From Sin to Disease: Differences and Similarities between past and Current Conceptions of Chronic Drunkenness

Abstract

The disease conception of alcoholism, as a unified body of ideas, is barely over 200 years old despite the presence of specific tenets in older texts. Scrutiny of preindustrial sermons wherein drunkenness is identified as compulsive and progressive reveals crucial distinctions between past and current thinking on the matter: first, abstinence from drink is not the preferred solution; second, unlike today, compulsion is not a central theme even if it is mentioned; third, other sins such as fornication and even swearing are treated as out of control—and progressive—in much the same manner as drunkenness. The latter reflected a broader conception of sin wherein drunkenness was a subset, simply one example among many, pointing to a possible prototype for the more inclusive conception of dependency—involving behaviors such as gambling—that has become popular over the last 20 years. The current conception, however, involves closer scrutiny of conflicts within the self along with a far greater emphasis on compulsion.