Cactus flower asked:
This fella who goes to my church has really bad breath and each and every time he talks to me I can see black holes in his teeth. His body stinks so that it almost burns the inside of my nose. I don’t want to say anything to him nor his wife. Should I go and tell one of the church elders? Seems everyone at my church either doesn’t notice it, or just puts up with it in order not to offend him, or hurt his feelings, nor embarass him. What is the nice way to go about it? Should I tell on him?
Tell the priest and he’ll handle it
avoid him would be polite, i had ppl that stink.
yes you should, the truth may hurt, But sometimes it necessary for everyone’s sake.
Put him on the prayer list.
I feel bad for his wife.. tell on him.. tell them you want to do the right thing and not offend this person so you are going to them for advice on how to handle this… 🙂 good luck.
i would just deal with it cause it’s not likeyou live with him or somethin
Talk to an elder about it.
They’ll be able to discuss it with him in a way that won’t hurt his feelings as much.
There also may be something you don’t know about that they do, like if he has a disease or something, so talk to an elder first.
stop sitting by him. if you see him, kindly wave and go about your business. maybe he’ll get the hint.
No you should not tell him, that would be rude. I’m quite sure he knows his breath stinks, especially if there are black holes in them, but maybe he doesn’t have the money to do anything about it. But you should just not say anything, smile, and hold your breath. Besides, wwjd?
NO YOU SHOULD JUST TELL HIM YOURSELF B/C IF YOU GO TELL SOMEONE ELSE THEN HE WILL THINK YOUR BEING MESSY. JUST BE LIKE IM NOT TRYING TO BE MEAN BUT……. 😀
Well you don’t have to endure him for very long so I’d leave it if I were you. Sometimes it’s worth saying something, sometimes it isn’t and in this case it isn’t.
Turn the other cheek. Some people are just like that.. He
obviously doesn’t care about his apperience so theres really
not anything you could say or do. Avoid him if it bothers you.
You might want to mention to the pastor in a gentle way.. Sometimes they are good at handling difficult situations. Noone probably taught this man about hygiene.
you should do what the rest of the place is doing. they are accepting him for who he is and i am sure that he is well aware of his odor and his appearance. once you start trying to dictate how other should smell or look in church, you’ve missed the point of church. it can be a learning experience and a spiritual experience for you to learn to look past his odor and see his heart. hope this helps.
It probably would greatly offend him if you just go straight up to him and tell him he smells. Maybe try being subtle about it and say something like “wow this new body wash makes me feel great!”, that way he doesn’t notice that you’re trying to get him to shower.
give him a goody bag with gum tooth paste,soap and a rag he should get the picture…
I guess there’s a reason you call yourself cactus…Lol. Church is open to all that want to attend. Chances are high if you tell the little fella he stinks or the little lady….he will continue to stink. Don’t get involved….I imagine anyone who sits near the little guy realizes he stinks…and guess what…they are probably on the other side of the church, not next to him. Church is not the place to bring up discrepancies of ones body odor. Just plant yourself away from the little guy…and let god take care of his problems….someone will be up to the challenge..but don’t you worry, because you don’t want to be the cause of the little man not returning to church. Not everyone lives the same way you do…and by token, it is not acceptable in this society to be stinky in public. Are you going to change his mind–NO, are you going to offend him> Yes…do you want to do this under the roof of god> probably not. Good luck and keep praying.
If a person has a foul odor, it is always more respectful to tell that person, than to talk behind his back. He may not know he has an odorous problem, he may just being doing the best he can with the situation he is presented with. The one thing about your question is that you encounter this man in church, practicing his religion. Please practice yours and gently tell this man what you need to tell him. And tell him the way you would want someone to tell you…..no one is perfect.
Ouch…I know EXACTLY what you mean. I have some one like that in my own social network…it is really hard to know what to do. You’d really think that if he stinks that bad he’d know it…some people just don’t care. Don’t say anything to anyone…you may come off as being a “conditional” person. I think a nice little care package sent to his home with deoderant/soap, toothpaste, and maybe a magazine to read may be acceptable hopefully he’ll get the hint!!….make sure it is ANONYMOUS!!
Just stand back some, maybe he doesn’t have the money to go to the dentist. His body odor maybe coming from his bad teeth or some medication that he’s taking. People probably know they just don’t want to say anything.
I’m sure other people notice, they’re just too kind to say anything.
Just tell him