Today I planned on watching some free to air tv but then I came across GOD TV. I was not watching spiritual things for a while but I thought I should look if there could be a message for me. I found it quite interesting and fun but I don't know if I will implement what I watched.. which was that you must give alot of time for God. God only reveals things to those who hunger for God or for knowledge of God
Now I don't know if I should watch free to air tv or spiritual programs all the time. I could watch normal tv programs but spiritual programs relax me. Which one should I watch.. how should I balance this?
Everyday, every hour I have conflicts like this.. I never feel I could serve God or enjoy myself nor do I have peace.. which is why I wish for Gods atonement for myself by itself
another time I looked for a list of good deeds and it seemed noone found much good deeds to do. I felt no good deed will make me secure of my salvation nor will they save me
Comments
i used to get it for free after a storm moved our satellite (i rarely watched satellite tv before that, there was just one on the house we were renting and occasionally we switched on Zee TV when it had english subtitles).
we saw a few good things, but also a lot of people who made loads of money by yelling at the cameras and spouting nonsense theology.
it's better for you to spend time in church, go to Bible study, pray and help people around you. don't watch too much tv. if you have lots of free time, ask people in your church if there are any people in your neighbourhood that need helping out, or if the church needs cleaning etc.
i have friends who have CTV but i would never have it myself as it's so good i would be completely incapable of ever switching it of to go shopping, cook dinner, go to sleep etc.!
;)
So does that mean i should be watching ctv and going to church most of the time? my dad is very serious about me having to watch the news, and know about the world and having other things on my mind but God.
But I do believe God will equip our priests to feed us with knowledge and I do not need God TV but I do believe those preachers are really good but not better than our priests but equal because they thirst after God
It is filled with heresy and will damage the faith of those who watch it.
User157, you must not take a person's suggestion and try to build a whole life around it. I am sure that mabsoota does not mean, when recommending CTV, that you should spend most of your time watching it. You need to try to develop a rounded life, especially at your age. I would encourage you to speak with your spiritual father about how in general terms you should structure your life for your salvation.
God bless you
Fr. Peter,
are there any Christian satellite channels that you would recommend?
Is a "smile of a child" a good channel?
Does anyone know if school of christ tv is good for us to watch? I put a link here and the man is probably an egyptian protestant, but my father sees that he says really good things, which are in common with our religion. This is the video: http://www.schoolofchrist.tv/school-of-christ/jesus-personality/56--.html
and this is the homepage: http://www.schoolofchrist.tv/
And what about sat 7?? And "the way" (el tareeq)? And "El sehfaa" (the healer)? and "Miracles"? (el mo3gaazat??)|
I really wonder your opinion about it. In some of these channels I see the spirit of Christ in them and they pray and sing with their heart. But I do not now if they are all coptic orthodox or not. It are all egyptian channels though.
I can see it can harm some who hear salvation by faith alone and so they do not try to follow him. But mostly these people are not satanic people who are trying to harm us so mostly no harm is done. It just means you need to be more enquiring in your church about its beliefs
No Orthodox Christian should make a habit of listening to Protestant teaching. It is not for Orthodox Christians to decide for themselves what they will and will not watch and listen to and read.
The Church is very clear that it is wrong to attend to heterodox teachings and teachers.
For all of us it is not only best, but necessary, to avoid these stations. When we think we will not be affected we will discover too late that we have been.
It is better not to watch TV than to watch Protestant programmes. We might as well be attending the Protestant services and this is strictly forbidden.
they even allow protestant teachers in our meetings.
When Jesus preached about hell fire he said have salt in yourselves and have peace with one another and he said blessed are the peacemakers and the meek will inherit the earth
why should we give them reason to despise us and not want to help us? should we consider all the heterodox unclean and not our brothers or humans who have feelings or worth?
However it is better to stay in orthodox meetings but we must accept and love all
We should never allow Protestants to speak in our Churches outside of special circumstances, such as where an academic is providing specialist instruction.
You are confusing various scriptures when you post references in this last email. Rejecting protestantism and protestant teachings has nothing to do with being a peacemaker. I have many friends who are Protestants, I would not allow them to speak on spiritual things to my congregation. My son has Protestant friends I would never allow him to attend their own meetings.
The teaching of the Church is crystal clear. We must have nothing at all to do with the teachings of Protestantism or listen to their teachers.
The exceptions are specific and should be issued under the authority of a bishop for a specific situation. Certainly there can be no authority for any Orthodox, especially youth, to choose for themselves to listen to Protestant teaching and attend Protestant services, whether in the flesh or online.
but if our church wants to forbid protestant speakers then it is their responsibility to feed the flock of God very well and they can not listen to protestant speakers for ideas for their sermons.. so they are potentially setting themselves up for condemnation.. I love my churches sermons, I don't know how abouna makes such good sermons but if I feel I am not being fed with knowledge I will seek somewhere else
the church library is full of protestant books.. the more you become extremely against protestant material the more likely you will lose most of the flock of God i.e if our priests can not interest the youth and feed them with guidance
However since they have received the gift of the Holy Spirit perhaps there is no problem.
no more c.s lewis no more lee strobel
Today I planned on watching some free to air tv but then I came across GOD TV. I was not watching spiritual things for a while but I thought I should look if there could be a message for me. I found it quite interesting and fun but I don't know if I will implement what I watched.. which was that you must give alot of time for God. God only reveals things to those who hunger for God or for knowledge of God
Now I don't know if I should watch free to air tv or spiritual programs all the time. I could watch normal tv programs but spiritual programs relax me. Which one should I watch.. how should I balance this?
Everyday, every hour I have conflicts like this.. I never feel I could serve God or enjoy myself nor do I have peace.. which is why I wish for Gods atonement for myself by itself
another time I looked for a list of good deeds and it seemed noone found much good deeds to do. I felt no good deed will make me secure of my salvation nor will they save me
GOD Tv is an absolute waste of time, dogs shouldn't watch that garbage. I view a lot of entertainment/art like Plato did. If art/entertainment does not reflect the real world then I see it as a fake or a lie. What good can come from todays television programs, or even the horrible teachings seen on GOD Tv? It is mind numbing and soul destroying. NO ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN SHOULD EVER WATCH GOD TV.
so you will hear something correct that you can easily identify as Christian, and following that, there will be something that is heretical (eg. 'make a donation to my tv channel and God will bless you' - i have actually heard this, i am not making it up!).
so it is very easy for Christians watching it to get confused about what is the truth.
it may be good to watch, but we can not be sure, because there is no one checking the content.
look at it this way, imagine you have a chemistry exam.
you really need to pass the exam, and the book is in school and u can't be bothered to go and fetch it and study at home for the exam.
so u look at the internet and search for 'pass your chemistry exam easily'.
then u see a beautiful multicolour website that i have set up on how to pass the exam, with lots of colourful lessons and scientific equations to funky music.
you spend hours on line, being entertained and then don't even look at the book when u get back to school; u r so sure u will pass.
but u fail.
why?
well, it's about 20 years since i did a chemistry exam, and i haven't looked at the book since. i have forgotten most of the things i should have taught you and so u fail the exam.
so anyone can make any website or tv station they want, there is no one checking if it is true or useful. i could write a travel guide to china if i wanted, even though i have never been there!
in our orthodox church, we have the Bible and the teachings of the church fathers (that means how to interpret the Bible) written down and from age to age the bishops and church scholars are educating our priests who are educating us. so it is a lot safer to get Bible teaching from church, just like it is a lot safer to read the book that your school sets the exam from in order to pass the exam.
so by all means watch nature programs and other things on tv, but even then, don't take them too seriously. people can write a load of rubbish and put it on tv!
read the Bible and go to church and this is the best way of learning about God, about life and about how to serve God. Coptic tv channels are ok, but too much time in front on the tv will get in the way of social skills.
the church library is full of protestant books.. the more you become extremely against protestant material the more likely you will lose most of the flock of God i.e if our priests can not interest the youth and feed them with guidance
There is something seriously wrong with any church library of any Orthodox church which is full of Protestant books. This is utterly and completely forbidden by the teachings of Orthodoxy.
What you seem to be suggesting is that unless young people are allowed to become protestants then they might leave the church and become protestants. In my own congregation, and those wider groups of people I meet with and support I see no interest at all in choosing protestantism over Orthodoxy.
You are right that Orthodoxy must be presented properly and authentically, but young people, indeed all Orthodox people, must also submt themselves to the teaching of the Church and not assume that they should do whatever they want, read whatever they want and believe whatever they want.
I am glad to know many young Copts who do indeed want to be properly Orthodox. It is rather a matter of great concern to think that people would choose to read error rather than the beautiful and lifegiving words of our spiritual Fathers which are increasingly available in English and explained in English at all levels of ability.
Unfortunately that's not what I've been hearing from around the world.
Then that is sad, truly sad.
That is again not what I have heard?
What do you mean that Protestantism has entered into some church functions? Wow, well I am glad i am on the west coast, we don't even come near anything from Protestantism.
The infamous "red book" produced by the church in D.C. has MANY protestant songs in them. Makes me wonder at times if Fr. Messeh is protestant himself.
Do you mean that there are no protestant songs sung on the West coast at any meetings? And that no protestant books or sermons or videos are accessed?
That is again not what I have heard?
Well not in my church i can tell you that. I don't know about the rest but all the ones i have been to which are like 7 don't have anything like this. This is the first time i have heard anyone say something like this.
[quote author=Father Peter link=topic=12745.msg149789#msg149789 date=1325462163]
Do you mean that there are no protestant songs sung on the West coast at any meetings? And that no protestant books or sermons or videos are accessed?
That is again not what I have heard?
Well not in my church i can tell you that. I don't know about the rest but all the ones i have been to which are like 7 don't have anything like this. This is the first time i have heard anyone say something like this.
If they do at my church, they don't let me know. They wouldn't dare let me know. LOL. That is the positive side to be a loud mouthed pest, people will stop doing what you are complaining about just so you stop complaining.
[quote author=geomike link=topic=12745.msg149788#msg149788 date=1325460859]
What do you mean that Protestantism has entered into some church functions? Wow, well I am glad i am on the west coast, we don't even come near anything from Protestantism.
The infamous "red book" produced by the church in D.C. has MANY protestant songs in them. Makes me wonder at times if Fr. Messeh is protestant himself.
What kind of songs are Protestant? Can you name any?
I haven't seen this "red book" at all; I'm simply asking.
Here are a couple of examples: http://tasbeha.org/content/community/index.php/topic,10823.msg131862.html#msg131862
[quote author=Ioannes link=topic=12745.msg149790#msg149790 date=1325462362]
[quote author=geomike link=topic=12745.msg149788#msg149788 date=1325460859]
What do you mean that Protestantism has entered into some church functions? Wow, well I am glad i am on the west coast, we don't even come near anything from Protestantism.
The infamous "red book" produced by the church in D.C. has MANY protestant songs in them. Makes me wonder at times if Fr. Messeh is protestant himself.
What kind of songs are Protestant? Can you name any?
I haven't seen this "red book" at all; I'm simply asking.
I actually only looked at it a few times and was furious. I actually asked if I could burn them all. They were like, well there are coptic songs in there too. I said, ok let me tear those pages out and burn the rest.
however it may sometimes become a waste of time if not used with wisdom (which I don't have yet), and also stumble some people
we use this world without misusing it