Elvis Presley: [watchtower 1982, p. 24] For over two decades Elvis
Presley was a superstar. In a Presley biography we read that although he had
“an unbelievable career . . . he was not
happy. He had few real friends. He was surrounded, as he often complained,
‘either by fans or by spongers.’ He had no peace of mind.”
“He could not cope. He turned to drugs,
to uppers and downers, he grew argumentative, he was no longer the polite young
man he once had been. Those who knew him well still admired him, but they
no longer loved him. He lived alone, although not in seclusion, and he died
alone.”
__
heard music on the radio, but that was all. But this changed suddenly when we
moved and my grandmother gave my brother and me a phonograph. I wondered what
kind of records I should buy. My parents
recommended Elvis Presley, and I agreed. I bought one of his albums. Upon
hearing it I was enthusiastic. I bought another. But that was not all. I began
to collect newspaper articles about him and pictures. Later I bought some of his
posters. But this was still only the beginning. I got a haircut like the one
Elvis had, and I began to copy his ways. I tried to dress as he did. When I
turned fourteen, what did I have? At least fifteen of Elvis’ albums, posters,
piles of articles and a bad conscience.”
that copying or idolizing imperfect humans is unwise and self-defeating. His
view now is far more balanced and he concludes his letter by saying: “Let this
be a warning to other young people not to go too far.”
For example, America’s 19th-century industrialist Andrew Carnegie could have
been his country’s first billionaire. Instead, he gave away 90 percent of his
fortune over a period of 18 years. When his secretary warned him that he was
depleting his personal capital, he happily replied, “Delighted to hear it my
boy, keep it up.” That same era saw John D. Rockefeller, one of the richest men
in the world, give away $750 million in his lifetime. It has been written that
singer Elvis Presley “would hand out
Cadillacs by the dozen” and thoroughly enjoyed doing so.
encounter with rock music came when I was host of a show in Cleveland’s Circle
Theatre. The producer came running backstage. He was furious. The audience was
upset. Some were thoroughly bored by the performer on stage.
Others were shocked by his body
movements. Many were walking out in disgust. As emcee it was my job to get some
new young performer called Elvis Presley off the stage and bring on the next
act—and do it quickly!
Christendom, especially by its youth. Certainly the German teen-age girls were
guilty of idolatry when they painted on the portals of the
Bamberg Cathedral in Munich the words,
“Elvis Presley—my God.”
[in same watchtower as above] Popularity and prestige are in
the long run no replacement for a meaningful and satisfying life. George
Harrison, a member of the former Beatles group, said:
“There was no longer any satisfaction in
it.”
[in same article as above] A friend of Mick Jagger
once said: “Mick has always had an inner conflict.He never wanted the negative image with which he and the Stones were
burdened. But in order to cope with it,
he . . . became the evil, aggressive man the press represented him as being. . .
. On the other hand, he was always dreaming about a sound world, in which
maliciousness and power mechanisms would not rule.”
musicians are involved in the occult. Some openly admit that they worship Satan,
and satanic influence often shows up in their music and songs. But how can a
Christian tell if demonic influence exists in certain music? It is sufficient in
some cases to look at the cover of a record album. Depicted on it you may see
characters dressed to look like witches, demons or devils. Or the cover may have
pictures tending toward the mystical or the occult. The name of the musical
group or of an album may indicate a connection with the demons, as may the
titles and words of the songs. For example,what would you conclude from song titles such as “Sympathy for the Devil” and
“Children of the Grave”? The New York Post reported that one such song was “a
brazen admission” that the musicians were “working hand-in-glove with Satan.”
"N"): [awake! 1992, p. 31] Even the more mainstream heavy-metal groups purvey
messages that are hardly less grotesque. Time magazine reported that the two
record albums by the heavy-metal group Guns N’ Roses sold over 1.5 million
copies in three days. Yet, the albums continue what Time calls the band’s
“unrelentingly sexist and
uncompromisingly violent lyrics” and “their forays into xenophobia, racism and
sadomasochism.” They also feature such themes as
oral sex, homicide, and a profusion of
profanities. Several chains of stores have refused to sell the records.
Take heavy-metal music—a particularly noxious form of hard rock that is usually
played at ear-splitting volume. Heavy-metal bands typically sport names like
Poison, Skid Row, Guns N’ Roses,
and Slayer. Time magazine said: “The
band names alone conjure up images of mayhem, torture and death.” The same can
be said of the horrifying artwork that adorns the album covers and that often
depicts satanic symbols.
and “Appetite for Destruction” and has lyrics that glorify sadomasochism, rape,
and murder. So it is not surprising that the heavy-metal music guide Stairway to
Hell calls heavy metal “a triumph of vulgarity, velocity, verbal directness,
violent apathy.” Heavy-metal music has
also repeatedly been linked to drug abuse, Satanism, and suicide among its
listeners. Yet, according to media reports, heavy metal is winning a growing
mainstream audience.
that are hardly less grotesque. Time magazine reported that the two record
albums by the heavy-metal group Guns N’ Roses sold over 1.5 million copies in
three days. Yet, the albums continue what Time calls the band’s
“unrelentingly sexist and
uncompromisingly violent lyrics” and “their forays into xenophobia, racism and
sadomasochism.” They also feature such themes as
oral sex, homicide, and a profusion of
profanities. Several chains of stores have refused to sell the records.
[awake, 1984 p. 19] “I Would Never Do It Again!”
into a “cat person,” then a dancing “monster.” Evidently not wanting viewers to
conclude that it promoted spiritism, the film begins with the disclaimer:
“Due to my strong personal convictions,
I wish to stress that this film in no way endorses a belief in the
occult.—Michael Jackson.” Nevertheless, it was so realistic that some who
saw it admitted that they were horrified at first. What was this short film
intended to convey? And how does the performer, Michael Jackson, feel about it
in looking back?
short film, not to purposely bring to the screen something to scare people or to
do anything bad. I want to do what’s right. I would never do anything like that
again.” Why not? “Because a lot of people were offended by it,” explains
Jackson. “That makes me feel bad. I don’t want them to feel that way. I realize
now that it wasn’t a good idea. I’ll never do a video like that again!” He
continues: “In fact, I have blocked further distribution of the film over which
I have control, including its release in some other countries. There’s all kinds
of promotional stuff being proposed on Thriller. But I tell them, ‘No, no, no. I
don’t want to do anything on Thriller. No more Thriller.’”
...While not condemning all videos, don’t you agree that genuine Christians should rightly reject any videos (and
any other form of entertainment) that feature sex, violence, occultism or
any other theme that is clearly contrary to the principles set forth in God’s
Word, the Bible? And why put on a pedestal those who produce such things?
What should you do? Perhaps it was best summed up by young Bob, who said: “Be
very selective. Be careful of both the songs and the videos. Be ready to change
the channel.”
Decide: [awake!, 1994 p. 7] Last year in New Jersey, U.S.A.,
two 15-year-old boys brutally killed a
family’s pet Labrador dog named Princess. “It was a sacrifice for Satan,”
they claimed. They held the dog up by
her chain, kicked her to death, ripped her tongue out and used it in a satanic
ritual. They impaled the mutilated body of the dog on a large metal hook and
hung it in a neighbor’s yard. Satanic markings were found on the dog’s head,
and a pentagram (a five-pointed star in a circle—a Satanic symbol) was etched on
the ground beneath the dog’s body. On
the night of the killing, they were listening to Deicide (which means
murder of God), a death-metal band, whose lead singer boasts of torturing and
killing animals.
[awake!, 1992 p. 31] Death Metal—What’s the Message?
A WILD-EYED, long-haired young man
stands before an audience of cheering, chanting fans. He takes a bucketful of
animal blood and entrails and dumps it over the first few rows. The fans laugh,
wipe the stuff on themselves, and throw chunks at one another. This scene,
according to Florida’s St. Petersburg Times, took place at a rock concert by a
band called Deicide, which means ‘the killing of a god.’ This kind of music is
called death metal, supposedly the most extreme form of heavy-metal rock. In
recent years it has become more popular in Florida and internationally, ever
since the success of an album entitled Scream Bloody Gore, by a band called
Death.
The band Deicide is led by an avowed
Satanist who claims to have hated God ever since a car accident left him with a
J-shaped scar, which he is certain stands for either Jesus or Jehovah. He
claims to hear voices urging him to kill himself, and he has burned a satanic
symbol into his own forehead.
Queen: (I don't know if it's Queen they are talking about here, but if it
is, they are talking about that awesome song "Another One Bites the Dust,"
suppose to have said "It's fun to smoke marijuana" backwards.) [watchtower, 1983
p. 11] There have also been recordings of unscriptural and even
demonistic messages by means of a
technique called backward masking, used by a number of musical groups.
When the recording of one very popular
song is played backward, it repeatedly says,
“Decide to smoke marijuana.” If
played backward, another popular recording carries this message: “I will sing
because I live with Satan. . . . There’s no escaping it, my sweet Satan.”
Elton John: [awake! 1982, p. 19] There is truth in the refrain of the
popular song that says, “Sorry seems to
be the hardest word.” Why is this? Probably because “sorry” is an
admission of guilt. True, we seem to have no problem admitting our faults in a
general way. Tell a man “You’re imperfect!” and he’ll likely reply, “Aren’t we
all?” But tell him that he’s egotistical, proud, haughty, insensitive, childish
or irritating and you touch a raw nerve. No wonder the Bible counsels us to overlook, to put up with and to forgive the
faults of others.—Proverbs 17:9; Ephesians 4:32; Colossians 3:13.
?????? (I'd be really interested in
knowing this one!!!!!!!): [awake! 1974, p. 5] One day this woman heard
the name Jehovah in a popular song on the radio. Later, when one of Jehovah’s
witnesses called on her, she asked who Jehovah was. For the first time in her
life the Bible was opened in front of her and she began to study it with the
Witness. But the influence of spiritism persisted in her life. Why? This woman
did not realize the danger of possessing objects connected with spiritism.