I was talking to someone this week about horror films. I thought since I have heard so many Christians lately talk about how much they love the gory films like the Saw series etc… I would bring it out here.
Do you or don’t you watch these types of films? And why? If you do, how do you make it jive with the verse in Philippians: Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.
Discussion??
oooh, good question! (And a hot potato at that.) I know many believers who watch such gory movies; but I know many more who watch violent movies and sexually immoral movies. Those movies would also be difficult to align with what is pure and lovely and honorable.
As for me, I do not watch horror movies b/c my poor heart cannot take it. (It just happens that this aligns w/Scripture, making it easy for me. Other things I wrestle to obey; this I don’t.) I experience things deeply, and if I watch things that are too explicit, it sticks with me and covers over my mood and thinking for days. Now, it could be that b/c I so rarely watch things that push the limit I have no tolerance (and I’m OK w/that!). Perhaps even those who can swallow edgy movies would find them more difficult to consume if they took a long break from them. Or maybe not.
Even though I do not watch extreme entertainment, I have watched plenty over the years that I now regret. And I can still get sucked into a chick-flick only to sit in the theater and wish I hadn’t!
For what it’s worth from a faint-hearted girl.
i normaly dont like movies like saw etc. there is nothing in it just cutting heads arms like this, i believe we r giving wrong message to our new genration, every one is aganst violence, but go to cinema and all these kind of movies are box office hit never understood, but its just my point of view dont want u to be agree with me.
Erin- I am the same way, I don’t personally watch the gore…actually the sex or violence much either. A couple of years ago, I went to the theater with a friend to see the grudge… I knew I was not supposed to go…but I allowed myself to be coerced into seeing it. I tell you the truth, that movie stuck in my spirit for over two years. I would wake up terrified…. and supposedly it’s not even a scary movie to people who watch a lot of horror films. I agree, I think that a lot of people have become desensitized to it.
Today’s generation reminds me of the Roman empire in the bible, where people would go the arena to see lions ripping apart people, and gladiator battles to the death, with a craving to see blood…we are in a similar culture it would seem!
Sahara- You are so right about the message we are sending to our new generation, it is a message that degrades human life! The fact that watching humans, God’s creation, be destroyed in degrading ways has become entertainment is beyond me!
i don’t watch.
i don’t want it in my head.
i don’t like how they make me feel.
i don’t like the dreams i have afterwards.
ugh.
no no no no no.
I used to. In fact, I’ve probably seen EVERY Horror movie filmed between ‘79 and ‘94 – even ‘B’ films. Though some of them were ’sinful’, some are actually directed by Christians – evangelicals, at that. They approach them much like Alice Cooper – also a strong believer these days – approaches his live show: one cannot understand ‘grace’ without understanding the ‘law’ and FEELING the consequences of sin subjectively. A ‘good’ horror film should play out the consequences of evil. That said, I have matured spiritually to a place where I no longer enjoy the ‘horror’ genre, though I still with watch one on rare occasion. I stepped out on a limb and watched “The Exorcism of Emily Rose” and found it quite rewarding, spiritually… a great ‘discussion’ piece, for sure.
On a side note, the first ‘horror’ film I ever saw was “The Shining” by Stephen King… by accident mind you… I was like 5… I didn’t sleep for DAYS! Talking about SCARRING! (and scaring!)
I don’t watch horror films…..we don’t even watch the commercials for them on TV. Whenever one comes on, I feel a clouding of my spirit and quickly change the channel.
p.s. – to give you more to think about, check out these:
http://www.christianitytoday.com/movies/commentaries/horrors.html
(interesting side note; I used to know Peter, who wrote the review on this movie for CT)
http://www.christianitytoday.com/movies/interviews/scottderrickson.html
http://www.christianitytoday.com/movies/reviews/exorcismofemilyrose.html
sorry… but this one is AWESOME…
http://www.relevantmagazine.com/pc_article.php?id=7562
So, what can I say – you’re on a topic that personally interests me…
I love that verse from Philippians, but what of the things that seem UNpraiseworthy and ignoble in the Scriptures?
I think it all has to do with FOCUS. The apparently not so noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy are all over the Bible. Take a look at Isaiah 13:15-16: “Whoever is captured will be thrust through; all who are caught will fall by the sword. Their infants will be dashed to pieces before their eyes; their houses will be looted and their wives ravished…” How would that look in a film? Would this pass our criteria for a Godly film? What of the violent drowning of thousands of Egyptians as the Lord God swept them into the sea, chariots, horses and horsemen all .. the entire army of the Pharaoh (Exodus 14:27-28). Does that image strike you as ‘lovely’? As ‘excellent’? Yet, we shouldn’t stop reading the Word, should we? Some might say, “yes, but that’s written word – it’s different than seeing it, but 1.) not for the folks who were there and saw it in person, and 2.) depends on the individual’s imagination. Again, in Judges 20:4-7 a Levite reports his story: it is recorded that while he was staying the night in Ephraim some men wanted to have homosexual sex with him, but settled for the man’s concubine, whom they raped and murdered, leaving her dead body in the doorway of the house where he was staying. But WAIT! The story gets ‘better’! He then takes his dead concubine, cuts her into 12 pieces and ships her parts all over Israel! Would you see this movie? How about if I told you that you might be doing yourself a disservice if you did not? Remember this, 2 Timothy 3:16 says “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness”. That includes stories such as these.
As I said before, I don’t really watch them anymore – only if something comes out that clearly has something to teach me and, after some advanced research, does appear to have anything that will offend my conscience (we each need to follow our conscience as well) in a negative way, and that means viewing ‘horror’ is a rare occasion, BUT… I’ll watch another of Scott Derrikson’s movies, and I’m looking foward to films by Ted Dekker & Frank Peretti, that’s for sure!
Okay, I’ll let you all have at it for a while! Blessings…
(and good topic, Heather!)
“does appear to have anything that will offend my conscience” should read “doesn’t appear to have anything that will offend my conscience
Mandy- haha..nice and to the point! You make me smile!
lol
GiveMeJesus- I don’t have cable but when I did, there were certain commercials that did that to me too!
Shannon- good grief, you gave me some comments!!
I have not gone to all the links yet, but did want to comment on the stories from the scripture, I think there is a big difference between telling the story of one’s life, regardless of how gruesome and choosing to watch the “gruesomeness” as entertainment. I have been in positions to hear the truly horrific details of peoples lives even in the past ten years that would make some movies seem tame. But in that type of ministry, it became extremely important to guard my mind and my spirit from dwelling on the things I was hearing. It can become spiritually draining when hearing about the depravity of human nature. Some personalities as well, tend to be affected more deeply by such things as well. I am not in anyway saying that life must always be pretty with a bow on it, but I do wonder about the consequences to one’s spiritual health if one is filling their mind with such degradation.
It also makes me wonder Why is it entertaining? Horror films are usually quite loaded with adrenaline pushing moments. The anticipation and anxiousness, that all is meant to thrill. I just recently did a couple of classes on adrenaline addiction and sex addiction actually. Both of which horror films fall into as a side addiction.
Anyhow, just a few thoughts!
This is great…. bring it on people, lets talk!
Shannon, I have read the links. I don’t necessarily agree with them though. I will have to chew on it some!
don’t worry – i don’t agree 100%. in fact, there is VERY little i agree with 100%, apart from MAYBE Sam Storm’s books…maybe… okay, he get’s a 95% at least. most of the time i end up in a shade of gray between two poles on an issue… i’m probably there on this one, in fact.
i will say, however – i only occasionally watch movies as entertainment: i approach film the same way i approach literature – challenge me, change me, give me a new perspective. entertainment is far over-rated. if you look through my favorite movies list on facebook, you’ll note that my top 3 (Jean de Florette, Manon des Sources, & Jerusalem), and many other’s laced through-out, are more likely to leave you emotionally overwhelmed and thoughtful than ‘entertained’.
maybe some of this pans out in WHY someone watches a movie, too?
can’t watch’em. it’s hard for me to even watch suspense films.
now, my man on the other hand loves them. BUT…he comes from the media world. he used to work as a studio engineer and editor. so when he sees a horror flick he is truly intrigued by the work that is going on behind the scenes and knows the difficulty in pulling such things off. so he appreciates the “art” (for lack of better a better word) that goes on behind it all.
and HEY GIRL!!!
Heather,
Ya know, I think this applies to so much of what we (Christians) consume. Honestly, I’m pretty shocked by the “norm” of what I see church staffers, and other WL’s across the net on their blogs, twitter, etc ., watch … consistently.
We have no moral boundaries in our entertainment these days. It’s really a shame, and no doubt, hinders our relationship with Christ, our power, etc.
Sadly, what can you do … I find myself just trying to keep my mouth shut about it … if you speak up, you’re just seen as a “holier than Thou” goodie-two-shoes.
Fred
Fred, I am with you totally. We as a society have lost any moral compass, but the church has bought so much into that same line of thinking that we have become no different than the world. I am not talking about works based Christianity, but holiness. We have lost the meaning of holiness.
I would wager that you have the spiritual gifting of prophet (as do I). I think that those who are walking in that gift tend to be more sensitive to sin and compromise. I find myself being silent many time too, because I don’t want to be “judgmental” or “holier than thou either.” I wonder where the line is?
I think the ‘line’ is blurry, personally, and I think God intended it that way, otherwise we’d all feel obliged to be the morality police for others, at the expense of searching the Scriptures, our own hearts, and listening for the still small voice to guide us, personally, in our own decisions. It leads us to be more likely to ask, “is that beneficial for you?” out of genuine concern, rather than condemning someone else’s decision, as judge (a role we weren’t meant for), which causes division in the body of Christ, and may even promote legalism, and ultimately, as a result, a false Gospel. I’m just very wary of binding someone else’s conscience by my own, particularly in areas the Word doesn’t specifically speak to, ya know?
Great discussion, though…
and Fred, I’ve never even once thought you to be ‘holier than thou’!
p.s. – I’m far less likely to be personally offended by discovering that a Christian watches horror movies than I am to be disappointed to learn than one watches ‘chick-flicks’, which are often little more than girl-porn, setting up unhealthy expectations in relationships, and ultimately lead to relational disappointment. What think ye?
First off I need to clarify my own comment about prophetic gifted people being more sensitive… that sounded really judgmental in and of itself! Haha… That’s what happens when I try to comment quickly late at night. The point I was trying to make, is that as someone with prophetic leanings, I see most everything through a black and white lens. Gray is nearly obsolete in my thinking… which CAN and DOES at times lead to critical opinions. I am thankful personally that God paired me with a husband who helps to balance me… he is gifted in the departments of mercy and exhortation ! J My giftings are prophetic and exhortation.
Anyhow, my other thought is to you saint Lewis- yes, the line is a bit blurry. The scriptures obviously do not speak about movies, music or any modern component of entertainment, but it does speak to us plainly about what we see…(mark 9:46-48, luke 11:34) and what we put in our spirits… guard your heart for it is the wellspring of life…. It also says that from the abundance of our heart, the mouth speaks… I could go into a lot more detail but my point is that the bible does speak about these things.
It just seems to me that the church as a whole has become lax in it’s standards in my opinion. For instance below is two separate conversations I have had this month with friends who are in active ministry.
Convo #1-
Friend- I went to see that movie- _______________
Me- yeah, was it good?
Friend- it was crazy!
Me- what do you mean?
Friend- it was like watching soft porn!
A different friend- really? Did you have to leave?
Friend- Leave? No, why would I do that?
Convo #2
Friend- Do you want to go see __________ with me?
Me- no, I could meet you for dinner after though
Friend- you don’t want to go see the movie?
Me- no
Friend- why not?
Me- honestly I just dont feel comfortable seeing it.
Friend- I know God told me not to go see it, but I am still going to.
later- friend- yeah, I saw it and it was awful but I enjoyed it.
The point that I am making is, where do we as members of the same body have the right to hold one another accountable for what we see?
As far as chick flicks, that definitely can pose problems, though I think it’s comparing apples and oranges. I never said that I think it is a sin to watch horror films. I just question its influence on us. I stand by my opinions about it for me though. I have struggled with fear, depression and anxiety for a lot of my life so for me to do that, is just stupid. Just like for a man who struggles with lust to go watch porn or pick up and playboy just for the articles is just asking for trouble!
I do agree though that some chick flicks really are like porn for girls. Just for the record! J
I also still believe that what we watch does affect our thinking and our discernment though.
Someone else, jump in on this… what is the line when it comes to accountability? Where does the iron sharpens iron come it to play when it comes to these “gray areas”??
Wow- that was a long comment…Sorry!!
[...] heatherblankenship @ 4:47 pm Tags: Christians, lust, movies, porn, sex, wisdom Ok so my last blog raised some really great discussion and St Lewis brought an interesting spin to it I thought I [...]
heather – those two conversations were sad, and i would hope to never have them myself. i see what you mean, indeed.
Sorry – only had a second for that post. My primary point, however, is that individual’s consciences may allow for significantly different movie viewing. A good example is the Lord of the Rings trilogy. For me, I walked away from each of those encouraged – built up – pondering Biblical themes, and wanting to live a more meaningful, and Godly life. Cyle, my wife, also watched some of those: she had nightmares for days. Same content – same images – same story: vastly different responses. For Cyle to go see another movie like that, apart from a surprising change of heart & mind before hand, would be a “sin” – for her, and would be going against her conscience. For me, in fact, it would be not only NOT a sin, but an opportunity to build myself up in the faith. Same movie, but for one of us it is sin to view, and for another it is not.
Likewise, there are classic works of literature – one in particular by Tolstoy – that I really enjoy. Few would consider Tolstoy ‘porn’ in any sense, but some of the situations and images in one of his books connected with other personal situations and images in my own in a way that actually tempted me to lust. At first I thought I was crazy, but it happened again the next time I picked up the book. Honestly, the book itself is not a bad book – in fact, being Tolstoy, it has Christian themes all over it, but I personally had to put the book down for a time – maybe forever. However, a close friend is reading the same book, and when I shared my experience they LAUGHED – lusting by reading Tolstoy was so foreign to them that they had no category to even understand how it would be possible. For me, to read that book (at least where I am right now) is a sin – for others, it very likely isn’t.
To quote one of my earlier responses “The apparently not so noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy are all over the Bible.” and yet ““All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness”.” That give me pause in applying some verses like this as a blanket statement, for the temptation is to apply it to what others view/see that doesn’t settle when with my conscience, rather than to apply it to ourselves and our own viewing habit/thought lives. If we hold to a tight reading of it, we can’t watch the nightly news, most prayer requests/updates are simply out of the question, and 3/4ths of Scripture needs to be cut from our Bibles. I also find it interesting – and I just noticed this – that this verse says little about ‘watch these things’, but rather ‘THINK on these things’ – it’s specifically aimed at where our MINDS (and hearts) go. That may explain why I can watch LOTR & my wife cannot – our minds go very different places in response to the images put before us there.
Anyway, just more to think about… and now I need to jump in on part 2!
Thanks for you comments Saint!