It is sinful to enjoy certain TV shows?

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Hi everybody–

OK, I know it’s not a sin to physically watch a TV show, but my question would be if it is a sin to be entertained by a TV show that contains casual sexual jokes and some mild profanity. I’m not speaking of an HBO adult series or anything like that, but like sitcoms on prime-time TV like Two and a Half Men and the like. Would enjoying watching these shows be immoral because there are sexual references in it?
 
I don’t know, but my top watch shows right now is about sex, without the sex.

Or anything Megan Fox is in.
 
Certainly if it causes you to have impure thoughts it would be.
I stopped watching “Nip/Tuck” because it went way over the top for me. Most HBO series stuff is too hot for me to handle. Funny thing I still like Big Love and there are some sexual themes in it. It never gives me any impure thoughts.
But network sitcoms? I don’t know since I stopped watching them a long time ago.
Watch out if you have high end cable though. They sell sexual gadgets at night that would embarress a stripper.
 
Well I specified that I wasn’t talking about HBO series–I agree with you that a lot of those shows are way over the line. I’m talking about shows like Everybody Loves Raymond, Frasier, Cheers, Becker, Seinfeld…all of these shows may have sexual jokes from time to time and some coarse language (nothing you wouldn’t hear in a PG-13 movie). You mentioned it was sinful if it led to impure thoughts–to me, that answer is kind of sketchy. I really don’t know what kind of impure thoughts watching a sitcom can lead to. Would it be impure to find a sexual joke or a mild profanity to be humorous? That’s really the only thought I would have when watching a show.
 
Like Jack17, I don’t know either. I love Family Guy even though the creator, Seth McFarland, is an Atheist (and it’s blatantly obvious during the show). I love Seinfeld (pulp can move, baby!). I’ve been watching season 3 of Big Love online, totally addicted to that show (I wish the family would wake up and get rid of Nikki!). I watch reality TV like there’s no tomorrow (go Bravo!).

I rarely ever feel guilty when I watch a show that has some sexual jokes/innuendos. It’s entertainment to me, that’s really all. I never dwell on it for some reason - perhaps I’m desensitized?
 
Asker20 said:
Hi everybody–

OK, I know it’s not a sin to physically watch a TV show, but my question would be if it is a sin to be entertained by a TV show that contains casual sexual jokes and some mild profanity. I’m not speaking of an HBO adult series or anything like that, but like sitcoms on prime-time TV like Two and a Half Men and the like. Would enjoying watching these shows be immoral because there are sexual references in it?
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Yes. It is pornography with the ears rather than the eyes.
Pornography does not become okay simply because one is jaded enough to look at it without having impure thoughts.
 
Two-and-a-Half-Men is revolting.

Being a good follower of Christ involves an awful lot more than just avoiding sin. The aim is to be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect (which was a command, not a daydream, on Jesus’ part).

The only way you have a hope of doing that is to focus on actively practicing and growing in virtue and eliminating stuff that drags you down or even just causes you to stagnate rather than progressing. Sounds like these shows aren’t noway nowhow doing you any good in your walk with Christ, and just might be doing you harm.
 
lobster said:
Yes. It is pornography with the ears rather than the eyes.
Pornography does not become okay simply because one is jaded enough to look at it without having impure thoughts.
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I guess people masturbate to sitcoms when they hear it…

:rolleyes:

porn is for one purpose

tv shows is for plain entertainment
 
Jack17 said:
I guess people masturbate to sitcoms when they hear it…
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Some might. But what it really does is slowly break down your morality. You start to become numb to sinful and immoral behavior. Later on after years of allowing your conscience to be polluted, you may fall and commit a mortal sin yourself.
Jack17 said:
porn is for one purpose

tv shows is for plain entertainment
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What do you say when a tv show (such as Friends) makes porn watching some kind of joke?

Sitcoms don’t have to be immoral to be entertaining. Its been awhile but, the Cosby show comes to mind.
 
Asker20 said:
Hi everybody–

OK, I know it’s not a sin to physically watch a TV show, but my question would be if it is a sin to be entertained by a TV show that contains casual sexual jokes and some mild profanity. I’m not speaking of an HBO adult series or anything like that, but like sitcoms on prime-time TV like Two and a Half Men and the like. Would enjoying watching these shows be immoral because there are sexual references in it?
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Television forms our worldview, whether we like it or not. I used to watch TV all the time, and it distorted my thinking patterns about other people, and fueled my tendencies to lust. At a certain point, I made a rule: I do not watch TV except for sports and political debates.

Now, when I watch commercials, I am shocked at the casual attitude toward sin contained in them. Television is an addictive attachment; if you cannot live without it, you know that it has to go. Maybe you can moderate your TV watching, but I think most people who say that they can moderate it are deceiving themselves.
 
Ahh… Lobster and Lily, I think you guys may be coming down on the Puritan side of things. I really can’t agree with you that sitcoms are equivalent to pornography…there really isn’t a connection there. While Two and a Half Men may contain its fair share of sexual innuendo, all the other shows I mentioned are far from porn. I cannot think of a classier, more refined sitcom than Frasier, and I am not going to label it as porn just because it may contain a reference to pre-marital sex. The real world contains imperfections as well–and if we are going to weed out everybody in our lives that has fallen short of perfection, we are going to have a VERY small world, indeed.

–As for the poster who said we are commanded to be perfect, this is a fallacy. We are called to love Jesus, love one another, and live a Christian life. We all fall short of the Glory of God, and He is there to catch us when we fall. We are all disciples of Christ, but it is silly to live your life believing you are required to be perfect. Not one of us would get out of bed in the morning if this were the case.
 
Asker20 said:
Well I specified that I wasn’t talking about HBO series–I agree with you that a lot of those shows are way over the line. I’m talking about shows like Everybody Loves Raymond, Frasier, Cheers, Becker, Seinfeld…all of these shows may have sexual jokes from time to time and some coarse language (nothing you wouldn’t hear in a PG-13 movie). You mentioned it was sinful if it led to impure thoughts–to me, that answer is kind of sketchy. I really don’t know what kind of impure thoughts watching a sitcom can lead to. Would it be impure to find a sexual joke or a mild profanity to be humorous? That’s really the only thought I would have when watching a show.
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On the contrary, it’s sinful NOT to enjoy Seinfeld and Everybody Loves Raymond.
 
Asker20 said:
Ahh… Lobster and Lily, I think you guys may be coming down on the Puritan side of things. I really can’t agree with you that sitcoms are equivalent to pornography…there really isn’t a connection there.
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Both erode morality.
One simply is slower and more insidious then the other.

What we expose ourselves to alters us in ways we cannot predict.

Just as the first sin makes the next easier, so to does the first joke about sin make the sin seem less grievous.
 
The litmus test is surely does this or that show/film desensetise me to that which is offensively or repulsively indecent. A helpful question also to ask oneself is would I be happy to be found watching this TV show if Jesus were to return or I was ushered suddenly into the next life because of say a fatal heart attack. Only if we could truly answer those questions in the affirmative would it be permissible to watch the show or film.

Even so called family sitcom shows can be replete, or at least contain, sexual innuendo and impious remarks or one liners, so we need to be very selective in our viewing. It is wise to remember that those in the the entertainment industry do not have our Christian scruples and are always seeking to push the boundaries of accepted decency.

It is not just the dialouge but also the dress that we have to beware of. If women are wearing inordinatley short skirts, for example, that can be indicative of the general moral tone of the entire show. To watch such shows tells others that we don’t really see any harm in it all and that we are broadminded “men of the world” after all.

As I said at the outset we must ask what effect the show in question is going to have upon our, hopefully, tender Christian consciences. St. John in his First Epistle exhorts us to “…not love the world or the things in the world. If any one loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him” (I John 2:15). The world outside the Church is an evil system, organised under the dominion of Satan amd not God and is therefore always seeking to cause Christians to stumble and sin. Hope this will be of some help to you. Tread carefully.
 
vz71 said:
Both erode morality.
One simply is slower and more insidious then the other.

What we expose ourselves to alters us in ways we cannot predict.

Just as the first sin makes the next easier, so to does the first joke about sin make the sin seem less grievous.
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I disagree, you’re insulting a whole field of people based on this logic; actors, directors, television audience, and more… which is silly.

There’s more danger and temptations in the real world than on television.

The only channels void of any “morality issue” is Catholic shows, weather station, and some cartoons.

As we are at it, we better wear dark sunglasses to avoid the magazines, billboards, and any “immoral” advertisement. We better not go to a store, since there’s alcohol, condoms, and cigarettes and that would erode our morality. Stores are dangerous so we better handmade our clothing since they often carry indecent clothing. So to be completely safe we need a community of like-minded people who create clothing, grow vegetables, and avoid electricity because of television and the internet.
 
I don’t know if the jokes themselves are inherently sinful, however, if it causes you to sin, you need to stop watching.
 
Okay, I’ve been quietly watching this thread unfold and trying to keep my mouth shut, but now I really feel I have to speak up. Some of the attitudes in this thread convey the exact reason that drew me away from the church. Some of you are speaking so puritanically that you are losing your Christlike-ness. To say that somebody is a hell-bound sinner for watching a prime-time television show is not only ludicrous, but drop-dead wrong. There is absolutely no sin in watching or being entertained by a TV program. The WORST that it might be is an occasion of sin–only if you are weak enough to let the show corrupt your morals. Personally I have watched all the shows that Asker has mentioned, and I do not feel guilty because I have a clear sense of right and wrong, and it is not going to be polluted by a reference to pre-marital sex or an innocuous four-letter word (dmn, hll, *****, and b*stard are basically the worst you’ll hear in a sitcom). If your morality is in such a weak state that these things will cause you to sin then you really have a big problem, because the real world that we all have to live in contains MUCH more unpleasantness. If we fall into the trap of avoiding every little thing that may cause an impure thought, then we are just out to give ourselves headaches. We could take it a step further and say women shouldn’t watch sports because they may find the athletes to be handsome and it may lead to an impure thought. Men shouldn’t have followed the 2008 election because Sarah Palin was an attractive woman and it may have led to an impure thought. Avoiding every single POSSIBLE occasion of sin really doesn’t work in life. It is our job to have a strong enough in our faith and have a clear enough sense of right and wrong to be able to filter out the imperfections of the everyday world.

P.S.-- Portrait, I really don’t know where you got the idea that we are called by God to hate the world and everything in it…I highly doubt that you interpreted that Bible verse correctly. This viewpoint is really a terrible way to live your life, especially if you are a Christian. I will pray that you lighten up and find a kinder way to serve God and live life. It may be wise for you to seek professional help to clear up your mentality.
 
mikebenson said:
Some of you are speaking so puritanically that you are losing your Christlike-ness.
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Christ’s teachings, Mike, are rather puritanical – but the people He condemned were hypocrites, not sinners. He spent time around sinners, because sinners knew their need of Him.
To say that somebody is a hell-bound sinner for watching a prime-time television show is not only ludicrous, but drop-dead wrong. There is absolutely no sin in watching or being entertained by a TV program.
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Agreed. 🙂
If your morality is in such a weak state that these things will cause you to sin then you really have a big problem, because the real world that we all have to live in contains MUCH more unpleasantness.
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But the real world we live in was made by God, whereas the television world was manufactured by human hands and motivations. Recreation is a good thing, but it shouldn’t about sitting in front of a box three hours every day. Nature was made to enjoy.
It is our job to have a strong enough in our faith and have a clear enough sense of right and wrong to be able to filter out the imperfections of the everyday world.
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But if we think on “whatever is true, whatever is good, whatever is excellent and worthy of praise,” will we spend much time watching modern sitcoms?
I really don’t know where you got the idea that we are called by God to hate the world and everything in it…
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It’s pretty much directly stated in the Bible, but you’re right that there’s an interpretation that makes sense of it. We are to hate the world insofar as it keeps us from God. This means we should not be attached to the enjoyment we get from any earthly thing, not even our television sets.

If we are to be like Christ, then we will seek out sinners and even expose ourselves to their sin, in an effort to love them like He loves them. But who exactly is being loved when you’re watching TV?
 
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