Christianity’s Frequent Use of the Reset Button
Adaptability is the faith’s key to surviving the centuries
…and there be eunuchs, which have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven’s sake. He that is able to receive it, let him receive it.
-Jesus in Matthew 19:12
In 1985, a 35 year-old Australian virgin spent his free time in study of the Bible. Ashamed of masturbating, he slit open his scrotum, removed his own testicles, and flushed them down the toilet.
Christians and non-believers alike may dismiss this as a mental health issue rather than a religious one, though this is what the Bible verse he used as motivation suggests as a reasonable alternative to lust. The following verse does not explain that this is wildly unhealthy behavior. It simply moves on to the next subject.
What healthy explanation is there for mentioning self-castration for the Kingdom of Heaven without immediately following it with a rebuke of this behavior and a divine mandate to seek the care of a mental health professional?
The truth is, distinguishing between going by the book and exhibiting mental illness can be difficult when that book is the Bible.
When I wrote the title to this article I had the original Nintendo in mind. Anyone…
