Do you remember being warned off about soaps?

highdose

i mean TV soaps. I remember for a while they were a sign of a deeply unspirtual person ... all that time that could have been spent door to door instead!

minimus

yes, too much adultery, greed, and romance.

TheClarinetist

I remember! ...and for once I agree with the WTS advice. LoL. If I started watching those, they would suck out my soul.

Mickey mouse

Yeah I do and on that score the WT did me a favour. I kicked that habit and it was a waste of time.

I remember back when they constantly harped on getting caught up on them. Not just the time aspect, but the immorality and worldliness. It was like inviting these people into your home, I remember them saying.

Soaps are tame compared to night time programming anymore, especially premium cable channel shows like on HBO. True Blood, now that's a show you won't see on ABC at 1pm in the afternoon.

minimus

and for the record, I know of many Witnesses that were warned about soaps and how they could affect someone adversely.

BluesBrother

They are still at it !

WT 2007 10/01 28-29

"10 Another tactic of “the birdcatcher” is to undermine people’s natural sense of what is good and what is bad. A mentality similar to that found in Sodom and Gomorrah has come to control much of the entertainment industry. Even news reports on television and in periodicals highlight violence and pander to a lurid interest in sex. Much of what appears as entertainment in the media blurs people’s ability “to distinguish both right and wrong.” (Hebrews 5:14) Recall, however, Jehovah’s words through the prophet Isaiah: “Woe to those who are saying that good is bad and bad is good!” (Isaiah 5:20) Has “the birdcatcher” insidiously affected your thinking with such unwholesome entertainment? Self-examination is essential.—2 Corinthians 13:5.
11 Nearly a quarter of a century ago, The Watchtower lovingly warned the household of faith about TV serials. This observation was made about the subtle impact of popular soap operas: “The search for love is used to justify any conduct. For instance, one unwed pregnant youth says to a friend: ‘But I love Victor. I don’t care. . . . To have his baby is worth everything to me!’ The soft background music makes it hard to consider her course to be so bad. You too like Victor. You feel sympathy for the girl. You ‘understand.’ ‘It is amazing how you can rationalize,’ stated one viewer who later came to her senses. ‘We know that immorality is bad. . . . But I realized that mentally I was taking part.’”
12 Since those articles were published, this type of heart-corrupting programming has become increasingly available. In many places, such programs are broadcast 24 hours a day. Men, women, and many teenagers frequently feed their minds and hearts on such entertainment. We, though, must not deceive ourselves with false reasoning. It would be wrong to reason that depraved entertainment is no worse than what is seen in the real world. Can a Christian really justify choosing to be entertained by the sort of people he would never dream of inviting into his home?
13 Many benefited when they took to heart that warning provided by “the faithful and discreet slave.” (Matthew 24:45-47) After reading the straightforward, Bible-based counsel, some wrote to tell how the articles had personally affected them. One confessed: “For 13 years I was a soap-opera addict. I thought that I was safe simply by attending Christian meetings and being semiregular in the field service. But I adopted the worldly soap-opera attitude that if your husband mistreats you or you feel unloved, adultery is justifiable—he brought it on himself. And so when I felt ‘justified’ I took this bad course and sinned against Jehovah and my mate.” This woman was disfellowshipped. Eventually, she came to her senses, repented, and was reinstated. The articles warning against TV soap operas gave her the strength to refuse to be entertained by what Jehovah hates.—Amos 5:14, 15.
14 Another reader whose life was affected said: “I cried when I read the articles, for I discovered that my heart was no longer complete toward Jehovah. I promised my God that I would no longer be a slave to these serials.” After expressing appreciation for the articles, one Christian woman admitted her addiction and wrote: “I wondered . . . if my relationship with Jehovah could be affected. How could I have ‘them’ as friends and also be a friend to Jehovah?” If such TV shows corrupted hearts 25 years ago, what impact do they have today? (2 Timothy 3:13) We must be aware of Satan’s trap of unwholesome entertainment in all its forms, whether TV soap operas, violent video games, or immoral music videos."

lilbluekitty

I totally remember. As a kid in the 90s, I remember my JW aunt watched a lot of soaps and I (back then) thought she was horrible and "worldly" for it. Now I don't care. Watch what you want, it's your conscience. Personally for me I can't stand them but certain drama-type shows at night do draw me in so I tend to avoid them, especially the ones that have adultery in them, they sicken me and make me angry. (Think Mad Men, which would be awesome if Don Draper wasn't always cheating on Betty.)

undercover

Thanks, BB. I didn't know they were still harping on it. I thought it was kinda like harping on disco or The Twist.

Do you remember being warned off about soaps?

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