Should Catholics not listen to vulgar/materialistic/wordly music?

[IlCajetan]

A while ago I made the switch from listening to any pop-punk music, rap, and music by people who weren’t typically good influences so I could focus on music where all the lyrics weren’t about lamenting over the same girl or robbing a bank. Lately I’ve been kinda “craving” the genre. However, I’ve heard many times that Christians should not listen to popular music, so I’m curious to know: Is there any spiritual danger in listening to music that may be explicit, very hyper, and overall wordly?

 

[Mythicalbio]

There is the danger of coming to value what the godless value, which is nothing but death and hate ultimately. It is not an intrinsic evil though.

 

[drac16]

James 4:4 says “…Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God”

Psalm 101:3 says “I will not set before my eyes anything that is worthless. I hate the work of those who fall away; it shall not cling to me”

We are called to live a life that’s separate from the world. We cannot watch or listen to that which is vulgar, sexual or violent. Believe me, my life would be a lot easier if I were allowed to listen to all kinds of metal, but the fact of the matter is that a lot of metal music does nothing but slap God in the face. You have to be willing to change, though. God will help you clean up your life as long as you are willing to trust Him. Trust that that which He is calling you to abstain from is for your own good.

 

[Tis_Bearself]

Assuming that the music in question doesn’t have pornographic or blasphemous elements, then music is spiritually dangerous to you if it causes or tempts you to sin. The same music might not be dangerous to someone else. So, unless like I said it’s an obscene or blasphemous song, there’s no blanket rules for Catholics about music.

I myself can listen to pop-punk music all day and not be bothered spiritually by it, so I have no reason to avoid it. Someone else might find the music agitates them or makes them think about sinful stuff they did (sex, drugs) while listening to that music, so they avoid it.

 

[Roguish]

Is there any spiritual danger in listening to music that may be explicit, very hyper, and overall wordly?

In my experience the urge to listen to that type of music is a symptom of worldliness that’s already present in you, rather than being the cause of it. Still, it’s best avoided, as is anything that feeds your desire to feel the worldly “vibe”.

 

[brown_bear]

I would not make it a Catholic question, but a human one.

I mean: if some music is bad and stuns you, it’s bad for the Catholic and for the non-Catholic.

Obviously it is not a matter of prohibiting it, but of not advising it, with arguments that can be appreciated by everyone, even non-Catholics.

 

[GLam1761]

I’m about to start an EXODUS 90 Journey
Edifying or Encouraging Faith and Virtue.
Now some classical music and pop and
so, there IS “good food for thot” in the
world the best thing to do is to pray for the
gift of DISCERNMENT.(1 Cor. 12:10)

 

[CathoRick]

Spiritual danger? Certainly. I do my best to avoid music that is especially inappropriate or profane… at first it was a conscious effort, but now it’s instinctively out of disgust more than anything else.

Granted, that still leaves many clean pop, rock, country, etc. songs for me to listen to.