different spiritual viewpoint on this is provided by Christianity, which sees overeating as a sin and a reflection of our relationship with food. 

As odd as it may seem, gluttony was at the top of the list of deadly sins in the early days. We haven’t even gotten up to fight the spiritual battle until we conquer the enemy that lives within us, which is our gluttonous desire. 

Since we must feed ourselves, overeating is comprehensible and less dangerous than the other sins. It mainly affects the body rather than the soul. Dante’s pilgrim meets the gluttons in the third circle of upper hell, not far from the top. They cannot climb to taste them but are tantalizingly close to the tree with the most succulent fruit. He says gluttons are unquestionably superior to arrogant, jealous, angry, slothful, or covetous people. He believes that lust is the one less dangerous sin. 

 Overeating and obsessive dieting can both be indicators of gluttony. 

 People who are overweight are often looked down upon in our image-conscious world. However, gluttony rejects the straightforward principle that the skinny is good and the fat is bad. Perhaps when we think of gluttony, we picture overindulging greatly and cramming food into our mouths without considering the future. However, the sin of gluttony has always been viewed as including more than that, including an obsession with food and what one may and cannot consume. Because our wants are smaller and less costly than what has been set before us, we never recognize as gluttony the determination to get what we want, however troublesome it is to others. Overeating and obsessive dieting can both be indicators of gluttony. 

Therefore, excessive fixation with food, drink, or simple consumption is called gluttony. Just as lust allows sex to become an unhealthy fixation, it will enable food to occupy a warped place in our lives. 

Food is fascinating to us. With a gentle, sensual voiceover explaining the situation, a TV commercial progressively plays over a picture of a chocolate sponge drenched in brandy and covered in creamy cream—a culinary striptease. Thirty years ago, no one had ever heard of famous chefs, and the cookbook area of my local bookstore is far more extensive than the religion section. They’re all over now. Food politics also involves difficult decisions and laws. Poorer families typically eat less healthily, and fine food and drink are time- and money-consuming. For their own sake, should they be prohibited from doing so? Despite the children’s and their parents’ wishes, should we substitute nutritious salads for chips and hamburgers in school canteens? Where does the nation’s health precede an individual’s right to consume anything they want? 

The Bible contains a story that provides some insight into overeating. It is the one in which the devil tempted Jesus. Jesus purposefully skips meals during the temptations. The devil uses the magic trick of transforming the stones in the desert around Jesus into bread as one of his enticements to convince him to feed himself. After all, the Son of God shouldn’t have any trouble with that, and it would reveal his true identity through a demonstration of supernatural power. Every word that comes from God’s mouth is what man needs to survive, not just bread. 

 The idea is that food becomes hazardous when it becomes a deity. Food needs to be kept in its appropriate position since, like sex, it may skew things. This is evident everywhere. Ironically, the obesity epidemic in the West is occurring at a time when three billion people, or half of the world’s population, still lack access to nutritious food. Almost half of the deaths of children under five globally are attributable to undernutrition, and one in ten individuals goes to bed hungry at night. For the first time, there were more overweight people (1 billion) than malnourished people (800 million) worldwide in 2006. Compared to the third world’s hunger and poverty, first-world gluttony is unusual. Gluttony is attempting to use a physical cure to satisfy a spiritual void. It’s similar to using penicillin to treat heartbreak. 

 However, there are other ways to abuse food besides overindulging. Another indication of poor soul health is an obsession with numbers. Although less frequent than obesity, bulimia and anorexia still plague around 10% of college-age girls in the United States, and more young people than ever before are undergoing treatment for eating disorders in the United Kingdom. Although they are not sins, anorexia, bulimia, or obsessive eating disorders are signs that something has gone wrong.  Food is not neutral, and our views about it are intricately linked to our emotional and spiritual well-being. 

This starts to show us why overeating is considered a sin in Christianity. Why do individuals starve themselves or overeat? Numerous studies indicate that feelings of inadequacy are frequently the root cause of these diseases. Comfort eating is a pattern that we are all familiar with. A piece of pie or cake might lift your spirits when you feel down. You can forget why you felt horrible in the first place with a few stiff whiskeys or ten pints of lager. In a similar vein, patterns of dissatisfaction or self-dislike frequently give rise to anorexia or bulimia. Such habits of self-abuse are typically brought on by  self-esteem issues, family relationships, problems with friends, the death of someone special, problems at work, college, or university, lack of confidence, or sexual or emotional abuse,” according to the Eating Disorder Association. Many people discuss how they feel “too fat” or “not good enough.” 

These are extreme examples, of course. However, they highlight how easily we turn to food and drink to make up for the things that are lacking in our lives, to reassure us when we are lonely, and to satiate our spiritual as well as bodily hunger. 

The unconscious self-image of emptiness motivates gluttony: I must fill myself because I am worthless, empty, and ghostlike.

Gluttony is attempting to use a physical cure to satisfy a spiritual void. It’s similar to using penicillin to treat a broken heart; while there is nothing wrong with it, too much of it can cause a variety of issues and doesn’t help a restless soul. 

 When the relationship between food and its appropriate function is severed, gluttony sets in. Food is provided to maintain bodily functions, enhance social interactions, and satisfy palates. It is not there to support a shaky sense of self, to console the lonely and isolated, or to take the place of prayer or meditation. You may need to watch out for the role of food in your life or get assistance if you realize that you frequently eat by yourself for fictitious reasons that don’t seem to be related to the purpose of food. 

When we start to overindulge in food, gluttony takes over. Here, control is the main problem. Overeaters are unable to regulate their intake. I could not resist finishing the biscuit packet rather than stopping at one, the additional cream on the pudding, and the extra-large Coke. The misconception is that eating cannot be controlled. The problem is reversed for those who suffer from anorexia or bulimia. Too strict dietary restriction is an issue for many people with these diseases or those who may tend to them, and their identity is linked to their illness. In this case, the solution is to learn to relinquish control and re-form their identity around something other than eating habits, allowing food to return to its proper position as a pleasure. 

The Christian solution to discovering a genuine sense of worthiness can only come from the source of life himself, the one the Bible refers to as the “bread of life”—the one who provides sustenance for the soul—if food addiction frequently stems from a profound sense of unease and a loss of self-worth.

These deepest hurts can start to heal when the most profound and fulfilling love of all—the love of a God who is Love—meets our yearning need for love.