The Herald has requested the views of its readers concerning the issue. Cedar Bluff resident Katherine C. Quinn was the first to respond.
“I am a proud resident of Cedar Bluff and love this town so much I plan to spend the rest of my life here,” Mrs. Quinn responded. “I use the serenity prayer as a guide every day to help in my decision process. For you readers who are not familiar with this prayer here it is :
“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
“the courage to change the things I can,
“and the wisdom to know the difference.
“I have used that prayer (and many others) as a guide and have decided to vote yes on the alcohol issue.
“ Acceptance of certain ‘facts’ is extremely hard for me and I resort to my Higher Power for guidance. I realize I cannot change other people’s behavior. If they want to indulge in drinking alcoholic beverages nothing will stop them. Morals are God’s law, Social Behavior is man’s law legislated by the will of the people. Social law is based on politics, power, financial issues and the welfare of the people it represents. It is very powerful and should be equal to all .
“The alcohol issue for me is a financial issue and not a moral one. Everyone in Cedar Bluff will benefit from the revenue generated by a yes vote. I don’t want Cedar Bluff left behind in the 21st century and eventually become a ‘ghost town’ because it refused to keep up commercially with the neighboring communities. Our children will not receive the same quality of education because of lack of adequate salaries for highly qualified teachers. After graduating the children will have to move away from their beloved homes to find adequate jobs elsewhere that will allow them to live the ‘American Dream.’
“With the economy being so slow and no end in sight, the additional revenue can do so much good for the residents that outweighs the negative connotations. Facts can back up the claims that crime does not rise in wet counties. Ten miles in each direction of Cedar Bluff consumers will spend their money on a commodity (alcohol) that is not available here. We. the citizens of Cedar Bluff, are the losers. It does not pay to be isolationist nor to push your religious beliefs on the whole. The separation of Church and State is very clear on this in the constitution.
“The ‘courage to change the things I can’ is being displayed by my sharing my views with your readers. Because the author of these letters must be identified I realize I am exposing myself to all my neighbors that have opposing opinions.
“The ‘wisdom to know the difference’ for me is acquired by my life experiences, education and being aware of current affairs, locally and nationally. I know people will get alcohol somewhere if they want it. People that cannot control their behavior while drinking give this commodity a bad rap. Liquor has been an acceptable commodity since the first recordings of history. I understand the reluctance on many of our citizens voting ‘yes’ on this issue. The yes vote will not change any drinking age person’s behavior. I know because I am a recovering alcoholic . I’ve been there and done that.”
The Rev. Steve Baccus, pastor of Cedar Bluff First United Methodist Church offers the following view on the wet-dry referendum:
My Purpose:
“Should we drink alcohol or support the legal sale of alcoholic beverages as a means to raise revenue? This seems to be the hot topic at the present moment in our community. This article is simply an attempt to look at the issue from both “sides” of the argument and express my own point of view. I do not pretend for one moment to have all the answers to such a complex subject. What I have written is based mainly on information gathered from The National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence web site (www.ncadd.org), a college sociology textbook, Deviant Behavior (McCaghy & Capron, MacMillan Publishing, 1994), The Holy Bible, the 2000 Discipline of the United Methodist Church, and, of course, my own life experience and spiritual journey. It is not my intention to judge anyone, and I hope you read this article in its entirety before you judge me too harshly!
Water To Wine
“In the first-century Mediter-ranean world into which Jesus of Nazareth stepped, wine was, at least in part, symbolic of celebration and joy. In John 2:1-11, Jesus is present at a wedding celebration in Cana. These celebrations lasted for several days, and at some point during the celebration, there was no more wine-it had all been consumed by the guests. After requesting to be brought six stone jars filled to the brim with water, Jesus miraculously turned the water into wine-about 120 gallons. One of the guests declares to the bridegroom, “Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now.” (John 2:10, NIV).
“Notice here that, in the first-century Palestine, it was the custom to serve the expensive wine first. Then, when the guests were “somewhat under the influence,” the host could bring out the cheap stuff because everyone would be too “full” to notice the difference in quality. Jesus, however, reversed this custom-the wine He produced last was the “choice” wine. There is a lot of symbolic, prophetic, and spiritual “stuff” going on here which, to spare words and stay on the subject, I will not discuss. The point is: Jesus’ very first miracle in John’s gospel account was to turn water into wine. Jesus, speaking of Himself and exposing the hypocrisy of the religious leaders, said: “The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners,’” (Luke 7:34).
“Neither Jesus nor the Holy Scriptures condemn the consumption of alcohol. The scriptures do, however, condemn the consumption of alcohol in excess. The Apostle Paul urged the church at Ephesus: “Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the [Holy] Spirit.”(Ephesians 5:18.
Can (or Should) Believers Drink?
“True believers do not go around getting drunk. The scriptures are clear about this. However, there are Christians who have a glass of wine from time to time-despite those in the Christian community who would condemn them. The question, therefore, is not, “CAN a Christian drink?” The question is “SHOULD a Christian drink?” and “Why or why not?”
Today’s Alcohol “Culture”
“The culture of alcohol today is NOT what is was 2000 years ago. Alcohol is big business, and it is promoted as “the thing to do” in order to get all you can out of life. It is both a status symbol and a vehicle for “fitting in” with the crowd. In upper socio-economic classes, people who choose not to drink are often excluded, or at least given the “cold shoulder” by their social circles-“sophistication” calls for social drinking. Non-drinkers are often viewed as ignorant religious fanatics. Similar attitudes, taking different forms, are present on almost every rung of the social ladder. These culturally supported attitudes infiltrate almost every avenue of society-including the church.
On the flip side of this, there are those, who like the religious leaders of Jesus’ day, consider themselves to be the “holy vanguards” of morality. This attitude infiltrates the church also. I will reiterate Jesus’ words to them. “The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners’,” (Luke 7:34). I think Jesus is trying to say to them: “Is this not the point?”
In any case, every promotional ploy imaginable is used to encourage people to drink. By the time a person reaches 18-years-of-age he or she will have seen 100,000 beer commercials (Deviant Behavior, 1994). Alcohol consumption is promoted in our society as “living the good life,” but who is making the money and who is footing the bill?” I think the multi-million-dollar ads we see every year on Super Bowl Sunday are proof enough of who is making the money. Let’s look for a moment at who is footing the bill…
The Human Cost
About 18 million Americans are alcoholics or problem drinkers; about 6 million have drug problems. Do the math: The alcohol problem in our country is three times bigger than the drug problem. There are 25 times as many deaths from alcoholism than illegal drugs. More than half of all adults have a family history of alcoholism or problem drinking. More than 9 million children live with a parent dependent on alcohol and/or illicit drugs. ¼ of all emergency room admissions, 1/3 of all suicides, ½ of all homicides, and ½ of all domestic violence is alcohol-related. ½ of all traffic fatalities are alcohol-related. 38 percent of accidental drownings are alcohol-related. Between 48 percent and 64 percent of people who die in fires have blood alcohol levels indicating intoxication. Fetal alcohol syndrome is the leading cause of mental retardation There’s more, but I’ll stop here (www.ncadd.org, March 2003, & Deviant Behavior, 1994).
The Monetary Cost
Alcohol and drug abuse COSTS the American economy an estimated $276 BILLION per year in lost productivity, health care expenditures, crime, motor vehicle crashes and other conditions. Untreated addiction is more expensive than heart disease, diabetes and cancer combined. Every adult American pays nearly $1,000 per year for the damages of addiction (www.ncadd.org, March 2003). Granted, NCADD promotes taxation of alcohol to support recovery efforts, but the growing abuse far surpasses actual recovery rates (Probably because the cultural promotion and acceptance of alcohol consumption in our country far exceeds the cultural promotion and acceptance of abstaining from such consumption. In other words, there is no money to be made in abstinence).
What Does the Church Say?
The United Methodist Church takes the following stance (based on information such as is provided above):
“We affirm our long-standing support of abstinence from alcohol as a faithful witness to God’s liberating and redeeming love for persons. We support abstinence from the use of illegal drugs. Since the use of alcohol and illegal drugs is a major factor in crime, disease, death and family dysfunction, we support educational programs encouraging abstinenne from such use.” (The 2000 United Methodist Book of Discipline, par. 162.j.)
(I have not researched the official statements of other Christian denominations.)
Where Does This Leave Me?
Jesus said the greatest commandment is LOVE-love of God, and love of neighbor-putting God and neighbor above self (Mark 12:30-31). For me, drinking is not an issue of personal morality. It is an issue of how much I love my neighbor. Jesus stood with the victimized of the world, because He loved them. My conscience will let me do no less. Besides, I need to set an example for my own son, and the church and community I serve-and I have taken sacred vows to live in the light of God’s redeeming love.
If you invite me to table fellowship with you, I will be happy to accept. I will, however, respectfully and politely say, “no thank you,” to the glass of wine or beer. If I could go back to the first century, I am convinced Jesus would invite me to have a glass of celebratory wine with Him. If Jesus were to come in the flesh to us today, I am convinced He would not: The pain and cost is too great.
Cedar Bluff resident Wen-dy Bedwell wrote the following concerning the wet-dry referendum:
“I have a few things to say concerning the wet/dry referendum coming up on Aug. 12. First of all I am a Christian and I do not believe in drinking
alcohol. Also, I am concerned about the well being of my child and all of the other children out there. I have seen too many innocent people’s lives taken from them because of drunk drivers. If you have children and grandchildren and are planning to vote yes to legalize alcohol in Cedar Bluff, you should be ashamed of yourself. Bob Davis was asked a question, “What do you say to people who fear that a yes vote on Aug. 12 will in some way endanger the children of Cedar Bluff? ”His answer was, “If that was the case, I would be the first one to vote no.” In response to that, let me ask a question, Which is more important? The amount of money you think you will get from selling alcohol, or your children and grandchildren?
“The Bible tells us in I Timothy 6:10 ‘For the love of money is the root of all evil, which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.’ The Bible also tells us in Proverbs 22:6 ‘Train up a child in the way he should go; and when he is old, he will not depart from it.’
“So think about it ... all you people that are planning to vote yes on Aug. 12, ask yourself this question. ‘What if my child or grandchild is the one to get killed in a car accident because of a drunk driver after I voted yes to legalize alcohol in Cedar Bluff?’ To the ones out there that have already lost loved ones due to alcohol ... you should be one of the first ones to vote NO!! If you have children and grandchildren do them a favor and quit thinking about yourselves in hopes of alcohol bringing more money to Cedar Bluff and vote NO on Aug. 12. If you don’t have children and grandchildren, you surely have loved ones
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