Thus, it becomes clear that bad thoughts and sinful desires and inclinations aren’t inherent properties of our soul. They come from outside and can either be accepted and cultivated by us or rejected and banished. That’s why we’ve been given free will.
Where does all this come from? Generally speaking, there’s only one source. God didn’t create evil. The first to begin to create evil in the universe was satan. He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning (1 Jn. 3:8), says the Apostle John the Theologian. And when we’re baptized, we “renounce satan and all his works.” That is, the works of sins. Therefore, those who sow sin and temptations are, of course, doing the work of the devil.
Bad, sinful thoughts are almost always born from visual, audial, and any other sensory images and impressions. Of course, there can be thoughts that are directly sown by satan, but they’re not so many as it sometimes seems. What are these external stimuli of base instincts? In the first place, without exaggeration, is the modern mass media: television, the tabloid and entertainment press, radio, and many internet sites.
Since almost all of our mass media is private, and therefore commercial, their income and the well-being of their owners depend on just one thing—ratings. And the more people who watch or listen to a particular channel at a given hour, or buy a particular publication, the more advertising companies will invest money in it—it’s all very simple. And in order to attract the audience’s or readers’ attention, you need to entertain as much as possible, play on the basest passions and vices, and show something semi-forbidden (forbidden fruit, as you know, is sweet). But this is just one aspect of the problem, because besides the commercial side of the issue, there’s another, much more important side—the moral. We’re currently experiencing the most severe onslaught: Huge amounts of money are being spent on corrupting our people morally and spiritually.
But it’s not just the media that sows sin. Sinful thoughts can come to us from everything we read, hear, see, and feel. That is, from books, films, conversations, encounters, and so on.
How can we keep our soul and mind pure if we live in a world saturated with information, if visual and audial images permeate our entire everyday life? Yes, it’s difficult, of course, but not impossible. In asceticism this is called the preservation of eyes, ears, and the mind.
To begin with, ninety percent of the information that modern man receives every day isn’t just unnecessary for him, but also very harmful. In addition, all this information is of a disgusting quality. Do you remember what Professor Preobrazhensky said in Mikhail Bulgakov’s novel Heart of a Dog? “Don’t read Soviet newspapers before eating”—it can ruin your digestion. I think that the modern press shouldn’t be read even after a meal.
The overwhelming majority of our contemporaries have lost their ability to think and analyze independently because of their love of the media. And there’s no time for it anyway, because you have to read all those newspapers and journals you’re subscribed to, watch the latest news, listen to your favorite radio station while you sit in traffic, and you need to have enough energy to watch your TV series in the evening. Meanwhile, people remain completely certain that their thoughts are their own. They no longer realize where Vladimir Pozner is speaking for them, where Alexander Gordon, and where it’s actually Mikhail Zadornov.1 The capability for independent thinking has nearly been lost. If there’s still some diversity of thought amongst our people, it’s only because people watch different shows where the presenters and participants have different points of view. As Kozma Prutkov2 said: “Many people are like sausage: They carry inside themselves whatever they’re stuffed with.” This is the principle by which our “fourth estate” operates, which truly is a real power, capable of manipulating people’s minds however it pleases.
We often hear about election fraud, incorrect vote counting, and fraudulent ballots. But all this is completely unnecessary. It’s enough to simply show the same face over and over on TV for a few weeks before the election and everyone will vote for him as one, whatever the candidate’s qualities. Napoleon said: “A few newspapers can do more than an entire army.” What would Bonaparte have said if he knew about TV? But anyway, our topic isn’t political tactics, but the battle with the passions, so let’s return to that.
We can say with absolute certainty that watching TV, reading the tabloids, and consuming other media inflames all eight passions in our souls.
Let’s see how the media contribute to them being aroused in our souls.
Gluttony
This passion manifests as gluttony, drunkenness, drug addiction, and smoking. TV and other forms of media are generally aimed at the cult of hedonism and pleasure. Remember the ad slogans, “Take everything from life!” “Food is pleasure, the pleasure of taste!” and others. We don’t even have to talk about the overt and hidden advertising of beer and other alcohol. They do everything possible to convince us that life is basically unthinkable without alcohol. In movies and shows about soldiers or police officers (that is, about “real men”) their whole lives are accompanied by alcohol (vodka and beer). Moreover, of course, all this is generously paid for by sponsors whose goods the actors advertise. Practically all the characters are always smoking. By the way, in Hollywood films it’s almost impossible to find a positive hero who drinks or smokes. Americans have finally realized the effect such examples have on young people.
But all of this is just the tip of the iceberg. After all, our TV often has scenes where quite positive characters are using drugs and smoking “grass.” I remember how in one well-known Russian film, the phrase, “Grass isn’t a drug!” was repeated several times, like an advertising slogan.
Fornication
Well, we don’t even have to say much about this. It’s enough to flip through any popular newspaper or turn on the TV, especially some youth channel, say, MTV. All of TV and radio are filled with obscene scenes, conversations about sexual relations, crude jokes, or whole broadcasts about “it.” In European countries, and even in America, movies and shows with erotic content have long been shown only at certain times late at night.
Avarice
On the topic of the cult of greed, covetousness, and avarice, there’s a mass of TV and radio programs that deliberately suggest that you can “become a millionaire” without any special efforts or labor. At the same time, the reverse side of greed is also aroused—envy. After all, the standard of living, that is, the goods and entertainment that the media advertises, are available only to a small circle of people. And the rest can only salivate and envy.
Anger
Envy causes anger. That’s understandable. When so many people in the country are unemployed, haven’t been paid in months, and can’t live on their retirement, it’s quite understandable that the things these people see on TV irritates and angers them: ratings of the richest people in the country, ads for housing for several thousand dollars per square meter, and so on. Any news report is a cause for anger: corruption, injustice, the inaction of the authorities and law enforcement. To this we can add films that cause aggression with scenes of violence and brutality. And we can only guess what effect an interview with a maniac talking about how he enjoys killing can have on the human soul.
Sadness and Despondency
This same news can’t lead to anything but sadness, despondency, and anxiety. Catastrophes, car accidents, crashes, murders, wars and local conflicts, crises and deficits… And this is every day.
Vanity and Pride
If a man constantly learns about human vices and sins on TV and in the press, he begins to fall into condemnation and self-exaltation: “If stars and politicians are mired in debauchery and excess, then I’m not doing so bad.” On the other hand, he starts to get used to the idea that vice and sin are the norm of life.
Forgive me for expounding so much upon things we all know, but sometimes in the daily grind we simply don’t think about what beasts we’re opening the gates to when we turn on the TV or pick up a newspaper. Something that even an adult would probably never have thought of can be brought out by a raunchy film or lewd article. Completely terrible thoughts and instincts can be uninhibited if we don’t guard our eyes and ears.
What can we do? The age-old Russian question. Can we really live in information isolation and be totally unaware of anything happening in the country and in the world? This problem is greatly exaggerated. We don’t live in the desert or on some deserted island. Believe me, we’ll find out all the news that we actually need. Maybe we’ll be a day behind at most. Either way, we’ll hear about it at work, from friends, from relatives. But we lose much more by interacting with the media. One thing’s for sure: Those who regularly watch TV, listen to the radio, and read the press can’t preserve their mind, ears, and eyes in purity.
TV and cinema are generally very aggressive things—they’re first in terms of impact. After all, they put a ready-made picture into a man’s mind; he doesn’t have to think, to use his imagination; he’s given a ready-made image. And what’s most frightening, he then begins to consider this image as a product of his own mind. It’s no coincidence that Lenin—a great expert in manipulating mass consciousness—said: “Of all the arts, cinema is the most important for us.”
A man who watches TV can’t do anything else—neither do any tasks (even the simplest ones), nor even eat any food (it’s been proven that this is very harmful). You could even listen to the radio while washing dishes, for example, but you can’t watch TV while washing them.
Unless a man’s job is connected with politics or some other field that actually needs the latest news, he won’t lose anything if he reduces his interaction with the media to a minimum. Actually, he’ll gain a lot: clarity of mind, reduction of temptations, and an abyss of free time that can be spent reading good literature, cultural activities, spending time with loved ones, and other necessary things. It’s no coincidence that the media inflames all the passions; its effect is similar to that of the passions—it creates dependency, addiction. When you start watching a movie, you can sit in front of the TV for hours, forgetting about everything else.
Therefore, it’s very good to at least severely limit the mass media’s influence on us. If there are children in the house, then it’s absolutely necessary. We have to try to not watch TV at least during the fasts, on Wednesdays and Fridays. Otherwise, our whole struggle with the passions will be quite ineffective. And for those who are worried about going completely without information, I can advise them to choose radio programs, certain newspapers, or sites that have news that’s more neutral and inoffensive. Such options still exist for now.
