Well, it’s not a decision I have to make every morning, like deciding if this is short sleeve or long sleeve weather, it just grows there. I would have to physically remove it with some kind of blade every morning if I didn’t want it.

Now, I think that if God made me in such a way that hair grows on my face, it shows a little respect to Him to leave it there. But there is no commandment in the Bible saying that a man must wear a beard. A good thing, too. There are men who would be in serious trouble if there was such a command, since hair does not grow on their faces. God does not command them to do what they are not able to do.

There is a verse in the Old Testament that says “Thou shalt no mar the corners of thy beard.” Again, that can’t apply to men who cannot grow a beard in the first place. Just what it does mean is a subject of much discussion. Hasidic Jews believe that it refers to where the hair line meets the beard line in front of the ears. Therefore, they grow that side hair long, so that it hangs in ringlets over top of their beards as hard and fast evidence that they have not marred the corners of their beards. Good for them. I’m not convinced, though. Consequently, I do not have any ringlets.

Wearing a beard is a very simple thing for me – it grows, so I let it grow. I do try to keep it neatly trimmed, though, so that I don’t look like I’ve spent the past six months holed up in a cabin in the bush.