Wine

Wine

slacktivist: "Allow me to explain for those unfamiliar with the American evangelical subculture. Evangelicals read the Bible literally. Thus whenever the Bible says 'wine' they read this as 'nonalcoholic grape juice' -- unless the passage seems to say something negative about wine, in which case they read it to mean 'wine.'

Some examples: Ephesians 5:18 says 'Do not get drunk on wine [Greek: oinos], which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.' For evangelicals, the word 'wine' here refers to wine, which is evil. But in the second chapter of John's Gospel, when Jesus changes some 30 gallons of water into 'wine' [oinos] that's really just nonalcoholic grape juice -- because what's a wedding feast without at least 30 gallons of nonalcoholic grape juice?"