What Does the Bible Say About Reconstructive Surgery?
Being a medical breakthrough of the 20th century, reconstructive surgery is certainly not found in the Bible. Thus, no particular passage can be cited that directly tolerates or prohibits a Christian from going through the procedure, except for the moral principles behind the verses.
A person thinking of going under the knife but who also wants to be guided by the Word will have to consider a couple of factors like his/her own health condition. Such a complicated procedure requires the patient to be physically fit to handle the chemicals that will be injected into the body.
Another consideration is the urgency of the operation. There are physical deformities, both genetic and acquired, that cause inconvenience and embarrassment, thus the need to correct the abnormality. Resorting to plastic surgery is reasonable if the purpose is to live a normal existence free from pity and ridicule.
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But if the motive is simply to enhance beauty, then that is vanity which the Bible disapproves. (Proverbs 31:30). Among the services offered under cosmetic procedure are face and nose reshaping, buttocks implantation, fat reduction, liposuction, Botox injection, breast augmentation, etc.
Most of those who undergo these operations are motivated by the need to look good, which isn't bad per se considering that Christians need to have a presentable image. But to enhance a God-given, natural, no-defect feature of the body is borne by a desire to draw attention to oneself and not to glorify the Creator.
The argument that cosmetic surgery is akin to hairstyling and applying makeup doesn't hold water as the latter don't require major alterations. Makeup can easily be removed and hair grows back to its original form. Whereas plastic surgery could be life-threatening and has, in fact, claimed lives.
Still, another argument against cosmetic surgery is the prohibitive cost. Spending an arm and a leg to undergo such a procedure just to conform to the standard of beauty set by a consumerist society is not good stewardship. There are two reasons for wanting to undergo the procedure: to look normal or to look outstandingly beautiful. Only one of them is justifiable.
