The scene is a perfect illustration of what I would like to say: all of the trash that we watch on television isn’t inoffensive; it hurts us personally and, even worse, hurts us as a family.
Those who believe that the advertisements, the series and the movies that we watch – all of which are filled more and more with sensuality, curse words, violence, etc… – in reality remain on the screen and do not enter into our lives, are very wrong (and companies bet millions on the promise that they do indeed enter into our lives).
Our screens and our eyes are open doors through which these images enter and remain; however much they are desired or undesired, they become like tenants that settle in and begin to coexist with our mentality and sensibility.
The image of the family riddled with paintballs is an excellent one. In the first place, many times we think that we have the remote and therefore we are in control. But it isn’t true. Deciding upon which channel or which movie to watch doesn’t mean anything. There are a plethora of elements that strike at our interior world or that of those around us, even when we aren’t aware of it (thus the black veil used in the video): subliminal messages, ideas taken for granted, recurring contexts, etc., etc. By way of insisting, they are capable of weakening our defense and putting our values in question. We all know that many of the televised productions that we see are carried out by people with values that greatly differ or are even opposed to the Christian ones.
Are we capable of distinguishing them? Are our family members? After seeing a series or a movie, do I take the initiative to explain some of the more complicated elements (especially those who are parents or older brothers)? I think these are valid questions that we all must make; otherwise, at the bottom, they are bombarding us. On the other hand… Are there some things that would be better left unseen? What do we really benefit in seeing in them? Is the fun worth the risk?
The idea isn’t that we become separate ourselves from the world completely and only watch ETWN and other Catholic shows. But we can’t be so blind to think –or to not think– that certain programs and series that we watch are inoffensive and harmless, that they merely depend on the person who is watching them.
