How are we to respond to these things?

[michaelvpardo]

I've never thought of myself as any kind of activist, though I've participated in my labor union's demonstrations and rallies, but I'd like to know how other professing believers think that we should respond to the world's blasphemies.
Yesterday afternoon I decided to go a local theatre to watch the new star wars film for nostalgia's sake, but during the seemingly endless previews and commercials before the movie, I saw a trailer for a new X-men movie that is scheduled to be released in May. The plot is about "the first or original mutant" and how he went by many names through the centuries and one of the names given in the trailer was the covenant name of God found in scripture. I found this disturbing on multiple levels, as I was a fan of Marvel comics when I was a child and a fan of the Marvel comic based movies since they started coming out. I once met Stan Lee at a comic book convention in NYC, and he seemed a bit arrogant, but I never would have pegged him as an enemy of God and Christ, because the stories that he wrote always seemed to be based in sound morality and a conviction for justice. I don't know if he actually wrote the material that was in the trailer, but I assume that he would have some say as to how the plot was handled.
I could just boycott the movie, though doing so is unlikely to have much affect upon the box office revenue, but is this the only legitimate response to such a thing?
I don't go to the theatre very often, but I do enjoy watching movies and prefer fantasy and science fiction to most genres, but I'm not particularly happy with production companies that play "fast and loose" with the biblical narrative (as in the recent productions of "Noah" and "Exodus"), and outright blasphemy seems a bit more serious than the fantasies added to biblical narrative to broaden viewer appeal. This isn't the first film to blaspheme the Lord and probably won't be the last (I once saw a movie that portrayed Christ as an alien visitor and even the Star Trek motion picture series dove into religious blasphemy in "The final frontier".)
What do you think should be the response of Christians to such attempts to delegitimize our faith through popular films and the entertainment industry?

 

[heretoeternity]

Stay away from them, don't spend your money going there is the obviously solution....if you want to be proactive write the studios and protest, if you can get a bunch of names on a petition, all the better!

 

[Kym M.]

Just read verses when your confused on things. Sometimes, before I open my Bible I would pray that He would show/lead me clearly about the things that makes me confused. God Bless!

 

[brakelite]

Eph 5:11 And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.

I have always loved Isaiah 58 Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins.......

But note that the Lord is speaking of His people...the house of Jacob. I do not believe we are called to reprove the world of sin...that is the work of the Lord.

John 16:7 ¶ Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.
8 And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:
9 Of sin, because they believe not on me;

 

[michaelvpardo]

Stay away from them, don't spend your money going there is the obviously solution....if you want to be proactive write the studios and protest, if you can get a bunch of names on a petition, all the better!

My apologies for taking so long to respond, between work and the weather, the last few weeks have been pretty busy. While boycotts work, given enough people that choose to participate, I don't think letter writing is typically very persuasive when it comes to box office sales, though a petition with many names might be. The RCC has members that have given their critiques over film content, sometimes leading to demonstrations, such as during the original release of the movie "the exorcist," yet the controversy over the film probably only helped box office sales with the "free publicity" of news stories about demonstrations.

Just read verses when your confused on things. Sometimes, before I open my Bible I would pray that He would show/lead me clearly about the things that makes me confused. God Bless!

Thank you Kym. This is very sound advice indeed.

Eph 5:11 And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.

I have always loved Isaiah 58 Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins.......

But note that the Lord is speaking of His people...the house of Jacob. I do not believe we are called to reprove the world of sin...that is the work of the Lord.

John 16:7 ¶ Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.
8 And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:
9 Of sin, because they believe not on me;

Quite sound and quite true, but "here's the rub": While we know who God's people are when they profess to believe Him and demonstrate their faith in their works and manifested "fruit", only God knows who His people are prior to their being born again of His Spirit and its these that we are hoping to reach and make into disciples of our Lord. Should we be concerned with what unbelievers are exposed to of an anti-Christian nature? The word of God is able to overcome "strong deception," but does that mean we should be idle while liars are spreading "believable" lies?" (There's at least 6 million murdered Jews that would have an answer to this if it were possible to answer from mass graves and buried ashes.)
I read scripture from an early age, desiring to know as much about Jesus as I could, but I can't say that I fully believed scripture or understood and received the gospel until I was 39 years old. That's a lot of years to live a life of sin, and while the blood of Jesus paid the price of it all, the effect of 39 years of the world trying to mold me through education, entertainment, and social pressure has given the Lord quite a bit to "renew" in my thinking. I know a number of young people who have "chosen" to believe in Christ and made a profession of faith, but these being largely ignorant of scripture, don't know what to make of the behavioral prohibitions in God's law or in the new testament teachings of Christ and the Apostles. They don't see anything wrong with premarital sex, homosexual behavior, rebellion against authority, and many other things which God calls evil, and where did they get such ideas?
I don't have any solutions to these problems to speak of, and the way society at large is moving, it would seem that neither does anyone else, but I suspect that any solution would start with prayer.

 

[OzSpen]

I've never thought of myself as any kind of activist, though I've participated in my labor union's demonstrations and rallies, but I'd like to know how other professing believers think that we should respond to the world's blasphemies.
Yesterday afternoon I decided to go a local theatre to watch the new star wars film for nostalgia's sake, but during the seemingly endless previews and commercials before the movie, I saw a trailer for a new X-men movie that is scheduled to be released in May. The plot is about "the first or original mutant" and how he went by many names through the centuries and one of the names given in the trailer was the covenant name of God found in scripture. I found this disturbing on multiple levels, as I was a fan of Marvel comics when I was a child and a fan of the Marvel comic based movies since they started coming out. I once met Stan Lee at a comic book convention in NYC, and he seemed a bit arrogant, but I never would have pegged him as an enemy of God and Christ, because the stories that he wrote always seemed to be based in sound morality and a conviction for justice. I don't know if he actually wrote the material that was in the trailer, but I assume that he would have some say as to how the plot was handled.
I could just boycott the movie, though doing so is unlikely to have much affect upon the box office revenue, but is this the only legitimate response to such a thing?
I don't go to the theatre very often, but I do enjoy watching movies and prefer fantasy and science fiction to most genres, but I'm not particularly happy with production companies that play "fast and loose" with the biblical narrative (as in the recent productions of "Noah" and "Exodus"), and outright blasphemy seems a bit more serious than the fantasies added to biblical narrative to broaden viewer appeal. This isn't the first film to blaspheme the Lord and probably won't be the last (I once saw a movie that portrayed Christ as an alien visitor and even the Star Trek motion picture series dove into religious blasphemy in "The final frontier".)
What do you think should be the response of Christians to such attempts to delegitimize our faith through popular films and the entertainment industry?

Michael,

Depending on the situation, I generally choose one of these ways to respond:

1. I would write to the theatre to complain about the issue you raise.
2. I often write a letter to a local or state newspaper. In my weekly newspaper, most of my letters are published. If it is an issue promoted by an online newspaper such as the Brisbane Times, there is a comments section after the article that allows for responses. Most of my comments are published. However, this constricts your comments to a particular article published online.
3. Since I have a homepage, I sometimes write an article about my concern. I did this around Christmas with an article, 'How to cut Christ out of Christmas'.
4. Sometimes I will join a group of protesters outside a venue (as long as it is legal to do so).

Some thoughts from a fellow traveller.

Oz

 

[michaelvpardo]

Michael,

Some thoughts from a fellow traveller.

Oz

Thank you for your gracious response and sound advice. Most of my ministry outside of the church has been in the way of letter writing, but my experience with profit motivated individuals has never been very good (which is a little discouraging.) Perhaps I will send a letter to the theatre owners, but this would have to wait upon the Lord's timing, as He is the One that gives me effective argument (I could argue until I'm blue in the face, but unless the Lord is in it, the argument tends to fall on deaf ears.)

 

[OzSpen]

Thank you for your gracious response and sound advice. Most of my ministry outside of the church has been in the way of letter writing, but my experience with profit motivated individuals has never been very good (which is a little discouraging.) Perhaps I will send a letter to the theatre owners, but this would have to wait upon the Lord's timing, as He is the One that gives me effective argument (I could argue until I'm blue in the face, but unless the Lord is in it, the argument tends to fall on deaf ears.)

Michael,

I encourage you to write as soon as possible after the event as the longer you wait, the less impact it will have. I know from personal experience, as I used to work in the advertising industry and if somebody complained 5 weeks after an event, it had not nearly the impact on management as if you did it a couple of days after the event.

Keep up the good work.

Oz

 

[StanJ]

It really is up to you to watch or not watch the movie. Paul says whatever is not of faith, is sin. As to whether it is a blasphemy, that depends on your understanding of such, and in this case I think you are over reacting. Nevertheless, Biblical norms are NOT placed on unbelievers, and blaspheming the Holy Spirit of God, can only be done knowingly and deliberately by saying the work the Holy Spirit has done, is of Satan, when that person knows it IS the Holy Spirit doing the work. In 1973, The Exorcist came out and MANY churches got involved to protest it, which ultimately gave it more appeal and actually resulted in MORE unbelievers going to see it. The only person you should be worried about seeing your faith as legitimate, is God and those you witness to. Capitalistic / for profit organizations are NOT going to care, nor can they be saved. I don't believe God wants us to waste our time tilting at windmills.

 

[michaelvpardo]

It really is up to you to watch or not watch the movie. Paul says whatever is not of faith, is sin. As to whether it is a blasphemy, that depends on your understanding of such, and in this case I think you are over reacting. Nevertheless, Biblical norms are NOT placed on unbelievers, and blaspheming the Holy Spirit of God, can only be done knowingly and deliberately by saying the work the Holy Spirit has done, is of Satan, when that person knows it IS the Holy Spirit doing the work. In 1973, The Exorcist came out and MANY churches got involved to protest it, which ultimately gave it more appeal and actually resulted in MORE unbelievers going to see it. The only person you should be worried about seeing your faith as legitimate, is God and those you witness to. Capitalistic / for profit organizations are NOT going to care, nor can they be saved. I don't believe God wants us to waste our time tilting at windmills.

Thanks Stan, I guess that being salt and light in the world is for God's benefit or the churches benefit and all that stuff about God's love for the world is just metaphorical. Foolish me for thinking that God places us here to make a difference.

 

[StanJ]

Thanks Stan, I guess that being salt and light in the world is for God's benefit or the churches benefit and all that stuff about God's love for the world is just metaphorical. Foolish me for thinking that God places us here to make a difference.

As usual, your sarcastic remarks engender NO sympathy or apathy whatsoever. They simply come across as piously self righteous.

He does indeed want us to be salt and light, to people individually. That does not happen on soap boxes. Feel free to waste your time about what movies people go to see, while your next door neighbour has no idea of who or what you are.

 

[michaelvpardo]

As usual, your sarcastic remarks engender NO sympathy or apathy whatsoever. They simply come across as piously self righteous.

He does indeed want us to be salt and light, to people individually. That does not happen on soap boxes. Feel free to waste your time about what movies people go to see, while your next door neighbour has no idea of who or what you are.

You might want to get a decent dictionary Stan.

 

[StanJ]

You might want to get a decent dictionary Stan.

sorry, are you having problems understanding? Maybe you should get a better one and stop all this sniping child.

 

[michaelvpardo]

sorry, are you having problems understanding? Maybe you should get a better one and stop all this sniping child.

Does anyone understand you?

 

[lforrest]

It really is up to you to watch or not watch the movie. Paul says whatever is not of faith, is sin. As to whether it is a blasphemy, that depends on your understanding of such, and in this case I think you are over reacting. Nevertheless, Biblical norms are NOT placed on unbelievers, and blaspheming the Holy Spirit of God, can only be done knowingly and deliberately by saying the work the Holy Spirit has done, is of Satan, when that person knows it IS the Holy Spirit doing the work. In 1973, The Exorcist came out and MANY churches got involved to protest it, which ultimately gave it more appeal and actually resulted in MORE unbelievers going to see it. The only person you should be worried about seeing your faith as legitimate, is God and those you witness to. Capitalistic / for profit organizations are NOT going to care, nor can they be saved. I don't believe God wants us to waste our time tilting at windmills.

I say stick to what your good at, so tilt at windmills if that's your fancy. Better to have someone hollering from the choir loft than no one at all. It can only increase God's glory at the judgement if your right, cause he can say "I sent so and so to warn you."

 

[StanJ]

I say stick to what your good at, so tilt at windmills if that's your fancy. Better to have someone hollering from the choir loft than no one at all. It can only increase God's glory at the judgement if your right, cause he can say "I sent so and so to warn you."

Did Jesus run around condemning what the Romans did?
He did give us a good example of how not to impress Him, in Matthew 7:21 - 23

 

[StanJ]

Does anyone understand you?

Yep.... people with ears to hear and eyes to see.

 

[lforrest]

Did Jesus run around condemning what the Romans did?
He did give us a good example of how not to impress Him, in Matthew 7:21 - 23

Why would Jesus condemn the Romans at that time? Hes the one that built them up and used them for his righteous purposes, like the Babylonians before them.

And the will of the father is different for every person; yet there are some common elements such as the requirement to love one-another and to believe in his Son.

 

[lforrest]

Yep.... people with ears to hear and eyes to see.

That comes across as being very arrogant. As if your words are directly from God above.

Face it that your just as fallible as the next man.

 

[StanJ]

That comes across as being very arrogant. As if your words are directly from God above.
Face it that your just as fallible as the next man.

He asked.
Not in this issue and not compared to the person I addressed.