The Pizza Tax

So I heard on the radio this morning that researchers suggested that a tax on foods like pizza and soda could help cut down obesity in the US. The research shows that when people have to pay more, they eat less, and therefore, will gain less weight.

"What?!, everyone yells....tax our pizza! How dare you! We should be able to eat whatever we want without anyone telling us otherwise!"

While I don't know how I really feel about a "pizza tax," I think that this can help us think about our faith. No seriously, stick with me...

The researchers aren't saying that pizza and soda are inherently BAD. If you eat a piece of pizza for lunch, you're probably not going to keel over right then. But unhealthy foods eaten in excess can lead to obesity - which causes a whole host of problems that are REALLY bad for our bodies...and can even kill us.

In order to keep people from going down this road, we try to teach about the food pyramid, and healthy eating, and have nutrition facts on our labels...but when we're really hungry, the average joe still might have trouble reaching for what is actually healthy.

So, since we pizza-lovers out there have such a hard time making that decision for ourselves, the researchers are suggesting that maybe having rules that make us pay more for the junky foods could help us make healthier decisions.

This is where I see our faith! It goes right along with the whole idea of CONVERSION. The fact is...a higher tax MIGHT help some people eat less of the bad foods...but if the tax were ever lifted, a lot of those folks might go right back to eating too much of the junk. Until we really decide for ourselves that we DESIRE to be healthy...we will go right on eating pizza and soda unless something stops us...like a tax, or rules, or even laws.

In the Old Testament, you can read about a lot of Rules and Laws set down for the Jewish People. The laws were for how to live, how to worship, how to marry, how to eat! Why were these laws there? To help keep the Jewish People from sinning, so that they could live out their calling as the People of God. I mean....Moses goes up the mountain for like 5 minutes and they are already constucting an idol of gold! Obviously...they had a hard time always making the decisions that kept them spiritually healthy. So in order to help them be God's Chosen People, they were given the law. If they just followed the laws, then they would be much less likely to sin.

Jesus, though, calls us to something even more. He calls us not just to follow the rules because they are rules...but he calls us to true CONVERSION. He challenges us to change our very hearts, and to make them hearts that belong to God. In doing this...Christ's own desires become OUR desires. We become "spiritually healthy" people...who no longer need to be told to love others, love God, be faithful, and not to sin, as we will desire to do so!

When we lack those desires, we need rules to help us make the right decisions...but we will be at our best, whether it's our physical body, or spiritual life, when our hearts are converted to desire a healthy existence...more than that 2nd slice of pizza.