Boyd K. Packer, in a January of last year speech "Lehis Dream and You" that members who watch TV are actually living in the 'spacious building' in Lehi's tree of life vision.
"Largely because of television, instead of looking over into that spacious building, we are, in effect, living inside of it. That is your fate in this generation. You are living in that great and spacious building."
He also said that "All of the mocking does not come from outside of the Church. Be careful that you do not fall into that category.."
So how reliable is the "news" reporting by the media?
Here is the full speech: http://speeches.byu.edu/reader/reader.php?id=11528
I couldn't believe it when I saw that ray wasn't the poster of this article. ;)
I'll quote my favorite current musician, John Mayer, on the state of news and TV:
"And when you trust your television What you get is what you got Cause when they own the information, oh They can bend it all they want"
I was talking with my husband about something similar last night. Bear with me -- I'll use parenting advice as my example. . . one of my kids is really a challenge to raise, so I read a lot about parenting. There is so much advice out there that SOUNDS good. It seems like it should work. It's convincing. Some I've tried. But recently I read an Ensign article a couple of years old that goes directly against some of this "good"-sounding advice, and it made me re-think some of these "trusted" sources.
I started thinking about how we're told that in the last days, even the very elect will be deceived (I'm not proclaiming myself among the very elect, but I do try). There's only One place we can look to for the correct information. We have to be very picky about where we choose to get our advice, and even then we have to confirm through prayer and the Spirit that it is, indeed, truth.
That's why I am so thankful for modern Prophets and for personal revelation.
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"There is order in the way the Lord reveals His will to mankind. . .we cannot receive revelation for someone else's stewardship." L. Tom Perry
I think TV has a devious ability to drain precious time from people, especially Latter-Day Saints who have covenanted to build up Zion. It also buries people in advertising which proclaim the Babylonian pick up line: you can have anything in this world w/ $$$. Don't even get me started on the news!
I remember serving with an assistant Varsity coach who always had to leave our weekly activities early. Why? "Survivor" was on and he couldn't miss it. He was shamelessly honest about it which surprised me.
I don't like how some of the funniest cleverest shows are the ones that seem to always be pushing the envelope as to what's acceptable... House comes to mind. On our TV we have to put our code in to watch it now. It doesn't even appeal to me much anymore. That's about the only TV Show that you all would probably recognize that I watch. Other stuff I watch is horse-related or lately Presidential stuff.
My bigger problem is all the time I waste here. (No offense, arbi )
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Life is tough but it's tougher if you're stupid. -John Wayne
We cut out TV, and it's been a great blessing to us. I'd be lying if I said that I don't miss it sometimes. Especially the food channel. One of the greatest blessings is that our son quotes cartoons less often. Still, it happens occasionally that he'll recount something he saw in a cartoon a couple of years ago when we still subscribed to satellite.
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If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animated contest of freedom, go from us in peace. May your chains sit lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that you were our countrymen! - Samuel Adams
I watch soccer, military stuff from the History Channel, some football, Everybody Loves Raymond reruns (with my wife) and Project Runway (with my wife). I'll check the news to see what is currently going on. Other then that I don't watch much tv. Soccer is what I watch the most of.
I learn a lot from TV, but then when I do watch it, is almost exclusively the Discovery Channel, TLC, or History Channel. It's funny that my kids like those channels and learning from them.
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Lo, there I see my mother, my sisters, my brothers Lo, there I see the line of my people back to the beginning Lo, they call to me, they bid me take my place among them In the halls of Valhalla, where the brave may live...forever
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