Push back against the age

This quote is lodged in my bones (it's from The Habit of Being: The Letters of Flannery O’Connor, highly recommended -- affiliate link).

It is what I want to say to warn people when the subject of popular depictions of the faith arises: AI-generated attempts at religious or sacred art, TV shows about the life of Christ, or trendy movies about saints. 

If it's aimed at a mass market, it is *very unlikely* to be sound. On the surface these entertainments might seem appealing, but their foundations are something other than true principles and devotion to historical accuracy, and thus may harm our always wavering, always challenged, resolution to seek the Cross. 

Worse, they may harm our children's almost non-existent imaginations, starved as they are for time-tested cultural examples and references. 

It's possible, I'm not saying it's not. 

For instance, I came across the wonderful novel Peace Like A River, by Lief Enger (affiliate link), at Barnes & Noble, and it was advertised as a best-selling book club book. Due to the Scriptural title and a certain undefinable intuition about it, I had my doubts that the New York Times, for instance, understood it, so on a hunch I bought it. I was right. The fact is that it's so well written -- *and its art is hidden* as the poet Ovid recommended -- that it went over their heads. 

I love the Oscar-nominated film Doubt, incredibly featuring the major stars Meryl Streep and Philip Seymour Hoffman as note-perfect nun and priest, respectively. Again, I note the New York Times missed the point entirely in their review, not unpredictably being taken in by the narcissism in an acting tour de force by Mr. Hoffman. Here's a case of the truth pulling one on "the world." 

But such occurrences are rare -- vanishingly rare. 

Our main stance as Christians must be the attitude of, as the Apostle says, testing worldly things, "examining them carefully," to make sure they meet our standards. We must, as Flannery O'Connor advised, push back against the age, not uncritically accepting its dubious offerings. Even if people mock us for being crabbed in spirit or too picky or never satisfied, well, so be it.

It's all too easy to wake up and discover oneself a comfort-seeking, happy-clappy Christian -- and, tragically, one's children apostates!