TATTOO MARKING: A CHALLENGE TO THE CONTEMPORARY CHRISTIANS’ CALL FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE BODY AS THE TEMPLE OF GOD

Abstract

Man as a moral being is inquisitive in his need and want. This happens to show itself in so many places like a man trying to do something different from others whether it is morally good or bad. In man's quest to coming up with new things, this is what has triggered the new rush for tattoo marking which was not very popular some years back. But to the contemporary society has been taken over by the new trend (tattoo), it has become a fashion that if you don’t have tattoo marks in any part of your body, you are considered to be uncivilized, and unworthy to be fused into the global society. To this fact, many Christians in the western world, even in Nigeria are fully bought by this social and modernistic gospel commonly said “God looks at the heart, not the appearance.” Therefore, this paper investigates this new trend in tattoo marking in the twenty-first century especially among Christians to fashion out whether this edifies Christians or a violation of the biblical prescription. Furthermore, the paper looks at the principle calls “body preservation and maintenance” as a challenge to those Christians who think that there is no evil in tattoo marking. To this end, the paper recommends among others that every Christian is the temple of God and he/she has no right to mutilated in the name of tattoo marking.