Editing Mortification of the flesh (section)

==Christianity==
{{Further|Mortification (theology)}}

===Etymology===
The term ''mortification of the flesh'' comes from the [[Book of Romans]] 8:13 in the [[New Testament]]: "For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body you will live."<ref name="Bibleverse|Romans|8:13">{{Bibleverse|Romans|8:13}}</ref> The same idea is seen in other verses, such as Colossians 3:5 ("Put to death what is earthly in you: fornication, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry")<ref>{{Bibleverse|Colossians|3:5}}</ref> and Galatians 5:24 ("And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires").<ref>{{Bibleverse|Galatians|5:24}}</ref> Support for such behavior in the [[Old Testament]] is found in some verses such as Proverbs 20:30: "Blows that wound cleanse away evil; strokes make clean the innermost parts."<ref>{{Bibleverse|Proverbs|20:30}}</ref>

According to Christian [[exegesis]], "deeds of the body" and "what is earthly" refer to the "wounded nature" of man or his [[concupiscence]] (evil inclinations as a consequence of the [[Fall of Man]]); humanity suffers the consequences of the [[original sin]] through temptation to sin. The Apostle Paul, who authored Romans, expected believers to "put to death" the deeds of the flesh.<ref name="Bibleverse|Romans|8:13"/> The word for 'flesh' in [[Koine Greek]], the language in which the New Testament was originally written, is {{transliteration|grc|sarx}} ({{lang|grc|σάρξ}}),<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g4561/esv/mgnt/|title=G4561 - sarx - Strong's Greek Lexicon (esv)|website=Blue Letter Bible}}</ref> a word denoting the fallen or sinful elements, parts, and proclivities of humanity. This word is juxtaposed in Romans 8:13 with the term used for 'body' ({{lang|grc|σῶμα}}),<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g4983/esv/mgnt/|title=G4983 - sōma - Strong's Greek Lexicon (esv)|website=Blue Letter Bible}}</ref> which more strictly refers to the physical body of a human. Thus in Romans 8:13, Paul draws a parallel between fallen people, with proclivities to sin without chance of redemption, and redeemed people, who are so changed that mortification of their fleshly sin can turn to bodily life, from {{lang|grc|σάρξ}} to {{lang|grc|σῶμα}}.{{Citation needed|date=July 2021}}

===Forms of mortification===
In its simplest form, mortification of the flesh can mean merely denying oneself certain pleasures, such as permanently or temporarily [[abstinence|abstaining]] (i.e. [[fasting]]), from meat, [[Christianity and alcohol|alcoholic beverages]], sexual relations, or an area of life that makes the person's spiritual life more difficult or burdensome. It can also be practiced by choosing a simple or even impoverished lifestyle; this is often one reason many [[monasticism|monastics of various Christian denominations]] take vows of poverty. Among votarists, traditional forms of physical mortification are [[cilice|chain cilices and hair-shirts]]. In some of its more severe forms, it can mean using a [[discipline (instrument of penance)|discipline]] to [[self-flagellation|flagellate oneself]] and a [[spugna]] to beat oneself.{{Citation needed|date=July 2021}}

===Purposes===
Mortification of the flesh is undertaken by Christians in order to repent of [[Christian views on sin|sins]] and share in the [[Passion of Jesus]].<ref name="Nethersole2018">{{cite book |last1=Nethersole |first1=Scott |title=Art and Violence in Early Renaissance Florence |date=2018 |publisher=[[Yale University ]] |isbn=978-0-300-23351-3 |page=107 |language=English |quote=As Fra Antonio emphasised, the ''confratelli'' sought through self-inflicted pain to gain remission for their sins, by sharing in Christ's suffering, ''in imitatione Christi''.}}</ref>

Through the centuries, some Christians have practiced voluntary [[penance]]s as a way of imitating Jesus who, according to the New Testament, voluntarily accepted the sufferings of his passion and death on the cross at Calvary in order to redeem humankind.<ref name="Nethersole2018"/> Some Christians note that the cross carried by Jesus is the crossbar or ''patibulum'', a rough tree trunk, which probably weighed {{convert|80–110|lb}}.{{Citation needed|date=September 2012}} Jesus also fasted for 40 days and 40 nights, an example of submission to the first person of the Trinity, God the Father, and as a way of preparing for ministry.

The early Christians mortified the flesh through martyrdom and through what has been called "confession of the faith": accepting torture in a joyful way. As [[persecution of Christians|Christians experienced persecution]], they often embraced their fate of suffering due to their love for Christ and the transformation they said they experienced from following him; these individuals became [[Christian martyr|martyrs of the Christian faith]].<ref name="Pierson2009">{{cite book |last=Pierson |first=Paul Everett |title=The Dynamics of Christian Mission: History Through a Missiological Perspective |year=2009 |publisher=WCIU Press |language=en |isbn=9780865850064 |page=45 |quote=A third factor Christians brought was their belief in Jesus' resurrection, and the certainty of their own eternal life. That made them willing to die for their faith. There are many stories of martyrs who, before death, won to the faith their persecutors or those that watched them die.}}</ref><ref name="Germain2011">{{cite book |last=Germain |first=Blaine St. |title=Generation Transformed |date=7 September 2011 |publisher=Lucid Books |language=en |isbn=9781935909293 |page=58 |quote=In 302 A.D. Emperor Diocletian issued the first of many edicts to persecute Christians ... When others began to see the Christians' devotion and willingness to die for their beliefs, they began to question their own lives. Even though there were an estimated 20,000 people killed in the persecution, Christianity grew ... These men were willing to die to spread the message of Jesus. They experienced transformation and wanted others to do the same.}}</ref> St. [[Jerome]], a Western church father and biblical scholar who translated the Bible into Latin (the Vulgate),<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.catholiccompany.com/magazine/lessons-from-the-remarkable-life-of-st-jerome/ | title=Lessons from the Remarkable Life of St. Jerome }}</ref> was famous for his severe penances in the desert <ref>{{cite web | url=https://catholicexchange.com/st-jerome-a-patron-for-an-angry-time/ | title=St. Jerome: A Patron for an Angry Time | date=27 September 2021 }}</ref> and his propagation of Christian asceticism including from his base in Palestine.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Jerome | title=St. Jerome &#124; Biography, Patron Saint, Birth, Death, Feast Day, & Facts &#124; Britannica }}</ref> 

===Instruments of penance===
[[File:Guardia Sanframondi (31500390952).jpg|thumb|A [[confraternity of penitents]] in Italy mortifying the flesh with [[discipline (instrument of penance)|disciplines]] in a seven-hour procession; penitents wear [[capirote]] so that attention is not drawn toward themselves as they repent but rather to God.]]
Christians practicing mortification of the flesh often use instruments of penance as they repent, with the purpose of being contrite and sharing in the suffering of Jesus. These include the following:
*[[Discipline (instrument of penance)|Discipline]], a scourge usually having seven tails (representing the seven deadly sins and seven virtues) for self-flagellation of the back<ref name="Yates1999"/>
*[[Hairshirt]], a garment made of camel's hair or sackcloth worn to cause the Christian mild discomfort<ref name="Brewer">{{cite book |last1=Brewer |first1=Ebenezer Cobham |title=A Dictionary of Miracles: Imitative, Realistic, and Dogmatic |date=1884 |publisher=Chatto and Windus |page=56 |language=English}}</ref>
*[[Chain cilice]], a wire chain worn around the legs to cause the penitent mild discomfort<ref name="Long2021">{{cite news |last1=Long |first1=Gideon |title=Weary Peruvians to choose yet another president amid crises and Covid |language=English |newspaper=[[Financial Times]] |date=6 April 2021 |url=https://www.ft.com/content/6327d4a4-a3df-48d6-8afa-cfdf53df7634 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210406180338/https://amp.ft.com/content/6327d4a4-a3df-48d6-8afa-cfdf53df7634 |archive-date=6 April 2021 |quote=López Aliaga, a member of Opus Dei, the conservative Catholic movement, raised eyebrows recently by revealing he uses a cilice — a metal chain with spikes on it — to suppress his sexual desire and bring him closer to God. "It's a small mortification and I do it voluntarily," he told a local radio station.}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Morrow |first1=Jeffrey L. |title=Liturgy and Sacrament, Mystagogy and Martyrdom: Essays in Theological Exegesis |date=13 October 2020 |publisher=Wipf and Stock Publishers |isbn=978-1-5326-9382-3 |language=English}}</ref>
*[[Spugna]], a round cork containing metal studs, metal spikes, or needles that is used to beat one's chest<ref>{{cite web |title=Italian religious festival bans selfies |date=24 August 2017 |publisher=Express Digest |language=English |url=https://expressdigest.com/italian-religious-festival-bans-selfies/ |access-date=8 April 2021 |quote=Hundreds of locals in the medieval village of Guardia Sanframondi in the southern region of Campania will gather this week to beat themselves in the chest with corks containing metal spikes. ... During the march, they will pound their chests with 'spugna', a round piece of cork containing needles.}}</ref>
*[[Christian cross|Cross]], which is carried in the [[imitation of Christ]], especially in [[Lent]]en processions<ref name="Bennett">{{cite web |last1=Bennett |first1=W. P. |title=The Mortification of the Flesh and Lent |publisher=The Mystical Humanity of Christ Publishing |language=English |url=https://www.coraevans.com/blog/article/physical-penances-and-the-mortification-of-the-flesh |access-date=10 April 2021}}</ref><ref name="Jones2013">{{cite web |last1=Jones |first1=Kevin J. |title=UK pilgrims will carry life-sized cross to historic shrine |publisher=[[Catholic News Agency |CNA]] |language=English |date=23 March 2013 |url=https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/26857/uk-pilgrims-will-carry-life-sized-cross-to-historic-shrine |access-date=10 April 2021}}</ref>
<gallery>
File:Christian discipline used in mortification of the flesh.jpg|[[Discipline (instrument of penance)|Discipline]]
File:Christian Hairshirt.jpg|[[Hairshirt]]
File:Cilice.jpg|[[Cilice|Chain Cilice]]
File:Guardia Sanframondi - spugna dei battenti.jpg|[[Spugna]]
File:Stuttgart 2009 040 (RaBoe).jpg|[[Christian cross|Cross]]
</gallery>

===Denominational practices===

====Catholicism====
{{Main|Mortification in Roman Catholic teaching}}
[[File:Battenti guardia1.jpg|thumb|A Catholic [[procession#Christian processions|Christian procession]] with ''battenti'' (beaters) mortifying the flesh with spugnas in the [[Italy|Italian]] city of [[Guardia Sanframondi]]]]
Some canonized Catholic saints and founders of Catholic religious organizations practiced mortification in order to imitate [[Christ]].{{Citation needed|date=September 2012}} Another way of mortification that developed quickly in the early centuries was [[celibacy]], which the Catholic tradition interprets as renouncing the joy of human marriage for a superior chastity and higher supernatural ends (cf. ''[[supererogation|Works of Supererogation]]'').{{Citation needed|date=July 2021}} for the sake of Christ.<ref>Rite of Consecration of Virgins, prayer of consecration</ref>

====Lutheranism====
The [[Augsburg Confession]] of the [[Lutheran World Federation|Lutheran Church]] supports the practice of mortification of the flesh, stating:
{{Blockquote|For they [our teachers] have always taught concerning the cross that it behooves Christians to bear afflictions. This is the true, earnest, and unfeigned mortification, to wit, to be exercised with divers afflictions, and to be crucified with Christ. Moreover, they teach that every Christian ought to train and subdue himself with bodily restraints, or bodily exercises and labors that neither satiety nor slothfulness tempt him to sin, but not that we may merit grace or make satisfaction for sins by such exercises. And such external discipline ought to be urged at all times, not only on a few and set days. So Christ commands, Luke 21:34: Take heed lest your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting; also Matt. 17:21: This kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting. Paul also says, 1 Cor. 9:27: I keep under my body and bring it into subjection. Here he clearly shows that he was keeping under his body, not to merit forgiveness of sins by that discipline, but to have his body in subjection and fitted for spiritual things, and for the discharge of duty according to his calling.<ref name="Neve1914">{{cite book |last=Neve |first=Juergen Ludwig |title=The Augsburg Confession: A Brief Review of Its History and an Interpretation of Its Doctrinal Articles, with Introductory Discussions on Confessional Questions |year=1914 |publisher=Lutheran Publication Society |page=[https://archive.org/details/augsburgconfessi00neve/page/150 150] |url=https://archive.org/details/augsburgconfessi00neve}}</ref>}}
In the [[Lutheran]] tradition, mortification of the flesh is not done in order to earn [[merit (Catholicism)|merit]], but instead to "keep the body in a condition such that it does not hinder one from doing what one has been commanded to do, according to one's calling ({{langx|la|juxta vocationem suam|links=no}})."<ref name="Weber2002">{{cite book |last=Weber |first=Max |title=The Protestant Ethic and the "spirit" of Capitalism and Other Writings |year=2002 |publisher=Penguin Books |isbn=9780140439212 |page=54}}</ref> In ''[[The Ninety-Five Theses]]'', [[Martin Luther]] stated that "inner repentance is worthless unless it produces various outward mortification of the flesh."<ref>{{cite book |title=Theses, Ninety-five, of Luther. |year=2000 |publisher=Concordia Publishing House}}</ref> He practiced mortification of the flesh through [[fasting]] and [[self-flagellation]], even sleeping in a stone cell without a blanket.<ref name="Lindberg1988">{{cite book |last=Lindberg |first=Carter |title=Martin Luther: Justified by Grace |year=1988 |publisher=Graded Press |language=en |isbn=9780939697557 |page=[https://archive.org/details/martinlutherjust0000lind/page/16 16] |url=https://archive.org/details/martinlutherjust0000lind/page/16 |quote=Luther subjected himself to long periods of fasting and self-flagellation. He spent many sleepless nights in a stone cell without a blanket to protect him from the damp cold that was characteristic of the area.}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Wall |first=James T. |title=The Boundless Frontier: America from Christopher Columbus to Abraham Lincoln |publisher=[[University Press of America]] |language=en |page=103 |quote=Though he did not go to the ends that had Luther— including even self-flagellation — the methods of ritualistic observance, self-denial, and good works did not satisfy.}}</ref>

====Methodism====
[[File:Circuit rider illustration Eggleston.png|thumb|200px|Illustration from ''The Circuit Rider: A Tale of the Heroic Age'' by [[Edward Eggleston]] depicting a Methodist circuit rider on horseback]]
{{Further|Works of Piety}}
[[Samuel Wesley (poet, died 1735)|Samuel Wesley Sr.]] examined the writings of [[Thomas à Kempis]] on the mortification of the flesh and concluded that "mortification is still an indispensable Christian duty."<ref name="Torpy2009"/> His son, [[John Wesley]], the evangelical Christian progenitor of the [[Methodist Church]] continued "to hold à Kempis in high regard".<ref name="Torpy2009">{{cite book |last=Torpy |first=Arthur Alan |title=The Prevenient Piety of Samuel Wesley, Sr. |date=26 October 2009 |publisher=Scarecrow Press |language=en |isbn=9780810870826 |page=104 |quote=Samuel weighed the pros and cons of Thomas à Kempis on the mortification of the flesh with Samuel taking a moderate position between two extremes. As for T. Kempsis, all the world are apt to strain o' one side or t'other. And 'tis no wonder if contemplative men...when they observed how mad the bulk of the world was for sensual pleasures, should run the matter too far o' the contrary extreme, and attempt to persuade us to have no senses at all ...But for all that, mortification is still an indispensable Christian duty." John, in his later years, would continue to hold à Kempis in high regard, recommending him to Sammie Wesley, Charles's son, for edification and hoped for evangelical conversion.}}</ref> As such, he likewise wrote that "efforts to manifest true faith would be 'quickened' by self mortification and entire obedience".<ref name="Anderson2012"/> Moreover, he "spoke approvingly of 'voluntary instances of mortification' in his journals".<ref name="Anderson2012">{{cite book |last=Anderson |first=Misty G. |title=Imagining Methodism in Eighteenth-Century Britain: Enthusiasm, Belief, and the Borders of the Self |date=14 March 2012 |publisher=JHU Press |language=en |isbn=9781421404806 |page=114}}</ref> Methodist [[circuit rider (religious)|circuit riders]] were known for practicing the [[spiritual discipline]] of mortifying the flesh as they "arose well before dawn for solitary prayer; they remained on their knees [[fasting#Methodism|without food or drink]] or physical comforts sometimes for hours on end".<ref name="Bratt2012">{{cite book |last=Bratt |first=James D. |title=By the Vision of Another World: Worship in American History |year=2012 |publisher=Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing |language=en |isbn=9780802867100 |page=44 |quote=Methodist preachers, in particular, may have been tempted to take the elevation of the spirit and concomitant mortification of the body to extremes. Early circuit riders often arose well before dawn for solitary prayer; they remained on their knees without food or drink or physical comforts sometimes for hours on end.}}</ref> [[John Cennick]], the first Methodist [[itinerant preacher]], [[Christian prayer|prayed]] nine times a day, fasted and "fancying dry bread too great an indulgence for so great a sinner as himself, he began to feed on potatoes, acorns, crabs, and grass".<ref name="Rubin1994">{{cite book |last=Rubin |first=Julius H. |title=Religious Melancholy and Protestant Experience in America |year=1994 |publisher=Oxford University Press |language=en |isbn=9780195083019 |page=[https://archive.org/details/religiousmelanch00rubi/page/84 84] |url=https://archive.org/details/religiousmelanch00rubi/page/84 |quote="Ascetic disciplines in both Catholicism and Protestantism were a system of rules of conduct to control the flesh by starvation and renunciation." John Cennick, the first Methodist lay preacher, exemplifies the fact that Protestant ascetics were required to adopt monastic regimens of the body in their everyday lives. "He fasted long and often, and prayed nine times a day. Fancying dry bread too great an indulgence for so great a sinner as himself, he began to feed on potatoes, acorns, crabs, and grass; and often wished that he could live on roots and herbs."}}</ref> The Methodist [[evangelism|evangelist]] John Wesley Childs was known for "limiting what he would eat" and choosing "to walk beside his horse rather than to ride in order to demonstrate his willingness to suffer for his calling and to try[ing] to heighten his religious experience through subjecting himself to trials."<ref name="Bratt">{{cite book |last=Bratt |first=James D. |title=By the Vision of Another World: Worship in American History |year=2012 |publisher=Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing |language=en |isbn=9780802867100 |page=44}}</ref> The ''[[Wesleyan Methodist Magazine]]'' in 1813 published a statement written by [[Matthew Henry]] for Christian believers:<ref name="WesleyanMethodistMagazine1813"/>
{{Blockquote|By using yourselves to consideration, you will come to be aware of the snares that your spiritual enemies lay for you, of the snake under the green grass, and will not be imposed upon so easily as many are by the wiles of Satan; and by habituating yourselves to [[self-denial]] and mortification of the flesh, and a holy contempt of this world, you will wrest the most dangerous weapons of the hand of the strong man armed, and will take from him that part of his armour most trusted, for it is by the world and the flesh that he mostly fights against us: nay, and this sober-mindedness will put you the whole [[armour of God]], that you may be able to stand in the evil day; and so to resist the [[devil in Christianity|devil]], that he may flee from you.<ref name="WesleyanMethodistMagazine1813">{{cite book |title=Wesleyan-Methodist Magazine, Volume 36 |year=1813 |language=en |page=252 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pzJAAAAAYAAJ |access-date=12 June 2016}}</ref>}}

====Western Orthodoxy====
The [[Antiochian Western Rite Vicariate]] states that "mortification of the flesh, or the putting to death of the passions which hinder attainment of the [[kingship and kingdom of God|kingdom of heaven]], is practiced with three disciplines of [[self-denial]]".<ref name="AWRV"/> These [[spiritual discipline]]s include "unostentatious fasting or self-denial; increased prayer, by attending to worship and various devotions; and the sacrificial giving of [[alms]] (charitable donations)."<ref name="AWRV">{{cite web |title=The Holy Season of Lent in the Western Tradition |last=Fenton |first=John W. |publisher=[[Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese]] |language=en |url=http://www.antiochian.org/node/25432 |access-date=12 June 2016}}</ref>

====Other Christian viewpoints====
It became "quite common" for members of the [[Oxford Movement]] within the [[Anglican Communion]] to practice self-flagellation using a [[discipline (mortification)|discipline]].<ref name="Yates1999">{{cite book |last=Yates |first=Nigel |title=Anglican Ritualism in Victorian Britain, 1830-1910 |year=1999 |publisher=Oxford University Press |language=en |isbn=9780198269892 |page=60}}</ref> [[Congregationalist]] writer and leader within the [[evangelical Christian]] movement, [[Sarah Osborn]], practiced self-flagellation in order "to remind her of her continued sin, depravity, and vileness in the eyes of God".<ref name="Rubin1994.115">{{cite book |last=Rubin |first=Julius H. |title=Religious Melancholy and Protestant Experience in America |year=1994 |publisher=Oxford University Press |language=en |isbn=9780195083019 |page=[https://archive.org/details/religiousmelanch00rubi/page/115 115] |url=https://archive.org/details/religiousmelanch00rubi/page/115 |quote=In the many letters to her correspondents, Fish, Anthony, Hopkins, and Noyes, Osborn examined the state of her soul, sought spiritual guidance in the midst of her perplexities, and created a written forum for her continued self-examination. She cultivated an intense and abiding spirit of evangelical humiliation—self-flagellation and self-torture to remind her of her continued sin, depravity, and vileness in the eyes of God.}}</ref>
According to other evangelical Christian commentators, using Paul's writings and other passages from the New Testament to justify the practise of mortification of the flesh is a complete misinterpretation, arguing that Paul shows a very high view of Christ's redeeming work in the verses leading up to Colossians 1:24.

{{Blockquote|"He understands this redemptive work to be finished, completed, and perfected. Nothing remains to be done, and the suffering of Christ's followers does not put the finishing touches on the triumph of Calvary. Paul does not believe that suffering has any atoning benefit for himself or for others. It does, however, 'serve to increase Paul's living knowledge of Christ.'"<ref>{{cite book |title=Colossians and Philemon |series=The NIV Application Commentary |author=Darrel E. Garland |publisher=[[Zondervan]] |year=1998 |page=127 |isbn=978-0-310-57098-1}}</ref>}}

This suffering Paul refers to comes as one takes on the commission to share the gospel. Persecution and suffering such as that experienced by Christ will follow and Christians should see this suffering as a divine necessity. In chapter 9, "Paul compares the evangelistic lifestyle of believers to athletes who sacrifice normal pursuits for the sake of strict training and a competitive edge".<ref>{{cite book |title=1 Corinthians |series=The NIV Application Commentary |author=Craig L. Blomberg |publisher=[[Zondervan]] |year=1994 |page=189 |isbn=978-0-310-48490-5}}</ref> In the Corinth church there were grey areas of lifestyle and behaviors<ref>See {{bibleverse|1 Corinthians|8}}</ref> not specifically covered by the Mosaic law, and Paul was encouraging them to discipline themselves to abstain from those behaviors and practices for the sake of winning others to Christ.{{Citation needed|date=July 2021}}