Bishop Prompts All Orthodox to Stop Watching TV!

[away]

We should try to talk nicer to each other eh?

The shows on television are full of people argueing and having opinions and practically BEING opinions, and demanding their rights to be an opinion rather than trying to be humans, no? And that is why television and, sometimes, the internet, sucks, because we are of the generations that cannot escape the dictatorship of ourselves cleverly disguised as being ourselves.

Obviously all television is not bad. But it is the number one negative influence on the poor sad peoples of the world we live in. I have a tv and I watch it a bit, of course I do, even though I just said how much I hate it. I wouldnt call myself a modernist but I smoke ciggarettes all day so how can I say someone is not as Orthodox as me? The monks at the monastery where I go to Church every sunday smell very good, they wear cologne I think to cover up the smell of the killer serb brandy, and sometimes you will catch them eating meat. I would prefer that they smell very bad and fast like angels, but I have not fled a country where thousands of bombs have recently dropped on my friends, so... I dont know, take it easy guys.

This is it I think, very near the end, time for much mercy. Cleave to mercy, Saint Isaac the syrian says, and technicaly, he is a heretic. Modernism is a broad thing and it weeds its own out. We have a monk here in australia who has started a monastery and wants to be missionary. He is determined to bring english language servuces to the people and translates them himself, so they are just right, but he also thinks the devil is just an idea in the Fathers minds to represent evil. So things can be very tricky, very confusing. Its near to the end I think.

[Justin Kissel]

Yes, we should try to talk nicer Sigh. The worst part about it is, I already know I should just shut up. I know full well that 95% of people are not going to agree with what some saints say--it's just too radical (sort of a "Radical Orthodoxy" like Niebuhr's "Radical Monotheism"). The books are all out there. I'm in no way special. If I can find things, I'm sure most people could find them even easier. Therefore, since I am not appointed a teacher, and especially since I do not even come close to fulfilling these words, I should just keep my mouth shut. It's not my business how much other people apply Orthodoxy's medicines.

[尼古拉前执事]

No, no one should shut up. Talking helps people understand and helps people learn. Some people might not have known what bishops and saints have said about acting, actors, theatre and television and this provides an outlet for people to learn.

[Nektarios14]

I think everybody should take a deep breath and come to a compromise here:

I think we can agree that it is definetly of spiritual benefit to completely abstain from television (and the same proabably goes for the internet).

BUT

It is perfectly acceptable for someone to watch television by picking and choosing programming to select only the morally acceptable shows.

[尼古拉前执事]

Here are the canons, per request:

CANON II of the 102 Canons:

Paraphrased one part from a very long canon; The husband of an actress cannot become a priest.

CANON LI of the 102 Canons:

The holy and ecumenical Council universally prohibits so-called pantomimes and their theatrical exhibitions; afterwards, in keeping with this, also the spectacles of wild-animal fury and of hunters' prowess, and the execution of dances on stage. If anyone flouts the present Canon and gives himself over to any of the things herein prohibited, in case he is a clergyman, let him be deposed from office; but in case he is a layman, let him be excommunicated.

CANON XVII of the 141 Canons:

Care should be taken to see that the children of Priests shall not give any mundane spectacles, nor witness any. This, in fact, has ever been preached to all Christians, to the effect that wherever there are blasphemies they ought not to approach.

CANON LIII of the 141 Canons:

It is decreed that grace or absolution shall not be denied to actors and mimes, and to other such persons or to apostates, when they repent and return to God.

[Seraphim Reeves]

n/t

Seraphim

[Julianna]

We've all got our excuses and we've all known what's the right thing to do too. Sometimes that's just hard. Such's the life in Christ.

Right, it's hard to live in the world and make responsible choices; sometimes we just want to run away from our problems by pretending everything is black and white.

anastasios

Sometimes we want to run away from the Truth in it's black and white distinctions and rest in the bosom of secular comfort.