Chapter 2—Effective Also for Evil

As is so often the case, something that may be effective for good when rightly used can also, if wrongly employed, be effective for evil, even to the point where the rightful use may have to be curtailed. Note in the description of Satan’s work in the world generally that drama is listed first among the “amusements” that Satan uses to destroy souls.DPSDAI 2.5

“Many of the amusements popular in the world today, even with those who claim to be Christians, tend to the same end as did those of the heathen. There are indeed few among them that Satan does not turn to account in destroying souls. Through the drama he has worked for ages to excite passion and glorify vice. The opera, with its fascinating display and bewildering music, the masquerade, the dance, the card table, Satan employs to break down the barriers of principle and open the door to sensual indulgence. In every gathering for pleasure where pride is fostered or appetite indulged, where one is led to forget God and lose sight of eternal interests, there Satan is binding his chains about the soul.”—Patriarchs and Prophets, 459 (1890).DPSDAI 2.6

A decade earlier in the Testimonies, sensational dramas were pointed out as preoccupying the minds of men and women and thus hindering their reception of the message of truth:DPSDAI 3.1

“The world is teeming with errors and fables. Novelties in the form of sensational dramas are continually arising to engross the mind, and absurd theories abound which are destructive to moral and spiritual advancement.”—Testimonies for the Church 4:415 (1880).DPSDAI 3.2

The third E. G. White statement we quote here describes the welfare of the Battle Creek College students in the early days before dormitories were provided. At this time students were living in the homes of families residing nearby. This statement involves the legitimate theater, for it was penned in 1881, long before motion pictures were invented. The perils of “theatrical amusements” are clearly enumerated and fundamental principles outlined.DPSDAI 3.3

“Among the most dangerous resorts for pleasure is the theater. Instead of being a school of morality and virtue, as is so often claimed, it is the very hotbed of immorality. Vicious habits and sinful propensities are strengthened and confirmed by these entertainments. Low songs, lewd gestures, expressions and attitudes, deprave the imagination and debase the morals. Every youth who habitually attends such exhibitions will be corrupted in principle. There is no influence in our land more powerful to poison the imagination, to destroy religious impressions, and to blunt the relish for the tranquil pleasures and sober realities of life than theatrical amusements. The love for these scenes increases with every indulgence, as the desire for intoxicating drink strengthens with its use. The only safe course is to shun the theater, the circus, and every other questionable place of amusement.”—Testimonies for the Church 4:652, 653.DPSDAI 3.4