Lent
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emergencytennis
Posts: 864 Member
So, it is coming up to Easter and people are giving up stuff. Three of my tennis friends have waved off the morning tea offerings because they are giving up sweets for Lent. I asked them if they were religious and they all whispered no, but it was a good excuse to cut back on the empty calories, or words to that effect.
I bit my tongue but I was angry on their behalf. Why do they have to have a quasi-religious excuse to refuse cake in order to avoid giving offence? How does religion become the last resort of the health-conscious? Is it really more acceptable to imply you are religious than to confirm you care about your health?
I had two helpings. Purely to foment discussion, you understand.
I bit my tongue but I was angry on their behalf. Why do they have to have a quasi-religious excuse to refuse cake in order to avoid giving offence? How does religion become the last resort of the health-conscious? Is it really more acceptable to imply you are religious than to confirm you care about your health?
I had two helpings. Purely to foment discussion, you understand.
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Replies
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Heh. This is silly. Both because it's very easy to say "I'm not eating this", but also because people who bring sweets can really pressure others to "just try some".0
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A cake or a slice is normal for morning tea in this comp. My problem is that the ladies think a religious excuse is better than a health excuse.
No, I can't eat that, because I am ordered to stay within GHODG (God's Holy Ordained Denial Guidelines). Totally trumps any bogus sciencey reasons like incipient diabetes or heart disease.0 -
My problem is that the ladies think a religious excuse is better than a health excuse.
Agreed. I'm curious about how much effort they will put into restraining from sweets once Lent is over. Probably not so much.
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I do have to admit though - I've got a serious case of the sweet tooth. And usually when people brought sweets to work I would usually try some though I try not to blow my calorie allowance on useless food (at least that's how I see it). But still it was hard for me to resist the temptation. The only reason I don't eat those things now at all is I went vegan (for ethical reasons, not for health). It's easier when you've got another justification, even if no one else actually cares whether you eat or not. And, willpower is not strong with this one (which is me).
It seems very similar to me in a way.
It's sad I guess, it's like people say that if there's something wrong with one's engine they'd run to the garage much quicker than they would run to the doctor if something wasn't so right with them. I wonder why we don't put our health first.0 -
When I lived in Mississippi, I had to live in the atheist closet, so people would ask me, "What are you giving up for Lent?" I'd always answer, "liver." Figured that was pretty easy, since I never eat that crap.0
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I've never been asked what I was giving up for Lent. Of course, around here, Catholics are almost as bad as Atheists to some people, so it makes sense, I guess.0
