Ok....I KNOW that the church leadership had spoken out against caffeine/cola usage in the past...and now I can't find anything regarding it. Can someone please help? My TBM niece is saying that no....nobody ever said that...it's just culture. Help!

I must have had a thousand anti-caffeine lectures, but I don't recall any literature on the subject. The Mormons are the undisputed champions of plausable deniability. Islam is trying to play catch up.

Tea and coffee were banned, and people tried to explain it by saying that it was because of the caffeine. In truth, there was no logic to it whatsoever. The Word of Wisdom is just an obedience test.
The current prophet, Thomas Monson, is a fan of Pepsi, so if there ever was anything against cola drinks, it was likely replaced by new revelation as soon as he took control.

This. It was a Mormon urban myth designed to try to explain why on earth something as healthy as coffee and tea could be banned by the Word of Wisdom since science had found that those things were good for you.

I remember hearing that caffeine is a "drug" and therefore, it's banned via sodas, coffee, teas, etc.

Now that they have come out and said that Mt Dew and Pepsi is fine to drink (sugar waters that ARE bad for you) yet coffee and teas are NOT (things that are good for you).... yeah.

Inspired is hardly what I'd call this :)

Naomi Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Tea and coffee were banned, and people tried to
> explain it by saying that it was because of the
> caffeine. In truth, there was no logic to it
> whatsoever. The Word of Wisdom is just an
> obedience test.

Bingo. And I bet this is going to get shifted toward as time goes on. It's much harder to argue this point than it is to point out health benefits of coffee or tea. Coffee could extend your lifetime by six hundred years, and the obedience argument (or something more flowery, like trial of the spirit) will still work.

Caffeine keeps me awake. I would make a great high priest if I were still TBM.

Not official literature perhaps, but here are a couple talks and other links.


https://www.lds.org/liahona/1990/03/caffeine-the-subtle-addiction?lang=eng

https://www.lds.org/ensign/2008/12/the-energy-drink-epidemic?lang=eng&query=caffeine

Q&A answers

https://www.lds.org/new-era/1975/10/qa-questions-and-answers/qa-questions-and-answers?lang=eng&query=caffeine

Thanks for the helpful references. A quote from the Liahona reference in particular interested me:

According to a statement in the Priesthood Bulletin of February 1972 (volume 8, number 1), “There has been no official interpretation of [the] Word of Wisdom except that which was given by the Brethren in the very early days of the Church when it was declared that ‘hot drinks’ meant tea and coffee.

“With reference to cola drinks, the Church has never officially taken a position on this matter, but the leaders of the Church have advised, and we do now specifically advise, against the use of any drink containing harmful habit-forming drugs under circumstances that would result in acquiring the habit. Any beverage that contains ingredients harmful to the body should be avoided.”

I get an upset stomach when I drink pop with caffeine. I drink the same brand without caffeine and don't get an upset stomach. I suspect that caffeine is something which varies from person to person.

+1

and sometimes when you go off of it its even worse. I get headaches.

Yes, and sometimes now when I get a diet coke I'll mix half real and half caffiene free for that reason.

For me caffeine has been an excellent headache & migraine abatement.

I've always had many headaches, and the occassional migraine. Pain pills dulled things, but never really eliminated the headache. Excedrine was the only one that made a dent. Then I found out exedrine had caffeine. So I tried Coke, and it worked pretty well, but when I get a migraine, I can always dull it with an energy drink, and if I drink one early enough I can eliminate it at the onset (stops my migraine trigger before it turns into a full blown migraine).

Caffeine is well known as a stimulant, but less known as a vasodilator. The 2nd part is what helps with my headaches, because it increases blood flow, which essentially gives the brain & other body parts the maximum amount of oxygen & nutrients so it has the best chance of battling the problem. For me, I believe the increased brain oxygen is what can suppress my migraine trigger.

But, I never drank caffeine as a TBM, so my tolerance is pretty low.

Hinkley / 60 mins interview.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLFDP_MeYhg



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/17/2012 12:43PM by order66.

For the most part, any teaching about caffeine in TSCC is either vague, and alludes to caffeine being bad, or is a response from a question posed by an outside source.

Luckily, caffeine is one of those words that is really easy to search on. http://www.lds.org/search?lang=eng&query=caffeine
That shows several Ensign articles or teachings where they essentially allude to caffeine being included in the word of wisdom, or at least being bad and we should avoid it.

Your niece is right. The official Church position has long been that colas are not forbidden by the Word of Wisdom. As a missionary in Japan in 1977, I asked, and was told that we should not ask about colas in interviewing people for baptism.

But many Church members think that colas are not allowed. You cannot, for example, buy a Coke or Pepsi at BYU. They don't sell them.

Some General Authorities have advised against drinking colas. They are not good for your health, that's for sure. Too much sugar. No nutrition.

I think it strange that although I have been out of the Church for many years, I still don't drink coffee, tea or alcohol. Just never felt the need. And they are addictive. An uncle died an alcoholic. My wife drinks more coffee than she wants to, and is clearly addicted to it.

Just because it is a Mormon teaching does not mean the prohibition against coffee, tea and alcohol is wrong. For me, at least, it makes sense.

I didn't like coffee until I tried lattes and the like. Mixing coffee with non-fat milk (steamed or frothed) was the key for me. Good stuff. I enjoy it with or without caffeine. I don't go crazy on the caffeine because I was born with a funky heart. I found out that espresso has less caffeine than coffee which surprised me. I thought espresso was more. I try to stick with the espresso drinks and either have them decaf of half-calf. My doctor didn't know that espresso was less until I told her. Now I feel a lot less guilty about going to Starbucks. :-)

Here's a good quote for you.

"Certainly the partaking of cola drinks, though not included within the measuring standard here set out, is in violation of the spirit of the Word of Wisdom. Harmful drugs of any sort are in a like category." Bruce R. McConkie, Mormon Doctrine

To the best of my knowledge, McConkie came up with the theory cola is bad, and the cult bought it. The problem was, the soft drink industry did not like this and threatened to sue the cult for loss of profit. So it was never made official doctrine.

EDIT: The cult, apparently, now does allow cola drinks. Here's a link: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2196770/Mormon-church-confirms-members-allowed-drink-coke-pepsi--tea-banned.html



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/17/2012 04:35PM by 2humble4u.

"To the best of my knowledge, McConkie came up with the theory cola is bad, and the cult bought it. The problem was, the soft drink industry did not like this and threatened to sue the cult for loss of profit. So it was never made official doctrine."

No, I don't think so. Bruce R. McConkie, or "Big Bruce" as many liked to call him, said many things in Mormon Doctrine that were his own opinion and never got any traction elsewhere among the General Authorities. And the soft drink industry could care less about Mormon doctrine.

It's implied. In 1922, then president Heber J. Grant said to all members of the church in an official declaration:

"I am not going to give any command, but I will ask it as a personal, individual favor to me, to let coca-cola alone. There are plenty of other things you can get at the soda fountains without drinking that which is injurious. The Lord does not want you to use any drug that creates an appetite for itself."

Soon after making this statement, a Coca-Cola Company representative met with Grant, and after multiple meetings Grant stated that he no longer recommends members to stay away from Coca-Cola beverages. Of course, being the sneaky mormon he is, he added:

"[I revoke my earlier statements] IF the amount of caffeine in Coca-Cola is absolutely harmeless, which THEY claim it is." (emphasis added).

We can reasonably assume that the Coca-Cola Company threatened the LDS church with an expensive lawsuit which they likely would have won. Why else would a profit revoke an earlier said statement?

EDIT: So the GA's did not follow "Big Bruce's" advice (as he had not been born yet) but the Coca-Cola Company does in fact care about what a cult says to its all-too gullible members.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/17/2012 05:00PM by 2humble4u.

Interesting research. I know little about the history of caffeine drinks in the Church. My only point is that the Church has never said that colas are forbidden by the Word of Wisdom. In fact, they have said the opposite.

Also, the soft drink industry has no basis to sue the Mormon Church. No more than does the coffee industry, the whiskey industry, or the tea industry. That is interesting that a Coca-Cola representative met with President Grant, but for all I know that may have been a salesman.

Many Mormons do avoid colas. My parents and siblings (and their children) do. That's not necessarily a bad thing. But it is not a requirement of the Mormon Church. I don't think there is much to criticize the Mormon Church about regarding colas.

I agree with you on all four of your points. It has never been explicitly stated that cola drinks run contrary to the Word of Wisdom. Neither will we ever know for certain what transpired between the Coca-Cola representative and President Grant. McConkie is a loose cannon. And many mormons will veer away from colas.

So is not drinking colas a cultural thing or a doctrinal thing? Both could be argued rather effectively, but I think it's safe to say it's just one of those silly parts of the cult that will sooner or later disappear as the world continues to evolve.

like a bribe.

Imagine this conversation:

Coke Rep: You know Heber, your comments are costing us a bunch of money in lost sales.

HJG: Yeah, well, that's no skin off my nose. I'd much rather have my followers drinking milk from local dairies - that increases my take in tithing.

CR: Ok, I have a deal for you. Stop telling your members to avoid Coca Cola and we'll donate 10,000 shares of stock to the Corporation of the President.

HJG: Wait a minute! Did you say that the amount of caffeine in Coke wasn't harmful? That changes things.

Wasn't there a GBH TV interview, maybe 60 minutes or Larry King a while back where he was asked if they drink cola or caffeinated beverages and he said no

order66 posted the youtube link above.

(The word "caffeine" occurs about 477 times on the lds.org website.)

http://www.google.com/#hl=en&tbo=d&output=search&sclient=psy-ab&q=caffeine+site:lds.org&oq=caffeine+site:lds.org&gs_l=hp.12...2714.2714.0.4508.1.1.0.0.0.0.112.112.0j1.1.0.les%3B..0.0...1c.2.Aqego2s-7Ao&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_qf.&bvm=bv.1355534169,d.aWc&fp=eeaed9fac54bfaee&bpcl=40096503&biw=1366&bih=584

Didn't the loosening up on the acceptability of drinking colas start with Pepsi, not Coca Cola, and coincide with the purchase of Pepsi bottling plants by tscc? At least that was the rumor in my high school in the morridor. First the kids (and some teachers) were crazy about Dr. Pepper, then Mt.Dew and finally CocaCola.

of Apostle John A. Widtsoe's take on the WOW. He wrote a whole book on the WOW which advocated some pretty extreme positions.

For-a-while-folks-talked-about-"the-Word-of-Widtsoe"-ly yrs,

S

One urban legend I heard from my TBM ex about cola drinks was that some GA drank some soda at a meeting and said, "I did not violate the word of wisdom." At least, that's what my ex used to excuse his Mountain Dew and Pepsi addiction. I'm not kidding, he would drink a 6 pack in a day, and sometimes the only water I saw him drink was in that little cup on Sundays.

i don't know there is a stance per se. more of a personal choice

The thing is a lot of other things have caffiene in them. For example chocolate. so where do you draw a line.

I think its a matter of culture and choice. You won't be asked about caffeine consumption in the org. Nor will you be asked about equally as bad things for the body like excessive sugar. Its a personal choice.

In general, I totally agree.
BUT- I have had bishops who do ask about caffeine and have force people to stop drinking soda with caffeine.

I think this is a symptom of a larger problem in TSCC: vaguely distributed power.

Honestly, a bishop can ask you whatever-the-hell he wants, and can deny you a temple recommend for it.

While most don't, because they don't want to risk their ladder climbing, every now and then you get a whack-job vigilante who's decided it's his personal mission in life to eliminate X.