The Contenders

• May. 3, 2006 - Television in a Christian Home: Yes vs. No

Life is something to be enjoyed.  You have to live it.  Many of us find plenty of things to do with ourselves without just sitting around being entertained by technology; Or do we? 

 

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This debate topic is brought to you by ronandjess.

 

When television was introduced to the world it was considered to be a passing fad, like pet rocks.  The impact it would have on society was not even considered by most of the population.  There were those that knew of it's power, and there were prophets that warned against it.

 

The Debate

 

Knowing what we do now about the influence of T.V., should Christian homes have one?  Yes or No?

 

Let's Get Ready to Debate!

Post A Comment!

• May. 4, 2006 - Untitled Comment

Posted by JavaMama
As with everything we as Christians do we must be discerning and only do and watch that which is glorifying to God. I don't see anything wrong with having a tv in the home just as with the computer or a glass of wine where as others would strongly disagree. They can be used for evil but they in and of themselves are not. The person who is watching them is the one who decides who they will serve while they flip through the channels. It is I think a huge obstacle to family time and that is the main reason I dislike this one eyed monster but it is also very informative and useful if we will just use it right.

JOYfully in Him,
Kelli
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• May. 4, 2006 - NO

Posted by ronandjess
Matt. 6:22-23 "The lamp of the body is the eye; if therefore your eye is clear, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!!"
Even if there are good things on tv the commercials are bad enough to cross out the good.
Jess
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• May. 5, 2006 - T.V. no more

Posted by Smokin' Barrel
"Don't throw the baby out with the bathwater" is a very wise statement. But so is, "Dont search through the dumpster to find a fresh sandwich". There are many good things that can be found on T.V. but you have to sift through tons of trash to find then. I agree with ronandjess in that the commercials cancel out any good that could come from quality television. 1 john 2:15-17 says, "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever."
Most of us today are in the world, but we don't have to be of the world, and we don't have to take part in the things of the world.
Chances are, you cannot watch any channel for 30 minutes without seeing someone dressed inappropriatly. The same applies for language, crude humor, and all sorts of things a christian household should guard against. These things may not be on the program, but commercials are fair game. And whats worse is that one of the kids could turn it on when you are not watching and who knows what they might be subjected to. For those who feel its alright to have television, I have a question for you, If Jesus came to your home, would you be able to invite him to watch what you watch with you?
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• May. 9, 2006 - Untitled Comment

Posted by sajolley
TV is no more a monster than the internet. Our family has both and is careful how we use both. We have no TV or computer in an area that is not in a public area of our home. We use our DVR to prerecord only the shows we watch (which are very few), and then when we view them, we skip over the commercials.

Our children have been taught the TV tricks, marketing strategies, and other gimicks that shape the world's desires. They watch for truths and opinions during a show and carefully weigh what they have learned against the Bible for contradictions. We talk about all that we watch. We talk about what shows we choose to watch and why we choose never to view others. We discuss the worldview message the show is teaching.

We do not need to completely ban our children from TV in this media driven society. We need to equip them to discern truth from deception in what they see, but at the same time, as guardians of their purity, we do need err on the side of caution with what we allow them to view. This should be true with any topic. It is better to equip and prepare than to completely shield in the name of protection.

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• May. 10, 2006 - no tv

Posted by Anonymous
It is not just our children but our selves we are protecting. We are not to be of the world but to be apart from it. Do we shield our children from alcohol? Of course we do we don't say let them try it and teach them which drinks are good which are bad and how much of each you may drink before it is too much. This maybe a bad comparison but in my opinion so is the internet and tv. The internet can be used for communication, research, and entertainment while the tv can only be used for entertainment. If you are saying there are edifying programs(minus the commercials) for our children to watch I would love to have a list of them, also I know of no adult programming that is worthy of my time and would love a list of what I am missing. My children have no clue they are missing anything on tv and are up more on current events than most especially since tv only gives the liberal side of the news where on the net you can actually find both sides of a situation.
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• May. 11, 2006 - Untitled Comment

Posted by sajolley
A list of programming we watch with our children (there is no programming that I watch that my children cannot watch.):

Good Eats (Food Network) - excellent cooking show from a scientific perspective, some poor humor, leads to great discussion & prompts my children to try new recipes all on their own

Modern Marvels (History Channel) - differing programs on how things work or are built such as skyscrapers, salt mines, etc.

An occasional series on the History Channel, such as Presidents. Since we don't have the tube on much, we often miss these though.

We will catch an occasional show that highlights the Bible. We love to watch these which are often quite, um, wrong or misguided. They allow us to discuss with the children how the world views the Bible & specifically what was wrong about the viewpoints in the programming. Great critical thinking training.

I would have to say these shows are much more educational than entertaining, although Good Eats adds humor to its science.

I would have to agree with you (whoever you are) about TV entertainment. I've seen very little. I read the reviews about the content & have no desire to let it into my home.
Oh, wait, there is one other show that we occasionally watch that is pure entertainment, old Little House on the Prairie reruns.

Just out of curiousity, how many of you have a TV but only use it for DVD/VHS recordings?



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• May. 11, 2006 - No TV

Posted by creativehsmom
I guess it's time for me to jump in here. In the last post, sajolley asks this question "How many of you have a TV but only use it for DVD/VHS recordings?"

I would have to say that our family fits this shoe. We have a TV and as time pressed on our family has grown to view the television as a thief and a robber of time. Of all things, we had watched a documentary on the TV the provided much evidence that television viewing actually "numbs" the brain because it is a one way street and provides no interaction for the viewer unlike computer usage that does provide some. We've grown to view or TV as the big mouthed, unwelcome stranger who is always ready to provide us with unwholesome images, thoughts and sounds. I've been on the lookout for an armoire for quite some time to hide (the stranger). Our family exercises self control and have limited our TV viewing to the choice of our own dvds and tapes and occasionally newscasters, (using discretion in this area too). Knowing what I now know, I would advise those who are setting up housekeeping not to waste their money or time on the purchase of a TV, it's not worth the risk.

Philippians 4:8 is the perfect standard that we should hold against what we are considering to allow in our eye and ear gates:

Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. (KJV)
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• May. 11, 2006 - One more thing............

Posted by creativehsmom
We also purchased the smallest number of channels that cable makes available.
We also bought every season of the {Little House on the Prairie} series as they were released one by one! :o)
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