Why is gluttony a mortal sin? Gluttony: what is it and why is it considered a sin

What is the essence of sin and why does the church condemn the love of excess? Is any food considered gluttony and how can one get rid of this terrible sin?

Man is sinful by nature and God helps him overcome difficulties and return to the true path. He forgives him and instructs him. The main instrument of Orthodox Christians has become the commandments; they speak of the seven deadly sins. All lay people should fear them.

The priests claim that only the saints did not commit any of these sins. You should not be ashamed of your desires and passions, but you need to repent. In this material we will explain to you why the sin of gluttony is dangerous, what is its essence? Let’s dispel the myth that Christians can only eat spiritual food and answer the question: “how to overcome your passions.”

What kind of sin is this: five types

Pilgrims, priests and monks do not pay as much attention to food as ordinary people. For most, eating is a process accompanied by conversations, demonstration of skills and position. All these are worldly sins, the source of which is gluttony. Priests advise to restrain yourself in food, to eat simple and easy to prepare food. You don’t need to spend a lot of time and effort on preparing dishes. What is the evil eye and how does it differ from other methods of magical influence? What to do to protect yourself from negative influences?

In Orthodoxy, there are three degrees of satiety. This is abstinence - after eating you still want to eat; contentment - you feel hungry; satiety and fullness, after which you no longer want to eat, but you feel good.

Gluttony is one of the terrible human passions that forces a person to renounce faith and fill his belly with more and more food.

This sin means a passion for tasty, unhealthy food and violation of Great Lents. The danger of this sin lies in the fact that it becomes the basis for the eight passions. It is called "root" sin.

The scriptures highlight:

1. overeating;
2. laryngeal madness (pursuit of taste, replacement of lean dishes with synthetic substances);
3. addiction;
4. drunkenness;
5. secret eating.

Often those who violate this sin worship sensual and gustatory pleasures. You can fight it with abstinence.

What circle of hell is prepared for gluttons?

The scripture says that for violating mortal sins, a person falls into one of the circles of Hell. Believers dream of avoiding such a fate and pray for forgiveness from the Lord, asking him to give them the strength to fight human passions. Others are trying to understand who will guard their “peace” after death, what circle of the dark monastery they will fall into. (cm. )

You will find answers to all these questions in church literature or Dante's Divine Comedy. It talks about the existence of nine circles of hell. Each of them is dedicated to its own “heroes”, so that after death people do not pass on sins to each other and do not incline them to commit new ones.

Gluttonians “live” in the third circle. It rains constantly on its territory, and the souls of the dead drown in puddles of mud.

They are guarded by the demon Cerberus, who holds them under his paw. The Lord chose this punishment for them - they rot in the rain.

What does this sin mean in Orthodoxy?

Over time, monks, saints and fathers collected together all human passions and classified them into the seven deadly sins. It is impossible for everyone to exist alone. They are interconnected and one gives rise to the next.

Gluttony is the head and beginning of these sins. Many people consider eating food to be a common thing, a natural necessity. But that's not true. You cannot cross the line and succumb to the weakness of the body and desires.

Adam, who committed the original sin, is to blame for this imbalance and constant struggle within man. Orthodoxy believes that the body is only an instrument of the soul and feelings, generating passions and desires, drowning out the voice of the heart.

The scriptures say that the body is a person’s good enemy and one must be careful and attentive with it. The flesh is of devilish origin and seduces the laity with its lustful desires and requests.

If you cross the line, then your body conquers the spirit and this becomes the beginning of all sins. Ancient people worshiped the flesh, lived to satisfy the belly and desires of the body, so the spirit did not get along with them and God punished them. Mired in materiality, people began to worship idols and follow strict ideology, fashion, and trends. They abandoned faith and obedience, abstinence and humility.

Passions engulf people and instead of God they worship magicians and sorcerers, psychics and magic. The Flood was needed for cleansing; the soul in people had almost perished. This opinion is shared by a large number of clergy.

Associated Sins

Laymen who violate the commandment to renounce gluttony generate anger within themselves. Overweight people are more often dissatisfied with themselves and those around them, feel unwell and because of this they get angry and quarrel with family and friends.

If a person is used to eating a lot, then he will be afraid of being left without food. The sinner begins to collect food and fill his refrigerator and pantries with supplies.

The clergy distinguish two types of gluttony: gluttony - a constant desire to eat and laryngeal insanity - the desire for exquisite food.

Gluttony leads to stinginess. You're willing to eat leftovers and spoiled food so you don't throw it away. Such people are glad that they have food supplies and pride themselves on being prepared for any eventuality. Misers do not like to invite guests, but they are not averse to visiting friends.

If you combine this sin with vanity, then you are “playing” secret eating. You are afraid to show the world that you love to eat a lot and deliciously. If you eat alone, you are ready to eat a full table of dishes; in public, you behave very modestly and restrain yourself in delicacies.

Related sins are: eating without prayer; excessive alcohol consumption or drug addiction; vulgar jokes; quarrels and squabbles during breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Consequences

Priests distinguish two types of consequences: spiritual and physical. A person feels unwell and heavy, and develops diseases of the digestive and nervous system. People prone to gluttony are more likely to become despondent and have sad thoughts. Spiritually, they move away from God, stop praying and devote their time to humility. All efforts are aimed at processing food and thoughts about finding new dishes and delights. (cm. )

A type of this sin is drunkenness, which is spiritually dangerous. A person loses himself, it is difficult for him to cope with problems in the family, at work and in communicating with friends. He loses himself, it’s hard for him to be in society and his worldview changes noticeably. Alcohol is the most popular reason for committing terrible crimes against the Lord - deception, sacrilege, blasphemy, discord and enmity, robbery, theft and murder.

Gluttony forces a person’s mind to turn off and act according to a proven pattern: obtaining and consuming food.

IMPORTANT! Sometimes a person may not notice such sins. He is confident that he devotes enough time to God, family and friends. If in doubt, it is better to consult with your confessor. What is the difference between magical effects and the evil eye? Is it possible to understand that damage has been caused? How to get rid of it yourself?

If you spend more than three hours a day on food, preparing it and shopping for it, then you should start to worry. A reason to think is the desire to drink in any situation and the inability to live without “100 grams” and a day. Another example of gluttony is eating secretly and hiding your excessive love for a particular food. Or if after a magnificent feast, leaving the guests, you feel heaviness and discomfort.

It is not for nothing that this sin is mentioned in the Holy Scriptures as one of the most harmful. History knows what the love of delights leads to. The minds of the Israelites were occupied with satisfying food that, having lost the opportunity to eat to their fill, they began to grumble that life would be better in godless Egypt. The local prophet put this sin on the same levelwith pride and idleness.

Christians achieve everything through humility, abstinence and sincere prayer to God. Only in this way, having repented of sins and passions, do they find peace and harmony.

Priests and psychologists highlight spiritual and ascetic methods of combating gluttony.

1. Prayer and repentance. Fundamental tips for defeating gluttony. Awareness of one's sinfulness and the desire to get rid of sin is the first step towards “healing.” Doctors and holy fathers talk about this.
2. Shifting attention to work. Keep yourself busy with charitable deeds, help the temple located not far from your home, communicate with the poor and wretched. Engage in fervent prayer.
3. Correct diet. A balanced diet will not require you to constantly eat. Consult your doctors and create a diet for yourself.
4. Do not switch to a new diet suddenly. Even if you decide to change your life during Lent, you should not immediately give up all delicacies and dishes. The body will not withstand such a load and psychologically it will not be easy for you. Consider a gradual reduction in “gluttony” and take a blessing for such a diet from the priest.
5. Eat slowly and do not leave the table until you are completely full.
6. Eat according to the schedule.
7. During the transition period, give up unnecessary feasts and get-togethers with friends to cope with temptation.

Many call this destructive passion simply gluttony; attachment to food is not particularly revered in most cultures, including the Orthodox. However, this is not just a matter of habit, but of a destructive passion. So, gluttony - what it is in the Orthodox tradition, we will consider further.

In Christian teaching there is a concept of the so-called mortal sins, which represent the most destructive passions. We are talking, of course, not about deeds and thoughts that lead to the death of the physical body (although this can be possible), but about passions and inclinations that lead to the death of the soul. After all, for a Christian (and for any person in general), the most significant matter is the salvation of his own soul; in fact, there are no other goals.

• to cultivate one's own faith, that is, to develop one's own understanding and spirit;
• fight passions, which actually means fighting Satan and demons;
• take care of the soul, realize the value of the soul and Salvation.

In particular, various sinful acts, thoughts and behavior should be avoided. By the way, the Orthodox concept here is objectively deeper, because in Catholicism the concept of sins for a long time developed more as a tool of social management than as a spiritual practice.

Gluttony as a sin

It is necessary to immediately say in more detail what gluttony is and what kind of offense we are talking about. Understanding it simply as overeating is quite narrow, since in general most major sins include a whole group of acts that are combined under one category of sinful thoughts. And gluttony in this version is no exception; it also includes a whole group of actions, or, to be more precise, a certain direction of thoughts and deeds.

Good to know! How to confess and what it is

Thus, the definition of this sin includes such aspects of behavior as:

• alcoholism and enjoyment of various intoxicating drugs;
• dependence on the taste of food, excessive enjoyment of taste, a peculiar reverence for food;
• using food not to nourish the body, but purely for pleasure, when the body does not require support.

To summarize, this sin refers to a morbid passion for receiving pleasure through the body, in particular through the intake of various substances, be it food or drink. It should be noted that there are different degrees of severity of such morbidity, but even in a small development, sin remains a sin.

For a modern person, it is difficult to understand why the intention of eating a tasty and satisfying meal is sinful. Moreover, skillful marketers of the food industry so temptingly promote the enjoyment of food, and the food additives used can literally cause addiction to some products, which many do not even realize. In this regard, many believers do not even have an interest in how to overcome gluttony: the current state of affairs seems quite normal.

Useful video: why is gluttony a sin?

Diseases of mind and body

When a person succumbs to various harmful passions, most often we are talking about a lack of mental control. For an Orthodox Christian, such behavior is unacceptable, because a believer must always remain vigilant, “for the hour is unknown.” One must constantly remain in the struggle against passions and sins in order for the soul to become purer.

In fact, there is a very elementary explanation why gluttony is one of the most common sins of our time. After all, about a billion people on the planet suffer from obesity.

Note! At least a billion people on Earth suffer from hunger. There is a clear disharmony in the world that is created by the sins of people: if they controlled their own passions, then with a high probability there would not be a billion obese people, nor a billion people suffering from malnutrition.

These data are provided by scientists, and they are now known to almost every more or less educated person, and Wikipedia can always help clarify some of the details. So, point by point:

• the satiety mechanism is initially inherent in the human body, it operates at the hormonal level and is created to ensure that the body functions normally and wants to eat when required;
• in nature, people, as a rule, had to have a limited amount of resources;
• in the modern world, people have an almost unlimited amount of food resources, that is, even in relatively poor countries, relatively poor people can afford a significant amount of food, and if we talk about more or less wealthy people, then they generally cannot deny themselves any food pleasures;
• the body, without the intervention of the mind, strives to provide itself with maximum resources in order to always know how to cope with possible hunger, which is why, by the way, some animals, if given an unlimited amount of food, can eat almost to their extreme limit;
• if a person does not control himself, then the body continues to consume more than is needed for maintenance, hence the emergence of destructive passion, other sins and various physical and mental ailments;
• This includes the activities of the modern food industry and propaganda, where gluttons are often praised in every possible way and called gourmets.

Accordingly, if a person allows his bodily nature to act uncontrollably, and also succumbs to the propaganda of sin, then he acquires such a bad habit as overeating to excess. Therefore, the fight against gluttony begins precisely in the human mind. Initially, you should understand where this thought comes from and what its harmfulness is. Having done good mental work, it is much easier to free yourself from sin.

The eradication of gluttony in Orthodoxy

In the Orthodox tradition, torture and subjugation of the flesh is one of the components of spiritual practice. Of course, everyone should choose such methods to the best of their ability, the main thing is to understand the essence. For the believer, the struggle with “physicality” is also a form of struggle with sin.

The believer, through his own actions, affirms the triumph of the spirit over the flesh, and not vice versa. The concept is very deep, since in Orthodoxy the earthly path is seen as something like preparation for another world. Therefore, the emphasis is placed precisely on the development of the soul, and the body acts only as an instrument that should be skillfully used and controlled, but, of course, not allowed to be controlled by the body.

When speaking about how to cope with this addiction, Orthodox saints and ascetics most often pointed to two main methods: prayer and fasting. The methods are truly effective and universal.

In addition to everything, in some lives and other books it is possible to see a naturalistic description of the disgusting demon of gluttony, which appeared to some monks. Some of those whom the Lord has granted to write books and create sermons, in their works reflect on the harmfulness of gluttony and give various arguments. Of the most significant, we note the following:

• emphasis on the body, which means a person’s great attachment to the body, its convenience and comfort;
• the development of other sins and harmful habits, as a consequence - laziness, fornication, depravity, craving for bliss, lack of fortitude, despondency, voluptuousness and others;
• difficulty in prayer and spiritual work: for anyone who has eaten more than required, it is simply more difficult to tune in to the desired prayer mood and elevate their own spirit.

When we consider this sin, it should be noted that this is not only a passion for food, but also other popular ailments of our time: alcohol, smoking and the rest.

All these passions have a common property - the desire to cloud the mind by accepting something in order to derive pleasure or simply detach. As saints and ascetics say, these methods of renunciation open up the possibility of the influence of demons, so people need to know how to cope with the destructive passion of pleasing the belly.

As said earlier, the beginning of the struggle is in the mind, the eradication begins in the spiritual hypostasis of the individual. After all, the body will always want to eat and will never be satisfied, it will always want pleasure. It’s just that someone allows these passions, but the Orthodox believer curbs them.

Note! Sometimes gluttony may not actually manifest itself, but is located entirely in the mind. For example, a model who is losing weight in every possible way may not eat anything, but at the same time, with her mind, she strives for food in every possible way, craves the feeling of fullness, and considers food the highest happiness. Such thoughts are also gluttony.

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Gluttony is one of the eight main passions that can destroy the human soul. “What is gluttony?” a person may wonder. Some people do not take the issue of satisfying their passion for food seriously, but the holy fathers looked at this issue differently and called gluttony one of the most dangerous passions.

Condemnation of the love of food can be found in Paul's letters:

This passion has been described by many prominent Christian figures. But they often wrote about gluttony along with other vices that subjugate the human will. Basil the Great (IV century) wrote about those who succumb to them, repeating the words of the apostle, that these people make the womb their god. Later, Philaret of Moscow developed this idea and called gluttons idolaters, because the stomach and the satisfaction of carnal sins is their god.

Anthony the Great, one of the pillars of early Christian monasticism, wrote that gluttony and the desire for worldly goods are the worst of passions. You can quote the statements of other saints, but they all agree that the love of food is one of the main and most dangerous passions.

Ignatius Brianchaninov compiled a list of passions that are included in gluttony:

• Gluttony.
• Neglect of posts.
• Secret eating.
• Delicacy.
• Drunkenness.
• Excessive love of the flesh.

Condemnation of gluttony in the writings of Pope Gregory I

Pope Gregory I was pontiff from 590-604. The development of the Christian Church in the West is associated with his name. He became famous as a fighter for the purity of faith and the author of works important for the church. This pontiff is revered as a saint by both Catholics and Orthodox. A special place among his works is occupied by discussions on gluttony. He identified five paths leading to this passion and illustrated them with Old Testament examples:

All Christian authors who studied gluttony, arguing what it is, placed it at the basis of passions. They noted that it seems innocent compared to other human passions, but opens the way to worse ones, such as lust. Asceticism and fasting occupy an important place

Adam's sin, passed down from generation to generation, contains the potential of all human sins. The Holy Fathers, who went through many years of experience in asceticism, saw the depths of the human soul - this hiding place where thoughts and desires arise. From a complex mosaic of sins, they identified and described eight main passions - eight ulcers of the soul, eight rivers of dead water flowing from hell, from which other sins originate like rivulets and streams. The beds of these rivers, like meridians, encircle the earth, and their sources and mouths connect in the underworld.

The eight passions are connected to each other like links in a chain with which the devil binds people and drags them along with him as a conqueror of captives. These are the eight heads of the hydra with which every Christian must contend; This is an invisible net in which Satan has been trying to catch the globe like a trapper for the eighth millennium.

The first link in this chain is gluttony. To many people it seems like an innocent weakness that does not inspire much concern, especially since the consequences of this sin, like the scabs of leprosy, do not appear immediately, but after years. But we must remember that after the Fall of Adam, the harmony between the soul and body of man was disrupted. The body - an instrument of the soul and an organic part of the human personality - has become a substrate of passions and lust. The body is a slave of the spirit. This slave, being kindled by her soul, wanted to command her. She, like Adam's Eve, seduces the mind with the imaginary sweetness of passions, and captivates the heart with the dark mystery of sin, the way a rebel rebels against the spirit, trying to overthrow him from the throne and herself become the queen of the human trimerium - spirit, soul and body.

The body is an evil friend and a good enemy. Without a body, a human personality is not formed. Without a body, the spirit and soul cannot express themselves outwardly through words and deeds. The evil flesh is always ready to betray the soul to the devil for copper pennies of base pleasures - just as Judas sold his Teacher to death for thirty pieces of silver. The body is an insidious companion of the soul on the thorny path to the heavenly kingdom, which either obediently follows it, or tries to entice it onto the wide, stone-lined road leading to eternal death. You can compare the soul and body with a rider and a wild horse: if the rider loosens the bit, then the horse will rush wherever its eyes look, and both will fall into the pit.

Gluttony is the victory of the body over the spirit; it is a wide field in which all passions grow vigorously; this is the first step of a steep, slippery staircase leading to the underworld. In the biblical Book of Genesis it is written that God looked at the earth and saw that all people were flesh, and His Spirit could not dwell in them. Antediluvian humanity did not fulfill its destiny: the carnal principle defeated the spiritual, as if swallowing it up. It was a triumph of the flesh that was the beginning of the end. Humanity has not only plunged into the swamp of materiality, but has forgotten God; Having become earthly dust, it erected idols for itself from the dust - new dead gods. Idolatry, sorcery, sorcery, debauchery and cannibalism began to spread like a plague throughout the land. The cult of the flesh has turned human history into an endless orgy. Already before the Flood, humanity perished spiritually in the flood of its passions. The Flood, just like a gravedigger, dug a common grave for the dead and made the ocean floor a cemetery for all flesh. The bodies of the gluttons were swallowed up by the belly of the sea, and the souls of the demon-pleasers were swallowed up by the insatiable belly of the underworld.

History repeats itself. The Lord compared the times of Noah to the end times. Again, the flesh begins to triumph over the spirit, and the demon - over the flesh, corrupting, corrupting it, and mocking it in every possible way.

Gluttony deforms a person. When you see a glutton, you involuntarily recall a market where bloody carcasses of animals brought from the slaughterhouse hang. It seems that the glutton's body hangs from his bones, like flayed carcasses on iron hooks.

The belly, heavy with food, plunges the mind into a gloomy slumber, making it lazy and dull. A glutton cannot think deeply and reason about spiritual things. His belly, like a lead weight, pulls the earthed soul down. Such a person feels his weakness especially acutely during prayer. The mind cannot enter into prayer words, like a dull knife cannot cut bread. In this sense, gluttony is a constant betrayal of one's prayer.

It should be noted that gluttony also darkens a person’s intellectual and creative powers. Almost none of the outstanding poets and artists were distinguished by gluttony and did not have a body resembling a beer barrel. As an exception, one can point to the poet Apukhtin, who resembles the painting of Gargantua. One day, a child, seeing Apukhtin among the guests in his house, shouted in surprise: “Mom, what kind of humanoid creature is this!”

Often a glutton, tired of the weight of his own body, leading to shortness of breath and exhaustion, and of the need to constantly overcome the size of his own stomach as an obstacle, when it is necessary to bend down to pick up something from the floor or tie shoelaces, decides to declare war on the demon of gluttony and destroy it as an enemy own fat. He copies diets from magazines, and announces to his loved ones that soon his figure will resemble not a Flemish painting, but a statue of Apollo. However, such a glutton who has gone on a diet most often finds himself in the role of a gladiator who, without weapons, entered into a fight with a wild beast: at first he still resists, but then falls, torn to pieces by the claws and fangs of the predator. At first, the glutton adheres to a strict diet and looks at those around him victoriously, like Hercules after another feat, but then, unable to withstand the gnawing pain in his stomach, he pounces on food, as if he wants to make up for lost time.

In gluttony, two passions can be distinguished: gluttony and laryngeal madness. Gluttony is an insatiable desire for food, it is an aggression of the body against the soul, a constant harassment of the belly, which, like a cruel publican, demands an exorbitant tribute from a person, this is the madness of the belly, which indiscriminately absorbs food, like a hungry hyena prey. The stomach of such a person is like a bag into which a stingy owner stuffs things indiscriminately when preparing for a long journey, and then drags with difficulty the unnecessary cargo.

Laryngeal madness is a constant desire for tasty and refined food, this is the voluptuousness of the larynx. A person must eat to live, but here he lives to eat. He plans the menu in advance with such a preoccupied look, as if he is solving a puzzle or a mathematical problem. He spends all his money on treats, just like a gambler loses his fortune in excitement.

There are also other types of gluttony, these are: secret eating - the desire to hide one's vice; early eating - when a person, having barely woken up, starts eating without yet experiencing the feeling of hunger; hasty eating - a person tries to quickly fill his belly and swallows food without chewing, like a turkey; non-observance of fasts, consumption of foods harmful to health due to lust of the larynx. Ancient ascetics also considered excessive drinking of water to be gluttony.

How to get rid of gluttony? Here are some tips. Before the meal, one must secretly pray that the Lord will give abstinence and help put a limit to the desires of the belly and larynx; remember that our body, greedy for food, will sooner or later itself become food for worms, taken from the earth - a handful of earthly dust; imagine what food turns into in the belly. You need to mentally determine for yourself the amount of food that you would like to eat, and then take away a quarter of it and put it aside. At first, a person will experience a feeling of hunger, but when the body gets used to it, then one-fourth of the food must be taken away again - this is what St. Dorotheos advises in his teachings. Here is the principle of gradually reducing food to the amount necessary for life. Often the demon tempts a person, scaring him that from lack of food he will become weak and sick, will not be able to work and will become a burden to others. The family will also worry and look anxiously at his plate, persistently urging him to eat more.

The Holy Fathers advise first limiting the consumption of spicy and irritating foods, then sweet foods that delight the larynx, then fatty foods that fatten the body. You should eat slowly - this way you will feel full more quickly. You need to get up from the meal when your first hunger is satisfied, but you still want to eat. In the old days there was a custom to eat in silence. Extraneous conversations distract attention, and a person, carried away by the conversation, can automatically eat everything that is on the table. The elders also advised reading the Jesus Prayer during meals.

Regarding the measure of water consumption, it should be remembered that thirst can be natural and false. To distinguish between them, you need to hold a little water in your mouth without swallowing it: if the thirst is false, then it goes away, and if it remains, then it is natural.

All passions are related to each other; their combination looks like a colored mosaic or fancy carpet patterns. Thus gluttony can be combined with the passion of anger. Some people, in a state of anger, and in general excitement and anxiety, have a desire to chew something in order to distract their thoughts; and since an angry person is almost always excited, he gets used to constantly putting food in his mouth. Gluttons justify their passion by their mental state - the desire to get out of stress. But as a result, they gain not peace of mind, but extra pounds.

Gluttony is sometimes combined with stinginess. Such a person is ready to eat spoiled, moldy food rather than throw it away. Stingy gluttons store food as heirlooms, glad that they have supplies for a long time. Only when the food begins to deteriorate and rot do they decide to use it for food. Misers, when treating guests, in their hearts hate them as invaders, and experience torment for every piece they eat. But they themselves love to go to their friends for lunch, and even make a schedule - when and to whom to go.

Gluttony combined with vanity gives rise to secret eating. A vain person is afraid of appearing to be a glutton. He eats abstinently in front of people, but when he is alone, he hurries to satisfy his passion. He has a treasured place where he hides food from prying eyes. Looking around and making sure that no one is there, he approaches the closet, like a stingy knight approaches a treasure chest, takes out food and quickly devours it. It must be said that the Slavic word “devour” means “to make a sacrifice.” The glutton sacrifices to his belly like a pagan to an idol.

There are sins akin to gluttony, such as eating without prayer, grumbling about food, drinking too much alcohol, making obscene jokes, using foul language, swearing, arguing and quarreling during meals. Demons flock to such feasts like flies to honey and desecrate the food with invisible impurities.

We can say that the sin of gluttony represents the gradual consumption of the soul by the body, as a result of which the heavenly, spiritual principle in a person fades, and he becomes blind flesh.

A glutton is a person whose priority is to live for the sake of the stomach, that is, all thoughts and actions are primarily aimed at implementation in terms of “devouring”. Such a person even works with only one goal - to buy a lot of varied and tasty food. If this person is not married, then he is, as a rule, selfish; but if you are still bound by the ties of family life, then this is a disaster for both. If children appear, this disease, like an infectious disease, will affect them too, due to an established family tradition.

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The percentage of such population in the world is continuously growing: this means that this trend will continue, especially in developed countries. Many of those affected, namely those who recognize their addiction and want to get rid of it, go to psychologists or priests; but for some reason the main part still does not realize their difficult situation.

The sin of gluttony and its consequences

In antediluvian times, the phenomenon of gluttony reached a stage when the entire earth was corrupted “from man to cattle,” and disappeared in an instant due to the action of God’s holy intervention. It would seem that everyone has gotten rid of this illness forever, but it reappears in the arena of life and demonstrates its strength. Common name for him. Now, already in a terrible fire, having been incinerated, the sin of gluttony found its rest in the land, which never again gave any food.

This story, although it continues, will not last long. The Gospel of Matthew reveals to us a secret that has been hidden from eternity. Lord, shortly before His suffering, speaking of His return in power and to great glory, he said that, as it was in the days of Noah, they married, they gave in marriage, they ate, they drank, and they thought not until they were destroyed in the waters of the flood. “It will be exactly the same at My coming,” said the Savior (Matthew 24:29–39).

Saint Luke, continuing this theme, wrote down the Lord’s words in the following presentation. The Lord Jesus Christ, addressing the disciples, said that when they see this coming true, let them know: the Kingdom of God has come near. Turning further to them, warned about being full of food and burdened by drunkenness, and in order to deliver them from the suddenness of those events, he commanded them to stay awake at all times and pray (Luke 21:31-36).

The cost of teachers' negligence

Let's think about this now. If we are disciples of Christ and continuers of His teaching and want to fulfill His will to spread His Kingdom here on earth, then we must be prepared for every good deed and learn to win. Consequently, satiety with food and heavy drinking will not lead us to the right result. The Holy Apostle Paul commands in this case to be filled with the Spirit, instead of getting drunk. He speaks to us like those who sleep, about a certain awakening and resurrection from the dead and illumination by Christ: to be understanding, wise and knowing the will of God, to walk carefully, in view of the deceit of the time (Ephesians 5:13-21).

Pavel spoke about himself personally that he can do everything in Jesus Christ, who strengthens him. The apostle learned to hunger and to be filled, to be in want and in abundance. He endured such a feat for the sake of the Kingdom of God, in order to reach at least some of those who were perishing (Philippians 4:11-13).

In the history of God's people there is a sad experience of disobedience in terms of satiety with food and wine so much that they abandoned God and despised their salvation. They grew obese, fat, fat and became governed by their belly. Thus, Israel turned from godly children into gluttons and, being darkened in mind, began to make sacrifices to demons (Deuteronomy 32:9-17).

New Testament times did not change things at all. Why Paul taught the holy church to walk in his image, and not as enemies of the cross of Christ. He cited as an example many who go to destruction, glorifying themselves in shame, for their god is their belly. Everything is natural, “in a demonic way” - having begun to think about earthly things, they forgot that their residence is in heaven; they were to wait for their Savior, who would come and transform their weakness into glory. But they were tired of being weak and, without waiting for the Lord, they decided to transform themselves - according to the earth. Having changed their priority, Christians turned into idolaters, gluttons, burning incense to their own gods.

Another sad and bitter experience. Since the time of Moses, the Lord, as it is written, has appointed priests after His own heart, and one of the duties of these chosen people was to receive animals from the people for sacrifice. And so, during the period when Israel was ruled by judges, one priest served with his sons. These youths, being unbridled by their father, did not know the Lord and were unfit for priestly work. Lacking endurance and patience, without waiting for the end of the ritual, they shamelessly cut off meat from the carcasses and fried them in a frying pan, and also grabbed with a fork the meat that was boiled in cauldrons.

Subsequently, the unfortunate sons were punished and God expressed his attitude about this, telling his father that those who dishonor God’s name will face shame. If the youths were against people, then with the help of prayer this process could still be stopped, but actions against God turned out to be a sin. They grossly trampled on God's work, growing fat from the offerings of God's people - Israel (1 Samuel 2.3).

A similar situation occurred at the beginning of the church period. The Apostle Paul, who had gathered to eat the Lord's Supper, made a remark about the impatience when food and wine were snapped up before everyone had arrived at the table. As a result of this, some got drunk, and some were left with nothing at all (1 Cor. 11:20-22).

Who knows how the sin of satiety spread in the chief apostolic church, Paul would not have intervened with teaching.

Any activity related to eating, always requires special preparation and strict discipline. This must be done until all the senses are accustomed to the skill. Everything would be different, the father taught his sons food culture and proper walking before the Lord; but they were all already sufficiently corrupted by the corpulence of their minds and bodies to accept any sound doctrine. In all likelihood, the sin of gluttony struck not only the sons, but also first of all the father, because, it is written, he was heavy enough to fall from his horse and die on the spot.

Fight against gluttony

The term gluttony, established in Orthodoxy: “Every piece of food eaten in excess of satisfying hunger and every sip of moisture drunk after quenching thirst simply for pleasure is gluttony.”

How to overcome gluttony

To always overcome any sin, including the sin of gluttony, it is necessary to fulfill the main condition of the Church of Christ (Acts 2:42–43):

• Participation in church life.
• Continue in the teaching of the Apostles and the instruction of the Fathers of the Church.
• Communion.
• and prayer.
• Have the fear of God.

A few words about the post. Fasting is the main cure for the disease of gluttony. The demon of gluttony is driven out by prayer and fasting, and the act of fasting is performed constantly on the basis of church fasting days. As soon as the fast stops, the demon goes and takes many more evil ones; and for this person the worst times of life come.

During fasting, our diminished spirit increases. It grows as our inner man is filled with the Word of God. Only then do we begin to understand the meaning of the words of the Lord Jesus Christ, which He uttered during the forty-day fast in the desert: “Man cannot live by bread alone...”.