The Religious Relevance of Television by William F.Fore

In this article, Fore examines that the Christians should have re-present the Gospel in stories that connect with the lives of people living in today’s culture. He said the stories of the Old Testament belong to a completely different culture. Thus, the presentation of Jesus in the New Testament is a re-presentation. However, Fore thinks there is a confliction between the world view of today’s culture and the religious world view. He points out the television represent the myths about our society. First of all, Fore mentions four myths of the television.
1. That the media tell us the way life really is, that ‘seeing is believing’.
2. That information overload is inevitable, a ‘natural’ price to pay for living in modern society.
3. That the issues of life are simple, and TV helps us identify who and shat is ‘good’ and ‘bad’.
4. That there exists a free flow of information; that anyone with a message can ‘get on TV’.

Then, he says television supplies many more myths about the society;
1. Efficiency is the highest good: if it ‘works’, it is good.
2. Technology is progress, and progress cannot be sopped, regardless of the human implications.
3. The fittest survive, and the fittest are young, white males.
4. Power and decision-making start at the centre and move out, and those at the centre know best.
5. Happiness consists of limitless material consumption. Thus consumption is inherently good, and property, wealth, and power are more important than people.
In opposition, Fore mentions the religious world-view;
1. Christian scriptures tell stories about freedom.
2. The covenant stories affirm that God will be with all humanity but only if they worship the true God and not anything is less than God –such as possessions, powers, beauty, or success.
3. Parables about the reign of God make it clear that God is not ‘out there’, but rather a presence within and among us.
4. The stories about Jesus’s life tell of a person both servant and Savior, who through his death and resurrection became the Lord of history, providing hope and reconciliation for all.

Chris arthus, ed. Religion and the Media.
University of wales press, 1993.