We often get passionate responses from readers who go to the cinema after reading EN’s film reviews. Some consider that these films contain themes, scenes and language that we should not be watching, let alone endorsing.
Should we be going to the cinema at all? Should we get rid of the TV, if we haven’t already? Should we ignore magazines, the radio, the internet? What does it mean to love the Lord with all our mind, heart, soul and strength when we are living in a world saturated by the media?
My mind
Is my brain switched on?
It is our job as Christian, thinking people, to work out whether to accept or reject the world’s messages. Inevitably, we will be confronted by negative messages about God wherever we turn and we may find these in the most surprising of places. So, whether we are looking at a Disney movie, a Royal Academy exhibition, a Delia cookbook or the latest Bond film, our questions are the same: what does this tell me about the nature of mankind, what does this tell me about the nature of God and how shall I continue to follow him?
Putting films, TV, magazines, etc. to the test like this helps us to be more informed and less surprised at the spiritual state of the world that we live in. The answers will help us to relate to unbelieving friends, colleagues and relatives, not because we will be up to date with the latest episode of the Archers, but because we will understand the spiritual barriers that are in the way of their understanding of the truth about God.
I think that when we ask ourselves whether or not we should watch or listen, the medium is largely irrelevant. A blaspheming profanity is still a profanity whether we hear it in the cinema or on the lips of an unbelieving friend. Hearing about another bomb killing 50 or more in Afghanistan on the News at Ten may harden my heart to the suffering of others just as effectively as a fictional death in an action film. I need to remember that I live in a world that hates God and doesn’t want to do things his way. I need to treat the symptoms of rebellion against God in fact and fiction alike with patience so that I have the opportunity at the right time to present people with the cure.
So we need to be concerned about how we watch something alongside our concern with what we watch or where we watch it.
My soul
Is my conscience clear?
There are innumerable moments in history when cultural pastimes and new innovations in communication have caused believers to feel concerned about the morality of those who indulge in them. From theatres, novels, dances and balls to bars and pubs, radio, cinema, TV, videos and the internet, there have always been strong reactions from Christians who have sought to either ban them for other Christians or the whole of society.
I think that this happens because we sometimes fall into the trap of thinking that the idols we worship are the same as other people’s. One person may feel overwhelmed by temptation while reading Heat magazine or watching Neighbours, but be utterly unaffected by the violence in 24. Another may decide to delete her Facebook account because she can’t stop looking up old boyfriends, another to ban himself from watching West Wing because he cannot stop watching and is wasting time, another to stop surfing the net in private because he cannot guarantee that he will avoid certain sites. They all do this for different reasons, because they know that they need to flee from the temptation that they find difficult to resist. It may be that our conscience is genuinely clear about watching films, TV, etc. that others simply cannot. Once more, as we grow in our relationship with God, knowing our King better, we will live by the Spirit rather than by the law as we consider what we should and shouldn’t watch.
In his recent book, Extreme Righteousness: Seeing ourselves in the Pharisees, Tom Hovestal points out that the Pharisees ardently believed in the mandate that they read in the Mishnah to ‘make a fence around the law’. ‘They felt duty-bound to protect the sacred and to keep people from trangression of God’s commands caused by ignorance, indifference, or insolence’ (p.138). Hovestal goes on to point out many ways in which these fences do indeed protect believers by limiting their propensity to sin since they protect our areas of weakness. However, his big warning in the book is that ‘fences may direct us to God, but they will not make us holy. We must watch that fences do not become a substitute for a relationship with God… Fences subtly teach us that God wants us to “play it safe” rather than walk by faith’ (p.153).
My body
Am I unwise to lead others in this direction?
In some cultures, it is considered wrong for Christians to dance, drink alcohol and even for women to wear trousers. The Christians in these contexts have good reasons for banning these things and we will probably conform to avoid offending them. However, in God’s sight, we are free to dance, drink alcohol and, if female, wear trousers. I have to be careful when conforming to the tighter cultural expectations of others that I do not conform to a rule-based rather than grace-based acceptance in my relationship with God.
It may be the case that someone will watch what we are doing, think, ‘Well, if it’s OK for them, it’s OK for me’, and then lack discernment in how they proceed. It may be that they are not able to do the thinking for themselves as they watch, it may be that their conscience is not sharpened to the promptings of the Spirit. Their age, their spiritual maturity or lack of self-discipline in a particular area may make it more difficult for them. For this reason, we need to step in line with Paul’s decision to be ‘all things to all men’ and sacrifice our own viewing decisions for the sake of younger believers when necessary. Temptations that we are able to say a firm ‘no’ to may be just too much for them.
‘Love the Lord with all your heart, with all your mind, with all your soul and with all your strength.’
Eleanor Margesson
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