Has the church said anything official about body piercing and tattoos

[Jeremy]

Has the Catholic Church said anything official with regards to body piercings and tattoos? I'm not interested in personal preferences, whether someone who has lots of piercings is trustworthy, etc. I'm only interested in official doctrine. Thank you

[Peggy Frye]

There is no official teaching of the Church on the subject of tattoos and body enhancements; however, the Church does say something about mutilation (Catechism of the Catholic Church 2296-2297).

2296 ….It is furthermore morally inadmissible directly to bring about the disabling mutilation or death of a human being, even in order to delay the death of other persons.

2297….. Except when performed for strictly therapeutic medical reasons, directly intended amputations, mutilations, and sterilizations performed on innocent persons are against the moral law.

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