Please read the following with a truly open mind, really contemplating it.
I don't and never have watched the "bad parts" in movies, or movies that I know to be "bad", but my mind has been prodded by few nagging questions about even my conservative/mild entertainment that I cannot brush aside...
Why do I make each individual entertainment choice (whether a movie, song, play, book, tv show, etc)?
If my entertainment choice contains language, violence, or sexuality (and obviously the inevitable elements of nonBiblical worldview)...how do I justify that material, and is that justification aligned to Scripture and a heart that glorifies God? How should I treat such an entertainment choice?
...as I've searched for answers, my thought process went something like this...
Why do we choose the entertainment we do (for example, movies like the Bourne Trilogy or How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days)? Because they have great high speed chases, physical combat scenes, "snazzy" music and filming, cute/funny romance, and "good-looking" stars. What negative elements do these movies contain? Language (including expletive use of "Jesus" and/or "Christ"), sexuality, alcohol abuse, and violence.
So how do people justify that material? I think if people are honest with themselves (and I've actually heard this stated), they enjoy watching the "cool" action moves and interesting ways of incapacitating and killing the bad guys--especially when they're watching a talented, handsome actor and the quality of the film is good. Besides, the violence and constant killings are part of the magnificent fight for Good and Freedom and Justice! Maybe people fast-forward through the sexuality (though "ooo-ing" at the kiss!) and laugh at the humour of innuendos or slightly inappropriate jokes. And it's always wonderful to see two adorable people treating each other adorably and having adorable romantic moments. When people hear swearing or Christ's name abused, they remind themselves that it's wrong and overlook it because they know this. But are these justifications Scriptural and to God's glory? Here's where I ran into some problems. I just can't reconcile these little justifications with verses like:
"Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report...meditate on these things." (Phillipians 4:8)
So then the question is whether our entertainment choices are:
--"True" (ultimately Truth is God, but it also what is revealed through His Word)...I think it is fairly obvious that God through His Word abhors adultery, abusing Christ's name, alcohol abuse, and the enjoyment of or excessiveness of violence! But I think we should also question whether our attitude toward these things is conducive to upholding Truth and directing our minds toward it...Is it beneficial to subsist on a diet of overlooking things that God HATES? Shouldn't we feed off these kinds of entertainment at a MINIMUM, not "as much as we can without being affected"? Shouldn't we be striving to focus our minds and lives more on God and His Truth, rather than allowing ourselves to be exposed to falsity (no matter how much we remind ourselves of its falseness)???
--"Noble" (Greek word meaning "worthy of respect and awe" in a spiritual sense)--This overlaps with some of the other words, including True. When you realize that we have been commanded to meditate on what is worthy of spiritual respect and awe, I don't see how anything that goes against God's Word can qualify. Would you tell someone (especially an unbeliever you're witnessing to) that you think licensciousness, profanity, and entertaining/excessive killing are noble, respectable, and awesome? I think not. Then why do we tell our friends that we love movies like the Bourne Trilogy or The Devil Wears Prada?
--"Just" (means what is rightly in harmony with God's standards)--Walking rightly in harmony with God's standards, upholding and promoting His standards, does not seem synonymous with overlooking constant sin, promotion of antiBiblical worldviews, etc.
--"Pure" (morally undefiled)--Well. I think we've covered this one. I'll just take this chance to challenge you with what challenged me! Scripture fairly clearly calls us to glorify God, follow His commands, be a witness to the World, and strive to be more like Him ("Whoever says he abides in Him ought also to walk as He walked." 1 John 2:6). Even if you aren't affected by the a- or im- morality in entertainment (an excuse I would dispute!), when you partake of this entertainment are you truly doing your utmost to glorify God and purify your mind? What do "undefiled" and "pure" truly mean, whether we are comfortable/happy with that definition or not?
--"Lovely" (Greek means "amiable", but the implication is graciousness/kindness)--Again, it would seem fairly obvious that marvelling over/enjoying/respecting/etc killing or immorality isn't lovely, gracious, or kind! But it shouldn't be just the "big stuff" like murders or sex scenes that we view as unlovely...it's crucial that we realize the little things are more impactful, more pervasive, and often harder recognize or keep from affecting us. Are the ways a movie romance unfolds (and the reasons for the romance) REALLY glorifying and pleasing to God? Is a violent and destructive action sequence REALLY glorifying and pleasing to God? In the vast and overwhelming majority, no.
--"Of good report" (highly regarded)--I think we'd all agree that it is God's regard that is really of utmost import to Christians. I ask you to challenge yourself the way I have been challenging myself. Really think through every aspect of an entertainment choice you have made and ask the question, "Does God highly regard this?" (The answer, like medicine, is hard to take but it's been very good for me already!) But even on a human level, can you say without exception that you "highly regard" the entertainment choice? Would you say that to an unbeliever?
I'm sure you are, by this time, thinking I'm an overzealous girl who has gone off the radically conservative deep end. I need to relax, be realistic, not be so judgmental, lighten up--and I understand, I've thought the same about others (those Amish! Bill Gothard!). But remember this: The questions I've been pondering and Bible passages I've read left me unsettled, convicted me, and confirmed my convictions--even though I do NOT exactly ''like" those convictions and I have tried my best to brush some of them aside. But in the end (provided you aren't going to judge others based on your own convictions or get "all legalistic"!), isn't it better to push yourself "unnecessarily far" toward the side of purity and righteousness?
Any thoughts, agreements, refutations?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
The only thing I thought of when I read it was this: while excessive and unnecessary violence and sex scenes usually take the brunt of the argument of entertainment not being honoring to God, I would merely like to add something that list.
ReplyDelete"Family friendly" movies are also very embedded with ungodly things, for example, take the movie "Finding Nemo" and some of its content. Nemo, until the very ending of the film, is very disrespectful to his father, albeit his father is an over possessive, and in my mind, why isn't this up there with excessive violence and other God dis-honoring things we find in film? After all, "Children, honor your parents in the Lord for this is right." is just as much a part of the 10 Commandments as is murder and adultery.
Just a thought.
Thanks, Ross...I completely agree! I think Disney movies and "Family friendly" movies fall into a category I mentioned in my note--they can be even more dangerous because the messages are subtle and the ungodliness is not as blatant.
ReplyDeleteThough I can see both of your points here, I beg to differ in the underlying tone that it appears that you think "Finding Nemo" is a bad movie and that it should be put on the same level as a movie where something like premarital sex is depicted as the norm. (NOT an accusatory statement, just hear me out 'k?) Perhaps it is because I seem to be on a slightly different side than this particular argument (not on every single point of course), but I do remember that even in the Little House on the Prairie TV shows and books depict Laura and Mary disobeying their parents but eventually realizing their mistakes and apologizing, as it generally seems to be the case in "Nemo" as well as other "family friendly" movies. (at this moment in time I cannot think of any, but just mu luck that would be the case when I'm stating my opinion on something...aw fooey!)
ReplyDeleteBasically, I just want to say that I have no problem in watching a show like "Nemo" even if he is disrespectful to his dad because I DO know that actions of that little clown fish are not Godly but unfortunately, even though we are Christians and strive to follow Christ, we slip up and occasionally also disrespect our parents, watch two costars kiss on screen, or fail in general in our attempts to follow God. "We are all sinners and fall short of the glory of God." (forgot passage) I believe that there is a definite truth to the phrase "be in the world but not of it" meaning that you can live in the world and be exposed to "bad" things but also not automatically be sucked into being a bad person and falling away from God. I mean if "Finding Nemo" is a stumbling block to someone to says they're a Christian, I would question the validity of their faith. (I'm not saying this to either one of your guys personally, really I'm not. I'm just saying!)
...but argh, "Finding Nemo"? REALLY?? It's about a talking fish who gets lost and has to find his way back to his home via the help of other talking sea creatures.
...jus' sayin'.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI believe that there is a definite truth to the phrase "be in the world but not of it" meaning that you can live in the world and be exposed to "bad" things but also not automatically be sucked into being a bad person and falling away from God.
ReplyDeleteThat is a very good statement; however, since I enjoy playing Devil's Advocate a lot, just ask Cambria, you could take this statement a variety of ways. For example, somebody could use that as justification to engage in entertainment activities that ARE immoral, but they write it off because they say to themselves, "I'd never do that." After all, since I'd never do that myself, I'm just being in the world and not of it. (Remember, this is Devil's Advocate, not necessarily how I feel.)
To the last paragraph, yes, the movie is about a talking fish, but out of curiosity, many people feel that movies such as "The Lion King" promote very secular world themes, and they really aren't that subtle, but after all, it's about a lion cub, a meekrat, and a singing warthog, right?
The bottom line is that in this day and age, you have to be very careful no matter how "cute" or "child-friendly" it is........
BTW--since we're revolving parts of discussion around the phrase "in the world, not of it", I would just like to point out that it's actually NOT in the Bible :-)
ReplyDeleteKind of like "seperation of church and state" NOT being in the Constitution...but that's another topic for another time :-D
I KNOW it's not in the Bible silly! I personally just think it's a good phrase, APART from the Bible, to live by. As for the verse I used which you found the specific chapter and verse (thanks!) I am not not not using it to justify sinning and to use it to say that "oh well, we're all sinning so let's all just watch crap", I actually didn't really mean to prove anything by it, it just was the first thing to pop into my head when I was thinking of how we try our best to live right, but of course, fail in our attempts. And that kinda hurts that you would think that I believe that, because I know that you know that you are much more eloquent at making your points and actually putting together sentences that makes sense than I am on serious topics like this, I try and say stuff and it al comes out not as it sounded in my head. So cut me some slack 'kay? :-/ I'm only winging this response based on what I have studied of the Bible, which could be more but I'm working on it, and 9 hours of sleep in the past two days (yuck :P) Which makes not a pretty sight let me tell you!
ReplyDeleteAnd I do know that there can be messages in certain movies, but I have not heard about anything in lion king, I didn't watch many movies as a kid, mostly Marry Poppins, Mother Goose, 101 Dalmatians, and Madeline. I did pretty much love the "real" Madeline movie which was my first movie in a theatre!
Oh, and are you guys having trouble posting stuff? Those secret letter you're supposed to enter aren't showing up for me and I have to keep reloading the page and stuff.
Cambria, I didn't mean "silly" as an insult or anything, just the old-fashioned sense :P
ReplyDeleteSorry, Annananana, I definitely wasn't directing the "it's not in the Bible" post at you. I just wanted to make sure that everybody understood that. There is some merit to the phrase :)
ReplyDeleteAnd please don't feel that I was attacking you or anything. I misunderstood your post (which, by the way, was completely and totally well-worded!)...and misunderstood why you were using Romans 3:23.
The whole point of this blog is for me to ask questions and raise issues and READ responses like yours that are different or disagree with mine!!! I LIKE that. My responses to your response (and others) are just to keep the discussion going, to raise more questions, to give you an understanding of where I'm coming from. Not to attack.
I love you very much, dear...and Im really sorry there was this misunderstanding! Love you <3
Just for clarity's sake, I'll repost what was originally my response to Annananana's first post...I failed to notice that in the end, I had used "you"/"your" in a plural sense (as the direct address form of "we"/"our")...which made it sound like I was addressing Annananana, when I was really talking about everyone including myself :-)
ReplyDelete<><><><><><>
"Sorry, I should have clarifed in my response to Ross that I'm not sure what conclusion I would have about Finding Nemo in particular. I don't remember if/what lessons follow Nemo's disobediance and disrespect!
But I'd really disagree with some of your conclusions, Annananana...I don't believe Romans 3:23 can be applied to watching movies with bad content and justifying that by recognizing it as bad content. Shouldn't the fact that we ARE sinful and "fall short" be yet more reason to avoid whatever ungodliness we can? It's like an alcoholic constantly going with his friends to liquor stores and wine tastings--it sure isn't going to help him with his problem! Being entertained by people's "mistakes" and mistaken lifestyles/worldviews is going to be detrimental to dealing with our "problem", sin. There's also a verse in Scripture that says we shouldn't use grace (we all make mistakes, and we are all forgiven) to justify sin...which seems to be what you are advocating? I'm not sure?
How does saying "Yes, it's bad" make it any better to inundate your mind with ungodliness? And that's kind of the point I was trying to make...the Greek word for meditate in Phillipians 4:8 means "to practice, to attend to, to be diligent in". How can a person reconcile a lapse (in this case watching a movie) of diligent attendence and active practice? Shouldn't our goal be making every minute of our lives as purely truth-focused as we can?
The more we expose our minds to ungodliness, the less we are filling our minds with pure Truth.
Whew! okay gotcha, I was worried there for a few hours! I'm just going to go back to watching Sex in the City, I'm right in the middle...JUST KIDDING.
ReplyDeletehahahaha...ha...haaaaaa...
I'm late to the game here, so this conversation might have already moved on, but I'm always intrigued by discussions about movies, particularly because I make them! Of course, I'm further intrigued by discussion of films from a faith perspective, because I'm a Christian who has injected elements of faith and Christianity in all my films.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that many films that we consider "safe" can have problematic messages. I often point to "Aladdin," as we see in an early scene a kid singing with pride, "Gotta eat to live, gotta steal to eat, tell you all about it when I've got the time," and the whole scene mocks street vendors and store owners as our hero makes off with their loot.
On the other hand, I think that Finding Nemo is one of the most powerful and pro-family movies ever made, and it's also a powerful metaphor for how desperately our heavenly father pursues us (by the way, many of the people who run Pixar are Christians). Just because it occasionally depicts bad behavior doesn't mean it endorses it, any more than the horrifying things depicted in the Bible constitute an endorsement. I think of the author Flannery O'Connor, a Christian whose stories were usually depressing and dark, depicting very sinful behavior.
The problem comes if a movie or show depicts sinful behavior in a flattering or beneficial way. It was quite obvious that Nemo's disrespect for his dad led to horrifying consequences (he was kidnapped!), so this would seem to me to be an incredible example of good and moral filmmaking (actions have consequences).
My film Midnight Clear is about hope in the midst of dark and depressing circumstances; to convey the beauty of that hope, we have to also accurately portray the dark and depressing circumstances. My film portrays alcoholism, lying, stealing, apathy towards God, disrespect for elders, even attempted suicide. These are certainly not things that are "lovely" and "of good report." But they are not portrayed as healthy or positive; rather, the characters who commit these acts are unhappy because of them. And ultimately, the message of the film becomes evident at the end.
I need to stop rambling.
Ah ha! THAT is what I was trying to get out in my previous posts but obviously you have put it much better and WAY easier to understand!
ReplyDeleteMy only response would be one questioning degree...Although a graphic murder/rape/etc scene depicts the kind of putrid evil that is present in our a fallen world, I would say there are ways to present that putrid evil that don't fill one's mind with bad images. A film can convey the event of a murder/rape/etc. without showing the act in detail. Iit's just extremely easy to justify bad content in a movie by pointing to the fact that "in the end the message is wonderful". I just keep returning to the belief that our sole purpose is to glorify God and become as holy (pure, perfect) as possible...The more we expose our minds to ungodliness, the less we are filling our minds with pure Truth.
ReplyDeleteThere are just soooooo many venues where wonderful, Godly messages are found AND the content (even if sometimes depicting evil/wrongdoing) is true, noble, lovely, etc. Why choose to excuse bad content when you can spend your time filling your mind with good material?
I don't know what example to give...I guess the only one that comes to mind is the difference between a typical action film and a war film (heavens above, I can't even think of a title!). To me it seems that war films often depict the horrors of war and provide examples of sacrifice, courage, and honour--they inspire abhorrence of war and appreciation of those excellent attributes. Such a movie seems radically different from an action movie with violence/chases/womanizing (all usually portrayed in an appealing manner) that generally can only be defended by the "good versus evil" argument.
Now I need to stop rambling!
haha good point, but I have one last thing to add: though it IS entirely possible to depict the horrors that can occur such as war violence/rape etc in different ways not using bad imaging, I think that what your (plural "your" ;-) not any one of you in particular) mind can come up with on it's own sometimes can be just as bad as an image or scene being visually depicted on the screen. I mostly speak from personal experience and from what I've discussed with peers (also not saying that I've seen a rape depicted on screen AT ALL, or that I'd want to), but I think our own imaginations can lead us to feel the emotion of a film...too...yeah...I think that's what I'm trying to say. Maybe this commenting is going in circles...haha probably.
ReplyDeleteDoesn't the Bible itself have a whole lot of war and rape and other negative elements?
ReplyDeleteYes, but they are visualized. They aren't fiction. They aren't being reenacted by people. And a host of other differences!
ReplyDelete