Now, let us take a moment of prayer and thank our blessings for Our Savior as we come back from our commercial break.
Chapter Eight of Amusing Ourselves to Death entitled "Shuffle Off to Bethlehem" was an interesting eye opener for me. I found it quite odd that Postman decided to include a topic that sparks conversation and controversy: religion. However, after reading that chapter I felt that it was much needed since it shows how public discourse has shaped the way people can be influenced, and religion influences millions of peoples lives. The television became a new medium for so-called religious and evangelical preachers to spread the word of God but also provide people who watch their programs to know that the message is clear no matter if you hear it from the presence of a priest or an electronic one. I have always thought the church to be a sacred and holy place where I can pause and reflect on my mistakes and how I can improve my bad actions. There aren't any distractions, no television screen, no remote to change the channel of conversation because what I am seeing is what I am getting. And yet, at moments when the priest is giving a lecture on the scripture read moments ago, I find myself becoming agitated and bored.
I continue to wonder why listening to the priest became more difficult and my attention span seemed to diminish. After reading Chapter Ten of Amusing Ourselves to Death named "Teaching as an Amusing Activity", I now notice why. Society is being fed amusement from public discourse. Things that cause me amusement from technology such as the television shows or YouTube videos cause me to constantly be amused. When I am in a quite solitary place such as the church, I do not seem to pay any attention, and my mind drifts off to wondering when this mass will end so I could use my phone. Mass is not supposed to entertaining; in contrast, it is supposed to interpret the Scriptures in the Bible and translate it to modern life. However, if I am not amused by the priest's take on the lecture, I find it hard to pay any attention to it.
What are your thoughts on public discourse influencing religion?
I think that you are absolutely right. It is almost amazingly difficult to go to church or listen to a sermon without thinking about the video I watched online yesterday, or what I was going to do later on. Religion has turned into a show business, especially now that there is a show called "Preachers of LA", which even had an episode with my former preacher Noel Jones living in a huge mansion and responding to adoring fans. This, I believe, is horribly against what Christianity is all about! Turning religion into a stage is where we are headed, and, sadly enough, I don't see any sign of us stopping anytime soon.
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