What games should Christians not play?

[Steezie]

I also want to hear what everyone thinks about W.O.W. from the spiritual side of view, because in the game u can be a warlock, druid, or a shaman, (all this are witchcraft and satanic images). My character is human paladin, so it does not involve any of that stuff, but I still want to make sure that the game is alright because all the other sides to it. I want to hear as much opinions and suggestions as possible.

Do I even need to say it anymore or is this kinda like giving a fish a bath?

 

[Dust and Ashes]

I also want to hear what everyone thinks about W.O.W. from the spiritual side of view, because in the game u can be a warlock, druid, or a shaman, (all this are witchcraft and satanic images). My character is human paladin, so it does not involve any of that stuff, but I still want to make sure that the game is alright because all the other sides to it. I want to hear as much opinions and suggestions as possible.

Not so! Since the lore and religions of Azeroth are not based on a Judeo-Christian religion, your paladin doesn't serve God but rather some deity from the Warcraft universe. This means that he is just as non-Christian as a shaman or warlock.

 

[Controverse]

Not so! Since the lore and religions of Azeroth are not based on a Judeo-Christian religion, your paladin doesn't serve God but rather some deity from the Warcraft universe. This means that he is just as non-Christian as a shaman or warlock.

The Holy Light is a non-theistic religious form of philsophy...The followers of the Holy Light do not worship any gods, at least not directly. Instead, it is a philosophy, training its followers to seek perfection within themselves. It is very much an active practice of virtue rather than a passive worship. Those who follow it closely gain spiritual awareness and guidance, allowing them to lead others.

(Taken from http://www.wowwiki.com/Holy_Light)

Ark

 

[Dust and Ashes]

The Holy Light is a non-theistic religious form of philsophy...The followers of the Holy Light do not worship any gods, at least not directly. Instead, it is a philosophy, training its followers to seek perfection within themselves. It is very much an active practice of virtue rather than a passive worship. Those who follow it closely gain spiritual awareness and guidance, allowing them to lead others.

(Taken from http://www.wowwiki.com/Holy_Light)

Ark

It is still non-Christian, which was the point I was making in response to his statement that playing a shaman or warlock was bad because of the magic they use but a paladin isn't because their magic is not evil.

All that aside, I was pretty much just being facetious in responding to him.

 

[Spiffyness]

I believe that this topic is just part of a larger picture, which I will try to address with my own views. In my opinion, I believe that many Christians seem... obivious that there are other important things in this world besides God. He is certainly the most important thing, but that does not mean that we shouldn't ever do anything else. This is present in Christian music: my favorite band, Five Iron Frenzy, sometimes is rejected by Christian music stores because not enough of their songs are about Christ. However, none of their songs have any "sinful" material in them, and many address important issues in the world today. Does singing about things OTHER than Jesus make them bad? I don't believe so.

Sometimes, in order for a book/movie/videogame to express a view on life, some "innapropriate" material must be shown. For example, my High School recently put on a theater production entitled "Lie of the Mind," which dealt with domestic violence and dysfunctional families. Before the show, the Director commented (paraphrased) that "some of this material may be hard to watch, but it is an important social issue that must be addressed." How can we learn about problems in our society if we are not exposed to them? Consequently, how can we learn about (and therefore formulate opinions on) war unless someone shows us firsthand what it is like? Likewise, a movie about redemption has to first have a character who does things that need redeeming! Oftentimes, the understanding of good must be aided by the knowledge of evil.

The videogame series Metal Gear has many themes. Among these are genetic therapy, cloning, nuclear deterrence, censorship, betrayal, and truth among deception, but the major theme of the entire series, in my opinion, is the exploitation of soldiers in the modern world. The games describe how, in the past, warriors were viewed as heroes, lauded with praise and given apt rewards for their actions of keeping their country safe from harm. But now, in the modern age, soldiers are nameless, expendable tools, existing only to be used and abused by politicians and governments. How can Hideo Kojima express his views on this issue without giving the players a glimpse into this "controlled" warfare? That's why, in each game, the main character gets lied to, manipulated, and otherwise treated very badly by his government.

Another issue is that of violence, in and of itself. While I don't think that meaningless violence is godly at all, you must realize that people fight all the time in the Bible. God even helps people to win battles and whatnot. I'm sure God doesn't like war, but sometimes there's really no other choice. If you're surrounded by enemies on all sides, and they all want to kill you, don't try and tell me that you'd convert them! In fact, the Bible describes a supernatural "war" going on 24/7! In movies, books, and videogames, I don't see war as being "good" or "bad," but merely being a setting in which the story takes place, which can have "good" or "bad" things in it. The simple truth is, people fight. A lot. Therefore, the stories that we tell are going to be about fighting.

I'm not really sure how to end this little rant of mine (sorry for making it so long), so I guess I'll just repeat what I said earlier: in order to understand important situations, we must first have knowledge of those situations, and sometimes this requires seeing people do bad things.

 

[Lumen]

I believe that this topic is just part of a larger picture, which I will try to address with my own views. In my opinion, I believe that many Christians seem... obivious that there are other important things in this world besides God. He is certainly the most important thing, but that does not mean that we shouldn't ever do anything else. This is present in Christian music: my favorite band, Five Iron Frenzy, sometimes is rejected by Christian music stores because not enough of their songs are about Christ. However, none of their songs have any "sinful" material in them, and many address important issues in the world today. Does singing about things OTHER than Jesus make them bad? I don't believe so.

Sometimes, in order for a book/movie/videogame to express a view on life, some "innapropriate" material must be shown. For example, my High School recently put on a theater production entitled "Lie of the Mind," which dealt with domestic violence and dysfunctional families. Before the show, the Director commented (paraphrased) that "some of this material may be hard to watch, but it is an important social issue that must be addressed." How can we learn about problems in our society if we are not exposed to them? Consequently, how can we learn about (and therefore formulate opinions on) war unless someone shows us firsthand what it is like? Likewise, a movie about redemption has to first have a character who does things that need redeeming! Oftentimes, the understanding of good must be aided by the knowledge of evil.

The videogame series Metal Gear has many themes. Among these are genetic therapy, cloning, nuclear deterrence, censorship, betrayal, and truth among deception, but the major theme of the entire series, in my opinion, is the exploitation of soldiers in the modern world. The games describe how, in the past, warriors were viewed as heroes, lauded with praise and given apt rewards for their actions of keeping their country safe from harm. But now, in the modern age, soldiers are nameless, expendable tools, existing only to be used and abused by politicians and governments. How can Hideo Kojima express his views on this issue without giving the players a glimpse into this "controlled" warfare? That's why, in each game, the main character gets lied to, manipulated, and otherwise treated very badly by his government.

Another issue is that of violence, in and of itself. While I don't think that meaningless violence is godly at all, you must realize that people fight all the time in the Bible. God even helps people to win battles and whatnot. I'm sure God doesn't like war, but sometimes there's really no other choice. If you're surrounded by enemies on all sides, and they all want to kill you, don't try and tell me that you'd convert them! In fact, the Bible describes a supernatural "war" going on 24/7! In movies, books, and videogames, I don't see war as being "good" or "bad," but merely being a setting in which the story takes place, which can have "good" or "bad" things in it. The simple truth is, people fight. A lot. Therefore, the stories that we tell are going to be about fighting.

I'm not really sure how to end this little rant of mine (sorry for making it so long), so I guess I'll just repeat what I said earlier: in order to understand important situations, we must first have knowledge of those situations, and sometimes this requires seeing people do bad things.

Yes. For example, the Grand Theft Auto series of videogames. Most christians immediately put it down because of the content. But the developers are trying to give an accurate portrayal of the crime underworld. In those places, people don't run around saying Golly Gee and giving each other roses. It is an accurate portrayal of the violence and horrible things that go on in that kind of world. If you can't handle the content, then don't play the game. Simple as that. The games don't seem to be reveling in crime as people tend to think, but just depicting it. If that is wrong then movies like Goodfellas, Scarface, and The Godfather are evil.

Also, there's much more to those games than violence, for example the radio stations are full of biting satire on our culture. It really makes you think.

 

[MatthewEn]

 

[Dannager]

Yes. For example, the Grand Theft Auto series of videogames. Most christians immediately put it down because of the content. But the developers are trying to give an accurate portrayal of the crime underworld. In those places, people don't run around saying Golly Gee and giving each other roses. It is an accurate portrayal of the violence and horrible things that go on in that kind of world. If you can't handle the content, then don't play the game. Simple as that. The games don't seem to be reveling in crime as people tend to think, but just depicting it.

To be fair, the GTA series doesn't really go for realism, either in the mechanical or depictive sense. The crime underworld doesn't actually function as GTA does. The games wouldn't be a whole lot of fun if they worked realistically.

 

[Lumen]

To be fair, the GTA series doesn't really go for realism, either in the mechanical or depictive sense. The crime underworld doesn't actually function as GTA does. The games wouldn't be a whole lot of fun if they worked realistically.

That's true. I've found that San Andreas, while insanely fun, can feel pretty cartoonish sometimes. (Not that that's a bad thing)

 

[Steezie]

That's true. I've found that San Andreas, while insanely fun, can feel pretty cartoonish sometimes. (Not that that's a bad thing)

**Gasp** You mean cars dont really explode when I shoot them 20 times in the trunk with a pistol!?

 

[Lithium Hobo]

It is still non-Christian, which was the point I was making in response to his statement that playing a shaman or warlock was bad because of the magic they use but a paladin isn't because their magic is not evil.

All that aside, I was pretty much just being facetious in responding to him.

So wait, magic is okay as long as it's "good" magic? You're way too biased on that topic to say anything about it, sorry.

 

[Spiffyness]

Well, I've always thought that the writer of a story has complete control over the world portrayed in the story, so if the creators of Azeroth say that magic is okay in that world, then magic IS okay... in Azeroth. The reason that there is "good" magic in Lord of the Rings is because Tolkien SAYS there is. It's his world, he can decide what's right and wrong. Heck, a writer could even create a world with pagan gods, simply because he's the writer. I write stories with characters who use magic, but that doesn't mean that I think magic is good in the real world. Likewise, the creators of the Zelda series certainly don't believe that Earth was created by the three goddesses Din, Nayru, and, err.... the other one.

So, the correct argument isn't that "magic is okay if it's 'good' magic," but rather "magic is okay IN AZEROTH because it's good magic."

 

[Moana]

Sex and dating sumulators.

 

[Steezie]

Sex and dating sumulators.

Whats wrong with those?

 

[Lumen]

Sex and dating sumulators.

Why? What's wrong with them?

I feel it's extremely wrong to have a blanket statement on what's right or wrong for every christian. It is relative to each individual. The only things we can put a blanket statement on is the ten commandments. Those are universal moral laws. Anything beyond that is different to each person, according to what they believe. If someone believes it is wrong to play any M rated games, that's fine for them. But if they try and say that it's wrong for everyone because they feel it's wrong, in my opinion that's a sin.

 

[Dannager]

Sex and dating sumulators.

Er...why?

 

[SteelDisciple]

Superman Returns the video game. Not because of any spiritual issues with it...it's just a BAD, bad game. Avoid it at all costs if you treasure your soul!!!

 

[SteelDisciple]

Why? What's wrong with them?

I feel it's extremely wrong to have a blanket statement on what's right or wrong for every christian. It is relative to each individual. The only things we can put a blanket statement on is the ten commandments. Those are universal moral laws. Anything beyond that is different to each person, according to what they believe. If someone believes it is wrong to play any M rated games, that's fine for them. But if they try and say that it's wrong for everyone because they feel it's wrong, in my opinion that's a sin.

I somewhat agree...now, if it's a game where the whole purpose is to get laid with as many women as possible then there's a problem. That's not something a christian, someone with the holy Spirit should see as "ok" What does that say about you and your Christ-Like appearance?

But something like the Sims can be fine, there is a lot of variety.

 

[Dannager]

I somewhat agree...now, if it's a game where the whole purpose is to get laid with as many women as possible then there's a problem.

I submit that even a game such as the above is fine.

 

[Lumen]

I submit that even a game such as the above is fine.

Yes, because it's still just that, a game.