DiscussMormonism.com

Once again, in an attempt to clarify, the Newsroom just adds further confusion to the members.

First it was:
"It is not known precisely why, how, or when this restriction began but what is clear is that it ended decades ago." MormonNewsroom

And now we have:
"the church does not prohibit the use of caffeine" and that the faith’s health-code reference to "hot drinks" "does not go beyond [tea and coffee]." SLTrib

Both of which prompt more rather than less questions.

In terms of the latest muddying of the doctrinal waters, what is it about Tea and Coffee that is a health risk that isn't present in Hot chocolate, Herbel Infusions etc if it isn't the caffeine?

It seems the official answer is the same as to the question about why blacks had to be banned from holding the Priesthood, the Church does not know and God isn't for telling...

Drifting,

This answer is going to sound silly but I do not mean to be silly. Since the answer means the difference between joining family for weddings and not, this is actually very serious business.

The answer to your question: "What is it about tea and coffee if not caffeine?"

Is this:

Tea: The COMBINATION of caffeine and hot, herbal waters is forbidden.
Coffee: Coffee is forbidden, regardless of caffeine content

People may laugh at this but it really has very little to do with reason. It has everything to do with obedience and religious observance. Consider the orthodox Jew.

I'm considering some of my own restrictions and observations that have nothing to do with reason. It provides me a feeling of being unique.

Yeah. It has nothing to do with health at all, or even sin really. Joseph Smith drank plenty of coffee and tea.

It is about setting themselves apart. And, naturally, a feeling of smug self-righteousness is able to accompany living a "higher" law.

just me wrote:Yeah. It has nothing to do with health at all, or even sin really. Joseph Smith drank plenty of coffee and tea.

It is about setting themselves apart. And, naturally, a feeling of smug self-righteousness is able to accompany living a "higher" law.

Exactly right. WoW adherance is merely a litmus test, the simplest outward act of proclaiming one's faith and belief as a practicing Mormon.

If you think about it, the WoW is the least important when compared to other weightier moral standards; honesty, kindness, forgiveness, integrity etc etc, but on the surface, it is by far the most important aspect of being Mormon, because if an LDS person can't be bothered to obey the WoW, then weightier obedience issues would potentially be disregarded.

The WoW adherance is the baby-step members take to say to themselves and to others that, "I am a Mormon".

Tchild wrote:Exactly right. WoW adherance is merely a litmus test, the simplest outward act of proclaiming one's faith and belief as a practicing Mormon.

If you think about it, the WoW is the least important when compared to other weightier moral standards; honesty, kindness, forgiveness, integrity etc etc, but on the surface, it is by far the most important aspect of being Mormon, because if an LDS person can't be bothered to obey the WoW, then weightier obedience issues would potentially be disregarded.

The WoW adherance is the baby-step members take to say to themselves and to others that, "I am a Mormon".

For most of the 19th century, polygamy was the marker of Mormonism that set it apart from the world. It's no coincidence that the Word of Wisdom became a much greater emphasis at the time polygamy was (ostensibly) stopped.

just me wrote:Yeah. It has nothing to do with health at all, or even sin really. Joseph Smith drank plenty of coffee and tea.

I disagree about it not being about sin. It is sinful because the church has defined it to be. They commanded us not to drink these things, and if we disobey the Prophet in this, that's sinful.

It is about setting themselves apart. And, naturally, a feeling of smug self-righteousness is able to accompany living a "higher" law.

That is totally true too. I've often read the WoW described as an exercise in boundary setting and maintenance. It serves to separate those in the "in" group from everyone else.

And your "higher law" comment is spot on. Even though President News H. Room has pronounced The Official LDS Policy on Caffeine and the WoW as not including an explicit ban on caffeinated soft drinks, you can bet your last farthing that a great many Mormons will stick with the prohibition on themselves anyway, if for no other reason than to feel they are somehow extra righteous for obeying the "higher law".

A few short days after God, via His Prophet, and via His Prophets Spokesperson (Newsroom) clarified that caffeinated sugary drinks were not prohibited within the divinely inspired Mormon health code named 'the Word of Wisdom'. New York goes the other way...

NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York City passed the first U.S. ban of oversized sugary drinks on Thursday in its latest controversial step to reduce obesity and its deadly complications in a nation with a weight problem.

By an 8-0 vote with one abstention, the mayoral-appointed city health board outlawed sugary drinks larger than 16 ounces nearly everywhere they are sold, except groceries and convenience stores. Violators of the ban, which does not include diet sodas, face a $200 fine.

It's as if God wants Mormons to be fat...