Fat Baptists

The church we now attend does not have the word "Baptist" in the name, but still it's an SBC church. And based on a news clip that my friend, Alison, in London sent me yesterday, it's high time for our denomination to do some self-examination.

Apparently, Baptists are porkers. I know, not every Baptist is one. But a Purdue University study has found that of all Christians, Baptists are the most likely to be obese.

My husband and I have long noted that the worship song "We Bow Down" could be sung as "We chow down" or "We sow down" at the many ice cream socials, barbecues, and potlucks, which happen frequently among those who eschew the stuff Jesus turned water into. Nothing wrong with the food and fellowship part, but...

Here's the take-home paper message: Fellowship, good. Stuffing ourselves, bad.

The Purdue professor of sociology who led the eight-year study thinks Baptists are so big (ignore my pun) on telling people not to "smoke, chew or go who girls who do" that we miss the point. Yup, bless our hearts, we Baptists--southerners in particular--focus on a few no-no's and miss the whole bit about moderation. In Dante's inferno, those who overindulge face worse punishment than those who lust. His is clearly not a Baptist hell.

The study showed that obesity cases increased from 24 percent in 1986 to 30 percent in 1994 among the 16 million-member Southern Baptist Convention and the North American Baptists Conference. Okay, so this study that made UPI headlines on 9/30 was not the latest-breaking news. But still, it found 12 years ago that Baptist women were more likely to be found in the apparel store for big girls.

Here's the teeny weeny bit of good news: While women who watched or listened to religious TV and radio were more likely to be obese, women who actually attended services were less likely to be overweight. How's that for motivation get on off-a the couch and into the pew?

...as long as we can skip the Krispy-Kreme drive-through on the way.