Television Question

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I’m curious. I’ve just found this sub-forum and notice posts about TV shows. I’ve known people who, throughout the years, have either eliminated or at least locked up their TV sets because of the poor entertainment. That was way before the hideous stuff we have now.

How much / what do you watch and what do you eliminate?
How does one make judgements that are in accordance with Church teachings?

Even the commercials are trashy - you can’t even watch the news without something lousy showing up. I have relics in the house - some first class ones - and feel it’s a terrible insult to Our Lord, Our Lady and the saints.

Is there a moral compass on this one? Oh, boy - do I wish I had posted this on “Ask the Apologist” ! ! I’ve always been a couch potato, and right now I really do miss my dose of the boob tube!

:hypno:
 
I agree with your assessment. there is a lot of garbage on TV. I personally love crime shows like all the Law&Order plus spin offs Like SVU.
I also watch classic movies on Turner classic movies , but I tend to stay away from regular TV (ABC,NBC andCBS ) with some exceptions.
I do like some stuff on the History Channel and A&E.
My faith is my guide. If a show offends my beliefs, click goes the remote to something else.
 
I’m 50 years old. I’ve been a Christian since I was a child, and a Catholic Christian for 3 years.

I’ve found over the years that as I grow closer to the Lord and His Church, my interest in TV and movies has waned greatly. It just doesn’t have much appeal.

My husband and I each have a few shows that we love. For me, it’s The Unit, mainly because my favorite actor is on the show, and one of the writers is a graduate of my daughters’ school in our city.

My husband likes Heroes and Lost.

We both love to watch football and figure skating.

And we still watch The Simpsons, but we don’t go out of our way to watch it. Usually we’re home, but if not, oh well.

I usually watch the local news because I really do take an interest in my city and my community. I like to stay abreast of what’s happening and get involved if possible.

That’s about it. Often the set isn’t even on in the evening. We have other things to do. We make love and go out for dinner or theater and talk and talk! We take care of our house and our cats. I write novels. He does a lot of work from home. He helps with RCIA and other church activities. I play piano and often have a choir or a soloist to practice with. Both of us love praying the Rosary and other chaplets. I try to make a Holy Hour everyday, although that’s not always possible. And of course, we try to make time for family activities with our extended family.

All that takes a lot of time. TV just doesn’t fit in.

This is just a humble suggestion, but perhaps as you fill your time with worthwhile activities and spiritual exercises and devotions, you will find that TV doesn’t really seem all that important anymore.

Please don’t think I’m implying that you don’t do worthwhile and spiritual things right now! I’m not saying that. All I’m saying is that you might discover as you grow older that you won’t have to make decisions about which shows to watch. You may find that you really aren’t interested in any of the shows.

(I am assuming that you are able-bodied, not bed-ridden. For the invalid, immobile, or the seriously ill person, TV can be a real blessing.)
 
I agree that there is alot of trash on tv. Just seems to get worse and worse. I don’t watch very much ‘normal tv’, as in shows. I have it on for company often, and love to watch the Weather Channel.

There are some shows I like, but I haven’t been watching regularly like I used to. Such as, ‘Heroes’, ‘CSI’ (although it’s gotten strange at times), some of the ‘Law and Order’ shows, ‘Jerico’. I like good movies and the History Channel or Discovery Channel at times. PBS can have good programming, too.

Right now, the tv is on…the Weather Channel is watching me type this. 🙂

And cannot forget EWTN. I don’t have that on alot, either, but I love the Mass (of course), and Father Corapi is absolutely wonderful! I like watching when Scott Hahn is on, or some of the other theologians. If we could only have one channel, I’d pick EWTN.
 
Like the others on this thread, I don’t watch much tv. Sure, I have my shows that I either watch or record on my DVR: Extreme Makeover: Home Edition; Dancing With The Stars; Most Haunted (on the Travel Channel); I like some game shows like Are You Smarter Than A Fifth-Grader, The Singing Bee, and Don’t Forget the Lyrics. Otherwise, when I get home and after dinner, I’ll sit with my husband and watch Discovery Network shows (like How It’s Made, Mythbusters, and Dirty Jobs) or catch an episode of CSI.

Ok…that looks like a lot of TV shows! LOL

I make sure, though, with 2 kids at home, that we watch shows that are educational and free from the sex, violence, and over all filth that’s on TV. I avoid the inane reality shows on MTV, VH1, and E! Network. That’s just poison for the minds of the youth. Last night my sons and I sat down and watched our recorded episode of Bizzare Foods. They were visiting the Philippines (the country of my parents) and along with showing them the variety of “strange” foods (not really strange for me), they learned a little bit of the history of the country. My 15-year-old was pretty amazed - he now wants to visit the country!

But my favorite, like some others, is EWTN. 👍 No matter when I turn it on, there is always something wonderful and uplifting for everyone to enjoy.
 
TV is really toxic. When my children were very young, we made it a point to have only one TV and it was a small one in an inconvenient location. This really helped them to focus on books and controlled TV watching without being heavy-handed. We got a second TV only when our youngest was in high school. To set the time frame, my youngest is now 26 with two master’s degrees and the oldests is 32 with one master’s degree. In short, TV was never a center point in our house and I think this is the key to raising decent adults. Since our nest is now empty, we watch maybe three or four hours a week (not counting sports and the news) and our children do about the same. Today, I think I would ban most TV until mid elementary school and then only with supervision and parental conversation. Sports and movies would be the only exceptions.
 
The last TV show I was totally hooked on was The X-Files.
Since then, I hardly ever watch TV. I have a pretty eclectic collection of DVDs and am able to check out movies from the library, so I watch a lot of them. This weekend, I watched I Am A Fugitive From A Chain Gang (good movie!) and How Green Was My Valley. I watch The Food Network sometimes, and sometimes the news, but I find myself getting more and more of my news from the Internet.

I also read a lot and really, I don’t miss TV.
 
For entertainment, I watch mostly Turner Classic Movies and Fox Movie Network when they have the older movies on. Generally ones made before 1950 have little or nothing objectionable from a spiritual point of view. I enjoy some documentaries on TLC, History Networks, etc. Boston Catholic TV and EWTN are staples for the Rosary, Divine Mercy Chaplet, Father Groeschel and Father Apostoli, Bob & Penny Lord, whose books I love. I avoid network television mostly, and definitely don’t watch Bravo and Oxygen, Lifetime is also not a favorite, they don’t seem to me to be very edifying. I do have a guilty secret: I love the show “A Haunting”, I have always loved “true” ghostly tales!!😊
 
Conservative said:
How much / what do you watch and what do you eliminate?
How does one make judgements that are in accordance with Church teachings?
Click to expand...
I’ve come to the conclusion that it is better not to have TV than to have it. When I moved recently, I did not sign up for cable and I have not put up an antenna. I don’t know what the church teachings are on the subject, but I made a personal judgement based on my faith. The content was getting worse and worse and I decided it was time for it to go.

Daddums 🙂
 
I had to laugh, as some of you have incorrectly assumed my age - and in another post - whether I’m male or female ! LOL

I’m old enough to know better than to tell my age. However, I’d similarly reached the point where (at one time) I went cold-turkey off TV. Nothing. Until I finally eased back starting with news reports. I, too, make my own judgements based on content but I’m still in the dark ages: As much as I’d like to have cable, I’m afraid it’s like paying a bundle of money for a bundle of stations - many of which are objectionable. And it’s sad, since the religious and classic movie channels are the ones I’d want.

Conservative:rolleyes:
 
I’d get rid of TV (I hope) but my husband is paraplegic & likes to watch news on Univision; there’s not much he can do around the house.
My kids watch more than I like but mostly Disney movies. They know they’re not allowed to watch the witch movies that show up every now and then.
I like Dr Who which I think is wildly creative and aimed as it is at younger viewers, has nothing salacious about it.

I belong to the Parents Television Council, which is trying to change what’s on tv, and is fighting for cable choice so we can get the individual channels we want instead of subsidizing MTV and other garbage.
 
Conservative said:
I’m curious. I’ve just found this sub-forum and notice posts about TV shows. I’ve known people who, throughout the years, have either eliminated or at least locked up their TV sets because of the poor entertainment. That was way before the hideous stuff we have now.

How much / what do you watch and what do you eliminate?
How does one make judgements that are in accordance with Church teachings?

Even the commercials are trashy - you can’t even watch the news without something lousy showing up. I have relics in the house - some first class ones - and feel it’s a terrible insult to Our Lord, Our Lady and the saints.

Is there a moral compass on this one? Oh, boy - do I wish I had posted this on “Ask the Apologist” ! ! I’ve always been a couch potato, and right now I really do miss my dose of the boob tube!

:hypno:
Click to expand...
I am an avid Law & Order fan! I can watch the episodes again and again. The writing is excellent, whether CI or SVU. Otherwise, I do the History channel, HGTV, Travel Channel, AMC, and, of course, EWTN! 👍
 
Conservative said:
How much / what do you watch and what do you eliminate?

:hypno:
Click to expand...
I find the TV guide to be exactly that, a guide.

I look at it and see what I want to watch and watch it. When its over I turn it off and do something else. If there is another show on later I will turn it on and watch it.

What do I watch? Myth busters, What not to wear, How do they make that, were watching Driving Force. And hubby bear watches the build whatever bike or car shows and Law and Order. Even watch your Father Coproia (spelling) on occasion and the documentary or learning types on the different christian stations. Even watch Link TV on occasion, a good show last night on the shining path in Peru, so sad. And always keep a eye out for movies.

🙂
 
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