Love, War, and the Demise of Guys
Russell Moore, Dean of the School of Theology and Senior Vice-President for Academic Administration at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, recently wrote a great post for Desiring God entitled, Fake Love, Fake War: Why So Many Men Are Addicted to Internet Porn and Video Games. This post came just a day after CNN posted a story, ‘The Demise of Guys’: How video games and porn are ruining a generation, in the Health section of its site.
In his post, Moore explains that porn and video games promise arousal without the consequence of intimacy or danger. This, he argues, is a spiritual issue:
Pornography promises orgasm without intimacy. Video warfare promises adrenaline without danger. The arousal that makes these so attractive is ultimately spiritual to the core.
Satan isn’t a creator but a plagiarist. His power is parasitic, latching on to good impulses and directing them toward his own purpose. God intends a man to feel the wildness of sexuality in the self-giving union with his wife. And a man is meant to, when necessary, fight for his family, his people, for the weak and vulnerable who are being oppressed.
This is an important and insightful post and a recommended read for those who are addicted (or know someone who is addicted) to pornography and/or gaming.
It should be noted that Russell doesn’t make the claim that all video game playing is bad. What he is referring to in this post is the “compulsive form of gaming,” not casual or occasional gaming.
Porn, on the other hand, is sinful regardless of the frequency with which it is consumed because, as Russell points out, “it is, by definition, immoral.”
Photo by wlodi.