The reading of trashy celebrity magazines is rampant among my fellow students

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Tim

Tim

Puritan Board Graduate
Every day there seems to be the latest trashy celebrity magazine in the kitchen/eating area of my research unit. My fellow post-graduate students are really into this stuff. Ugh.

What can I do to address this without getting the "you are self-righteous" reaction?

-----Added 3/25/2009 at 11:23:57 EST-----

They just don't realize the filth they are feeding themselves.

-----Added 3/25/2009 at 11:24:28 EST-----

Maybe I should carefully place a Bible on the center of the table.

-----Added 3/25/2009 at 11:24:59 EST-----

On top of the magazine.
 
Tim said:
What can I do to address this without getting the "you are self-righteous" reaction?
Click to expand...

To be honest, if I was in that eating area reading through an Entertainment Weekly (which I enjoy reading; see "Guilty Pleasures" thread) and you suggested I should be reading a Bible instead, I would take it as as self-righteousness.
 
The human heart has a tendency to gravitate towards gossip. Particularly when the gossip is "juicy."

When they bring up something from the magazines, then is a good time to tactfully challenge them on why they're interested in it. But if you stand there preaching at them (thinking you're doing the "Lord's work") about the evils of gossip magazines... you'll come across as if you're a self-righteous member of the moral police.

So ignore it unless they bring up something from it... and then challenge them on it without condemning them to the depths of hell.
 
Some people need/like to read mindless skubalon when on break.
I don't think it would be beneficial at all to your relationship with these people to rebuke them. Now I would advise making fun of them, if you have a friendship with them already and can pull off poking fun.
What I hate is horoscopes. If a Christian friend were reading them, I'd rebuke her. If a Christian who I don't know was reading them, I'd probably still say something, maybe covered in laughter.
If a friend who is not a Christian was reading them, I'd tease them.
Now if any of the people asked me if I wanted to hear my horoscope, I'd say, "nah. I don't believe in that."

Maybe with the gossip magazine you can do sort of the same. If they ask you, "Have you heard..." and it is something that you are NOT interested in, you can just say something like, "Yeah, I really don't care what J Lo is up to. Sorry, bud."
But if they are reading it and leaving you alone, forget it.

We aren't primarily about teaching people how to change behaviors but how to have their hearts changed, right?
 
Years ago, while working at a newspaper in a relatively small, peaceful town, I came back to work after lunch and overheard a conversation to the effect of, "so he shot her dead?" Wow, what just happened?

It turned out that a bunch of the staff would go home and watch a soap opera every day! And the hour or so after lunch would be punctuated by the staff commenting on the story line. It wasn't my cup of tea, but there wasn't much I could do about it, and really, I'm not sure it would have accomplished much to have tried.

Sometimes I think otherwise educated folks like having something un-intellectual to help unwind. As long as it doesn't violate a workplace policy, it might be distasteful but you can't say much.
 
Unless they are all meant to be Christians I would take it as self-righteousness.

Even if they are Christians be careful. I am constantly put off around here by Christians who explicitly or implicitly says that all my time spent reading books is wordly (because I work hard and study :rolleyes:). Maybe my course is more worthy than the gossip mags, but there is a certain similar theme. I am sure they will see it the same.
 
This seems to be a symptom of a larger problem. I doubt that it would help them to stop reading these magazines. Perhaps a more fundamental change is what is needed. :2cents:
 
I for one care about what celebrities are doing. Piper, Sproul, Ferguson, Morecraft, Donnelly... Inquiring minds like mine wanna know!

Theognome
 
expand on it

QUOTE=Tim;580243]Every day there seems to be the latest trashy celebrity magazine in the kitchen/eating area of my research unit. My fellow post-graduate students are really into this stuff. Ugh.

What can I do to address this without getting the "you are self-righteous" reaction?

-----Added 3/25/2009 at 11:23:57 EST-----

They just don't realize the filth they are feeding themselves.

-----Added 3/25/2009 at 11:24:28 EST-----

Maybe I should carefully place a Bible on the center of the table.


Why not use it as a way to get a conversation going? Whatever star is fornicating, or using drugs,etc, might be an opening to expand the dialogue.
Raise the issue of the fact that their money and fame are leading them into empty lives that are self destructive.
Point out we are not meant to live as animals, but rather as image bearer's.
Going against the laws of God always leads to an immoral path. Morality is not subjective. Plant seed in their minds. towards the end of the conversation let them know that you are too busy trying to live your own life, then to spend time dwelling too much on the excesses of the spoiled and pampered celebrities.:rolleyes: No sense to just ignore it, or just to seek an outward facade of morality.
 
Some of you have commented that if I mention this practice, then I would be viewed as self-righteous (as I myself worried about in the OP).

But isn't that a common response when confronted with the law (assuming that there is sin involved in looking at the images in this magazine, etc). And isn't the law used to show people their sin? And isn't this used to show people their need of Christ (through the law comes knowledge of sin, etc.)? And may not all this be used by God to save a sinner?

What I am asking is how I may do this tactfully and lovingly. It almost seems like there is a view that we shouldn't call people on their sin! But this is the PB, so certainly this cannot be the case! :pilgrim:
 
It's always hard to know what to recommend not fully knowing all the circumstances, and of course, those circumstances will change.

But I sense you have conviction about this. God has placed you there, even while on break, for a reason.

No doubt there is some worthwhile information and enjoyable information amongst these many publications, as well as some designed to provoke scandal, rumor, incite immorality, etc.

This is only a thought, not knowing everything here so take it for what it's worth. Pray and ask God:

1) To give you access to engage someone or several who are "feeding" regularly on all this. Engage them on a biblical principle that God might use for further, deeper engagement about the things of God

2) Pray the atmosphere might change. For example, (this is totally subjective and might not be what you would pray) ask that the break room might become dominated by classical music playing softly, and things like wildlife, skills and adventure magazines

3) Consider if you might be able to regularly contribute a copy of Table Talk or some other magazine to the mix

You are to be commended for thinking about, and caring about such things- for the Glory and Honor of our God.:)
 
I think celeb mags are written/read because people put these people on such a high pedal stools that they enjoy tearing them down to make them more "human". They like to see that rich and famous people are just like every other person. This really is good insight do mankind's knowledge of God...even though they deny God and His holiness, the only way to make someone more human is to show their wicked (bad side)...not their "good side". What is opposite of God but wickedness which is fallen humanness. They want these people to shine when it comes to entertaining them, but not so much in their normal lives. Anyway, I also think the mags are garbage for the reason Sola Scriptura said, but also because once again like tv/movies, it is molding the brains of it's reader...getting them use to fornication/homosexuality etc.

-----Added 3/26/2009 at 06:26:59 EST-----

Tim,
just point out the wrongness of them....they are full of gossip which does hurt those people and they are full of sexual sin which hurts the reader. Why would that be self-righteous sounding....I don't think it would be. I have non-christian friends who same the same exact thing.
 
I think that these magazines might serve to help start conversations that could eventually turn to things of the Lord.
 
Tim said:
I think that these magazines might serve to help start conversations that could eventually turn to things of the Lord.
Click to expand...

So might pornographic magazines, but I wouldn't advocate using them as stepping stones to conversation, either.
 
But I wouldn't have to be looking at the magazines in order to talk about them. I could just say something like, "I think its sad that so and so spends so much time partying and shopping. Do you think her values are good ones?" Or something like that.
 
Tim said:
Some of you have commented that if I mention this practice, then I would be viewed as self-righteous (as I myself worried about in the OP).

But isn't that a common response when confronted with the law (assuming that there is sin involved in looking at the images in this magazine, etc). And isn't the law used to show people their sin? And isn't this used to show people their need of Christ (through the law comes knowledge of sin, etc.)? And may not all this be used by God to save a sinner?

What I am asking is how I may do this tactfully and lovingly. It almost seems like there is a view that we shouldn't call people on their sin! But this is the PB, so certainly this cannot be the case! :pilgrim:
Click to expand...

Sorry Tim! I was picturing you just saying, "You are sinning by reading that!"
And that would be that. I don't think that would be helpful!
I think you could focus on the parts that are sinful instead of saying that it is a sin to read those magazines. But if you aren't friends with these people and there's no real relationship there, I think I'd build that up first. I would listen to a friend, who can relate to me on at least some things. But if I thought that the person saw everything I did as sin, I'd not care to know them and sit in their judgment. I would blow everything off that they said, thinking they were not loving but judging.

Yes, being confronted with the law shows us our sins. But I think it is the law as a whole more so than picking at specific sins. (I know specific sins bring you to the whole law, so if that's your goal, I can understand that.) I think eventually a person would want to be shown their specific sins, so as to cooperate with sanctification there, but before one has the Holy Spirit, I think they need to see the big picture that they are sinners. And yes, a magazine can point that out, but I don't think that would be the best way, in my opinion. I mean, if it was p0rnography where it is easy to see that it violates God's law, but an entertainment magazine may fall under the "permissible but not always beneficial" category. At least we can agree that there are Christians who read these, right? If even they don't think they are sinning, I think it would be hard to convince an unbeliever.
I think the magazine is not the issue. To make it the issue would not help, in my opinion.
 
I think there's an entirely legitimate and non-relgious point to saying "Friend, that stuff is junk, all around. Who cares about X, Y or Z and what new plastic surgery they got, what affair they had, or what ridiculous quote they made. Don't insult your own intelligence."
 
My :2cents:

I've worked in placed where there have been all sorts of magazines, even ****. Where I work at the moment, now and then group e-mails with filthy humour drop down in the mailbox.

I don't even comment it, unless someone else brings it up.

This is only my experience, I might be totally off and stand in correction. It might be that it is I who is an unchristlike coward too. But calling things immoral or trying to get non-christian people to see the error of their ways has never worked. To them there is no absolute moral law of God, they have another worldview altogether.

When I was an atheist, and christians pointed out the errors of the world, I just saw them as self-righteous.

Somehow I believe that we need to get past the issues of "external" morality and down to the ultimate questions like the meaning of life, guilt before God, who Jesus is and eternity.
 
Although I would agree with Theoretical above, pointing out that it is worthless junk can be a way to avoid the label of self-righteousness while still speaking your mind
 
Why not take in copies of various Christian magazines and leave them out Like "Modern Reformation"?

And maybe start a conversation from something you've read in there.."I was reading...such and such...did you see that?"

-----Added 3/27/2009 at 10:42:28 EST-----

Iconoclast;


Why not use it as a way to get a conversation going? Whatever star is fornicating, or using drugs,etc, might be an opening to expand the dialogue.

Raise the issue of the fact that their money and fame are leading them into empty lives that are self destructive.

Point out we are not meant to live as animals, but rather as image bearer's.
Going against the laws of God always leads to an immoral path. Morality is not subjective. Plant seed in their minds. towards the end of the conversation let them know that you are too busy trying to live your own life, then to spend time dwelling too much on the excesses of the spoiled and pampered celebrities.:rolleyes: No sense to just ignore it, or just to seek an outward facade of morality.
Click to expand...

I agree, it could certainly be an opening to many useful and challenging conversations..

When they are talking about the latest celeb, you could comment on how sad that really is, thinking so many kids look up to these people, and desire to emulate them..and maybe even link it to other news, about the rise in STD's among the youth and abortion rates, as so many follow the examples of these folks going from relationship to relationship...
 
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