Something we can all agree on?

[kalt]

Whatever your religion, maybe we can all agree to put our money only where our mouth is.

Do you pay to watch movies that depict behaviors or views that are against your religion?

Do you buy products from companies that support things (maybe Planned Parenthood) that are against your faith?

How diligent do you think we should be in making sure that our money goes only to companies and people that don’t contradict our beliefs?

I haven’t seen any movies by a few actors who’ve been openly against what I stand for, but I only know about those few because they managed to make fools of themselves and made the national news. I don’t research an actor’s activities before renting a movie.

Do you research a company before you do business with it? Do you check an actor’s background before you see his movies?

Would you take your kids to Disney? (I know there are a lot of Christians who are openly and vocally anti-Disney.)

Does it matter what product that company makes? If the product isn’t against your beliefs (say they make cardboard boxes and donate to planned parenthood, and you have nothing against cardboard boxes), and the product isn’t used in whatever is against your beliefs, do you still boycott the company?

 

[JonNC]

Whatever your religion, maybe we can all agree to put our money only where our mouth is.

Do you pay to watch movies that depict behaviors or views that are against your religion?

Do you buy products from companies that support things (maybe Planned Parenthood) that are against your faith?

How diligent do you think we should be in making sure that our money goes only to companies and people that don’t contradict our beliefs?

I haven’t seen any movies by a few actors who’ve been openly against what I stand for, but I only know about those few because they managed to make fools of themselves and made the national news. I don’t research an actor’s activities before renting a movie.

Do you research a company before you do business with it? Do you check an actor’s background before you see his movies?

Would you take your kids to Disney? (I know there are a lot of Christians who are openly and vocally anti-Disney.)

Does it matter what product that company makes? If the product isn’t against your beliefs (say they make cardboard boxes and donate to planned parenthood, and you have nothing against cardboard boxes), and the product isn’t used in whatever is against your beliefs, do you still boycott the company?

You make an extremely good and valid point, kalt. I for one am not nearly diligent enough in this area. And the complexities of large corporations makes it even more difficult. You have reminded me here to redouble my efforts. Thanks.

Jon

 

[always_gr8ful]

Great post, Kalt!

I would love to see a grass roots effort to get back to the morals of the Bible. Unfortunately, I don’t think our numbers are nearly as strong as they used to be, a watering down of the faith from generation to generation. Reading some of the current polls about what Christians believe, it becomes obvious that the vast majority only pay they faith lip service.

So the question I have is, is it too late? Are we on a runaway train? It can be distressing to think that things are going to get a whole lot worse, so I have decided that change begins with me. If we make these efforts ourselves, AT LEAST when Jesus comes (or when we die), God will find us doing what we should.

 

[kalt]

Great post, Kalt!

I would love to see a grass roots effort to get back to the morals of the Bible. Unfortunately, I don’t think our numbers are nearly as strong as they used to be, a watering down of the faith from generation to generation. Reading some of the current polls about what Christians believe, it becomes obvious that the vast majority only pay they faith lip service.

So the question I have is, is it too late? Are we on a runaway train? It can be distressing to think that things are going to get a whole lot worse, so I have decided that change begins with me. If we make these efforts ourselves, AT LEAST when Jesus comes (or when we die), God will find us doing what we should.

What brought this question up was the memory of how a public person’s career usually ended when there was a scandal. It’s almost the opposite now–any press is good press, it seems, and only helps the person’s career.

There were exceptions, like Marilyn Monroe. But for the most part, the celebrities’ scandals were kept from the public, were lied about, or they did the career in.

I’m not longing for the days when a scandal breaks a person, but I’m thinking of the days when we (the consumer’s) thought carefully about where we place our loyalties and spent our money. It meant something then. Voting for a person who supports (with our dollars) abortion would have been like admitting to a murder ourselves. We just wouldn’t have done it. Today, Christians vote for pro-abortion candidates and don’t even try to hide the fact.

People who make a scandal of their own lives have always been here.

But what happened to us?

 

[always_gr8ful]

Voting for a person who supports (with our dollars) abortion would have been like admitting to a murder ourselves. We just wouldn’t have done it. Today, Christians vote for pro-abortion candidates and don’t even try to hide the fact.

People who make a scandal of their own lives have always been here.

But what happened to us?

Exactly. The pat answer is that weren’t voting for abortion, but against Bush. Where was God in that picture? Third place, or worse. Tell anyone you vote your faith and morals and you’ll be laughed at as a Bible thumper. Right and wrong is being turned upside down for the sake of self-interests. Sign of the times…

There’s nothing worse than a scandal involving a Christian. They do Christ harm, but so do we when our divorce rates match those of the non-believers. Kind-of hard to point fingers when an outsider can’t see a difference between us and the world. Hopefully we will avoid self-righteousness, striving instead to live our faith.

 

[SpiritMeadow]

What brought this question up was the memory of how a public person’s career usually ended when there was a scandal. It’s almost the opposite now–any press is good press, it seems, and only helps the person’s career.

There were exceptions, like Marilyn Monroe. But for the most part, the celebrities’ scandals were kept from the public, were lied about, or they did the career in.

I’m not longing for the days when a scandal breaks a person, but I’m thinking of the days when we (the consumer’s) thought carefully about where we place our loyalties and spent our money. It meant something then. Voting for a person who supports (with our dollars) abortion would have been like admitting to a murder ourselves. We just wouldn’t have done it. Today, Christians vote for pro-abortion candidates and don’t even try to hide the fact.

People who make a scandal of their own lives have always been here.

But what happened to us?

You are certainly correct. Studios used to go to extreme lengths to keep the misdoings of its stars private. Now that is not the case, but at least we don’t perceive them as anything but regular humans now, and I guess that is good.

I’ve been waiting to see how RC’s would respond to the revelations about Mel Gibson, but so far haven’t seen anything. Nobody was more a touter of the orthodox Catholic position than he was.

 

[kalt]

You are certainly correct. Studios used to go to extreme lengths to keep the misdoings of its stars private. Now that is not the case, but at least we don’t perceive them as anything but regular humans now, and I guess that is good.

I’ve been waiting to see how RC’s would respond to the revelations about Mel Gibson, but so far haven’t seen anything. Nobody was more a touter of the orthodox Catholic position than he was.

I heard a blip about his wife’s leaving him, but nothing more. Mel was never a favorite of mine–I always thought he was a little nutty.

Is he invlived in some kind of scandal?

 

[Gottle_of_Geer]

Whatever your religion, maybe we can all agree to put our money only where our mouth is.

Do you pay to watch movies that depict behaviors or views that are against your religion?

Do you buy products from companies that support things (maybe Planned Parenthood) that are against your faith?

How diligent do you think we should be in making sure that our money goes only to companies and people that don’t contradict our beliefs?

I haven’t seen any movies by a few actors who’ve been openly against what I stand for, but I only know about those few because they managed to make fools of themselves and made the national news. I don’t research an actor’s activities before renting a movie.

Do you research a company before you do business with it? Do you check an actor’s background before you see his movies?

No. And No. As to the second, I think that is expecting too much. Besides, secret sins can be great sins - do you know what secret sins Mel Gibson has committed ? I don’t. He’s not in communion in Rome; he’s a schismatic - but that did not stop people in CAF praising that film & encouraging people to see it. Does trash like “Mad Max” not suggest that his works are poison ?​

Would you research the sexual proclivities of employees & others to check that they are not (say) practising homosexuals ? If actors are to be investigated, why not workers in shops ? If a shoe-shop is found to employ one practising homosexual, what is the next step: to boycott it ? to make one’s own footwear ? to protest to the manager ? to avoid the entire company & all its outlets & other businesses ? In all probability, practicing homosexuals have at some point been involved in producing the goods used by those who campaign against homosexuals. Is Sir Ian MacKellen any less of an actor for not comforming to Catholic morality in this matter ? Gay or straight, he fully deserved the praise he received for his portrayal of Gandalf; are Catholics “contaminated” by seeing those films ?

Take Rupert Murdoch - how far does one go in avoiding contact with him ? Modern life is very complicated; are people to show their distaste for his character & influence by:

• avoiding his newspaper ?
• not watching Fox ?
• not watching “The Simpsons” ?

What about the Church ? Why does the problem of connivance not apply here too ? I think it does. And as to politics: why not avoid politicians ? They do & say things that are utterly monstrous by Catholic standards: invading sovereign states without having been attacked first; bombing non-combatants; lying to Parliament; etc.

People are very exercised about abortion - but what of armaments ? Is blowing people into smithereens Christian conduct ? How often are those who manufacture arms rebuked for what they help others to do ? The early Church was consistent on such matters; the Church today is not.

Seeking to be wholly pure is all very well in principle; but it can become a form of obsession if other important things are overlooked. This obsession is what tears Churches apart, & families.

Would you take your kids to Disney? (I know there are a lot of Christians who are openly and vocally anti-Disney.)

Does it matter what product that company makes? If the product isn’t against your beliefs (say they make cardboard boxes and donate to planned parenthood, and you have nothing against cardboard boxes), and the product isn’t used in whatever is against your beliefs, do you still boycott the company?

This is all about the problem of what C. S. Lewis calls “Connivance”. I don’t think there is any single answer The only way to avoid conniving in all evils and possible evils, is to drop out of society completely.​

This complexity is one of the reasons I think that Christian ethics do not work in as large and complex a society as we live in. The detail of the teaching of Jesus is out-dated, simply because most people are not first-century Palestinian Jews. If we lived in a smallish agrarian society, His ideas would be practical. They are not; they are a recipe for chaos - which is presumably why most of us ignore them or explain them away. It would be irresponsible in the highest degree to do what James & John did when they followed Him; today, that would be leaving one’s parents to fend for themselves. Again, no matter what He said, it is simply not practical or sensible to avoid administering oaths. As for loving one enemies: that would be suicidally irresponsible & criminal. And so on.

 

[always_gr8ful]

Would you research the sexual proclivities of employees & others to check that they are not (say) practising homosexuals ? If actors are to be investigated, why not workers in shops ? If a shoe-shop is found to employ one practising homosexual, what is the next step: to boycott it ? to make one’s own footwear ? to protest to the manager ? to avoid the entire company & all its outlets & other businesses ? In all probability, practicing homosexuals have at some point been involved in producing the goods used by those who campaign against homosexuals.]

Though I’m uncomfortable using only homosexuals for an example (to me, sin is sin and all fall short), I don’t think it has to be taken to an extreme like this because it could, like you say later, become an obsession and sin itself.

But let’s say a gay guy wants to sell my house. He happens to be the biggest, fast seller in town. He’s not saved. Simple - I go with someone else.

A major appliance company (GE) sells it’s goods to Iran in spite of US restrictions. I choose not to support them with my business.

I love comedies, but the one everyone is talking about includes an actor (Jack Black) who mocked Jesus in a video on youtube. I can live without that movie.
Gottle of Geer;5096626:

Take Rupert Murdoch - how far does one go in avoiding contact with him ?

A great example. No, I’m not going to stop watching Fox news because of Murdoch. But I did quit the Simpsons because I let my conscience (read Holy Spirit) be my guide. If the Holy Spirit convicted me of watching Fox because of it’s owner, I’d listen and obey, but I sure hope it doesn’t come to that because I watch so little tv as it is.

Good post, Gottle of Geer. Kind of a “don’t let your boycott become your idol”.

 

[SpiritMeadow]

I heard a blip about his wife’s leaving him, but nothing more. Mel was never a favorite of mine–I always thought he was a little nutty.

Is he invlived in some kind of scandal?

I only read that they had been separated for some years and that he had taken up with another woman for some time now. Wife has filed for divorce. We stopped watching his movies when it became apparent he was anti-Semitic.

But I think that in general it is quite hard to make determinations about companies and such. Sure I detest a lot about Walmart, but I have to save money too, and I can’t avoid them and pay higher prices elsewhere. I do the best I can as it were, and I imagine most do. I try to avoid major polluters as well, but again, there are people who need those jobs and have no choice in this economy but to work where they can. Should I cancel my business and see them laid off? It’s an unanswerable problem I think.