Church offers guidance to avoid unintentional rule-breaking, such as ‘the word coffee isn’t always in the name of coffee drinks’

The Mormon church has renewed warnings to its younger members that there’s no grey area when it comes to the temptations of coffee – don’t drink it.

“The word coffee isn’t always in the name of coffee drinks,” warns an official guidance in the August issue of a youth magazine for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

“So, before you try what you think is just some new milkshake flavor, here are a couple of rules of thumb: one, if you’re in a coffee shop (or any other shop that’s well-known for its coffee), the drink you’re ordering probably has coffee in it, so either never buy drinks at coffee shops or always ask if there’s coffee in it.”

The warnings come as Starbucks announced plans to open its first stand-alone shop near the church-owned Brigham Young University in the heavily Mormon city of Provo, Utah. A 2016 survey found that four in 10 active church members under age 51 had drunk coffee during the previous six months.

Even entering coffee shops was once considered almost taboo for past generations, religious scholars say. Expectations that the church might relax its rules – known as the Word of Wisdom – as younger Mormons grow accustomed to places like Starbucks appear misplaced.

The guidance went on to say: “Drinks with names that include cafe or caffe, mocha, latte, espresso, or anything ending in -ccino usually have coffee in them and are against the Word of Wisdom.”

The guidance also extends to bans on vaping and marijuana, unless prescribed by “competent” doctors, signaling that the church plans to allow members to use medical marijuana, while prohibiting recreational use.

“Medical uses are being studied, but just like many pain medications such as opioids, marijuana is an addictive substance,” the article said. “Such habit-forming substances should be avoided except under the care of a competent physician, and then used only as prescribed.”