Baptist Pastor Not Amused by America's 'Addiction'

AgapePress ^ | October 7, 2003 | Fred Jackson

[Vindiciae Contra TyrannoSCOTUS]

A Southern Baptist preacher says America has developed an addiction to entertainment -- and that addiction has even found its way into churches.

Kelly Boggs says there is little in American society that has not been tainted by what he calls "the insatiable desire to be amused." Besides television and the Internet, the demand to be entertained has also found its way into political campaigns, the presentation of professional sports -- and now the church.

Boggs, a pastor in Oregon, tells Baptist Press there was a time when a church was evaluated by its commitment to biblical truth, but not anymore. Now, he contends, the audience demands services with flawless musical presentations and sermons "peppered with humor." Conviction, Boggs says, is forced to compete with amusement.

According to Pastor Boggs, the danger in all this is a lost desire to think critically -- where emotion rather than fact becomes the supreme barometer, and where the "sensational trumps the substantive."

The preacher concludes with an ominous warning, stating that a society addicted to entertainment is made up of people who are obsessed with their own pleasure.

[Vindiciae Contra TyrannoSCOTUS]

WorldNetDaily: Research: 1/3 of us worship celebrities

Reported by New Scientist, the research included interviews of 600 people. They were asked about their personalities and interest in celebrities.

Until now, says a report by Agence France-Presse, the conventional view was that obsessive celebrity worship was limited to a tiny fraction of the population. The study, however, found there is a "sliding scale" between those who follow stars for fun and those who are seriously pathological.

Psychologists Lynn McCutcheon of DeVry University in Florida and James Houran of the Southern Illinois University School of Medicine conducted the research.

Respondents' level of star-struckness was measured by their reaction to statements such as "I am obsessed by details of my favorite celebrity's life," "I consider my favorite celebrity to be my soul mate," and "If he/she asked me to do something illegal as a favor, I would probably do it," AFP reported.

Schwarzenegger Candidacy Illustrates The Republican Party's Lack Of Commitment To Conservatism & ADDICTION TO CELEBRITIES

California Republican Assembly NOT ADDICTED TO T.V./MOVIE CHARACTERS:

At it's August Endorsing Convention, the California Republican Assembly made the following recommendations to voters in the Recall Election:

Recall - Yes

Governor - Tom McClintock

Prop. 53 - NO

Prop 54. - YES

[Support Free Republic]

Let's keep the Dem's on the run!
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[smith288]

Our southern Baptist church has a good choir and our pastor peppers his sermons with humor. He finds it as a great way to introduce those who do not know Jesus and his love.

I just think this guy is jealous that his sermons are probably similiar to Pastor Lovejoy on the Simpsons.

[Trailerpark Badass]

Well, I'm safe in my Catholic church, where the "band" plays the most insipid music I've ever heard, and I can't understand what the Vietnamese priest is saying during his homily.

[WKB]

God has a sense of humor he made Kelly Boggs didn't he.

[cpforlife.org]

Sad but true.

I recall a story I heard (foggy on details-help welcome) where baseball's Tommy Lasorda gave a talk one Sunday from the pitchers mound to a huge crowd. He raised his hands high, as if in victory, and exclaimed, "this is the new church!" The crowd cheered.

[r9etb]

Our southern Baptist church has a good choir and our pastor peppers his sermons with humor. He finds it as a great way to introduce those who do not know Jesus and his love.

Yup.

Churches have been using beautiful music for centuries, and a good sermon doesn't hurt none, either.

I think the Pastor probably has his finger on a valid idea, but his choice of example does make one wonder about his style.

[VxH]

[I recall a story I heard (foggy on details-help welcome) where baseball's Tommy Lasorda gave a talk one Sunday from the pitchers mound to a huge crowd. He raised his hands high, as if in victory, and exclaimed, "this is the new church!" The crowd cheered. ]

Spectator sports - The new and improved "Opiate of the People".

Now beamed directly into to your living room in HDTV format.

Got Beer?

[r9etb]

Kelly Boggs.

Here's his church website. Based on his columns, he seems earnest but kinda dull, about what you'd expect.

[Sloth]

He's certainly correct. God did not establish the church for recreation, but for edification & evangelism.

[MineralMan]

Well, there is this:

[out_of_control]

I don't know this pastor at all, but I do not think he is calling the church to a new level of boredom. Rather, he is pointing out a serious problem. Many people in the pews today do not think theologically and quite frankly, cannot. They come to church with a "what's-in-it-for-me" mindset. They think of themselves as the audience in worship. But God is the audience in worship. The people are the "actors" and the clergy/leaders are the prompters.

[kevao]

Sorry, but I just couldn't get through this entire article. Too boring.

[Orangedog]

Spectator sports - The new and improved "Opiate of the People".

The entire country could turn communist and as long as Monday Night Football isn't pre-empted, everything will be just fine. Three days after 9/11/01 I was in line to get coffee at the cafeteria at work. In front of me were three sports fans who just wished all "that news stuff" wasn't on all the TV channels because they couldn't watch their games. Rome is burning but Nero isn't fiddling...he's watching the play-offs.

[Vindiciae Contra TyrannoSCOTUS]

Popular culture’s greatest influence is in the way it shapes how we think and feel (more than what we think and feel) and how we think and feel about thinking and feeling. Book Briefs - All God's Children and Blue Suede Shoes

Barna's research indicates that, of the 80 million Americans who claim to be born again, roughly only 7 million of them have a biblical perspective. In Think Like Jesus, he examines guidelines for developing a Christian worldview and letting it change one's way of life.Researcher Says Most Christians Lack Biblical Worldview AgapePress ^ | September 15, 2003 | Allie Martin / George Barna is the founder of Barna Research Group

[Vindiciae Contra TyrannoSCOTUS]

Not enough ENTERTAINMENT for ya?

[borkrules]

Ain't that the truth!

The hand-clapping during the "gloria", the incessant drum beat and occassional drum roll accompanying the guitar strumming and high school skill level trumpet and whatever other "instrument" they can find someone to play drive thoughts of worship right out of mind.

And what's worse is there is a perfectly good pipe organ just sitting there! Unused!

Then the fat, unshaved "deacon" waddles to the lectern and mutters his way through the Gospel, after which the Monsignor favors us with his homily, which of course bears no relationship to the readings and precious little relationship to even the Gospel.

What I would not give to hear a good old fashioned fire-n-brimstone homily from the pulpit. If for no other reason than to watch all the cradle catholics around me pee their pants!

[Gargantua]

A "my church can beat your church" attitude is one of the things Christ and the Apostles taught against. This pastor is right inasmuch as Christ Himself said that a man can only serve one master, and that all must choose whom they will serve.

At the same time, it is possible that this pastor is right, and your pastor delivers biblically sound sermons with appropriately humorous invective.

Many good pastors do both.

;-/

[r9etb]

Rather, he is pointing out a serious problem.

I agree. Then again, there's no reason why serious worship can't also be enjoyable too.

[Aquinasfan]

Kelly Boggs says there is little in American society that has not been tainted by what he calls "the insatiable desire to be amused."

He's correct. But he wasn't the first one to come up with this idea.

Amusing Ourselves to Death