Which teas may I drink and which ones should I avoid?
Dear Gramps,
Lately there seems to be a lot of questions about the Word of Wisdom. Tea and coffee drinking in particular. I enjoy herbal teas, I do not drink coffee. The teas I make are example: orange /apple, peppermint, spearmint, lemon grass and cinnamon. Each of these I make by boiling the leaves of the plant therefore making herbal tea. Any herb, boiled makes a tea. I’ve been told the tea we need to avoid is “black or peaco tea.” So where do we draw the line? I know the “teas” I drink aren’t usually discussed as being teas, but… are they also against our beliefs ? These have many curative qualities. I would like your view on this…thanks
Kami,
Dear Kami,
The tea referred to in the Word of Wisdom is the conventional black or green tea, both of which come from the Camellia sinensis plant. The difference between black and green tea is fermentation. When the green tea leaves are fermented they turn black. Drinking herbal teas is not against the Word of Wisdom. In general they are salubrious and some undoubtedly have beneficial health effects. Enjoy!
Gramps
Gramps, I usually love your stuff, but do you have any evidence that “the tea referred to in the Word of Wisdom is the conventional black or green tea, both of which come from the Camellia sinensis plant” or that “Drinking herbal teas is not against the Word of Wisdom”? I’ve heard people say both of these things for decades, but when pressed, I’ve never known anyone to come up with a single citation.
As far as I know, the Church has never taken any position of what constitutes “tea”. Consequently, I stopped drinking herbal tea when I was baptized. If you feel differently, that’s certainly your prerogative, but if you can’t cite this, I think you need to state it as your opinion rather than established fact.
Thanks!