s/o Things you were once told were evil...

[Xuzi]

I was once told *I* was evil, because I was LDS. :glare:

 

From members of my own church (but never from church leadership itself) I was told that The Simpsons (which my parents let me watch regularly) was bad. As was Melrose Place, Beverly Hills 90210, and Saturday Night Live. I never watched MP or BH, but watched the other two (AND Monty Python!) pretty regularly, and often with my parents right next to me. :lol:

[kiana]

Also, my sister told my DD last year that my DD was 'letting evil into her life' because she dressed up as Susan, the granddaughter of Death in the Discworld novels. Fortunately, DD's response was to say "Oh, really?" and move on.

 

What an awesome costume!

[mytwomonkeys]

wow. this list is blowing my mind. some of these things i wouldn't allow my kids to play with either, such as tarot cards or ouija boards. and i do care what music we listen too (although i'm not anti-secular...we just don't rock out to marilyn manson). but most of this stuff i've never even heard of (let alone thought of!).

 

IRL, i'm uber conservative compared to my parents, sisters, and many of my friends. i do have some friends here that are much more conservative than my family, but i sure hope i'm not being judged by these standards listed. i must look like evil knievel to them if any of these things really matter to them.

[stripe]

I was never told any of these things. My parents are ... not that way. I even had a friend's parent not let my friend come over to my house for fear of moral corruption. ;) I think we did have a ouija board, but I never saw it used.

 

However, I remember when a classmate was shocked, shocked! that I had been allowed to see "Dirty Dancing." The funny thing was, it didn't even occur to me that there was anything shocking about the movie! Then again, I remember seeing a movie with a hanging in it when I was about five, seeing "Sophie's Choice" as a kid, and also seeing "Decline and Fall of the American Empire" in the theater. It's basically a movie about sex. So "Dirty Dancing" seemed very innocent, and with nice music.

[mommymilkies]

had the sex there.

 

:lol::lol::lol:

[mytwomonkeys]

I even had a friend's parent not let my friend come over to my house for fear of moral corruption. ;) I think we did have a ouija board, but I never saw it used.

 

However, I remember when a classmate was shocked, shocked! that I had been allowed to see Dirty Dancing. The funny thing was, it didn't even occur to me that there was anything shocking about the movie! Then again, I remember seeing a movie with a hanging in it when I was about five, seeing Sophie's Choice as a kid, and also seeing "Decline and Fall of the American Empire" in the theater. It's basically a movie about sex. So "Dirty Dancing" seemed very innocent, and with nice music.

 

 

my family must have been so bad that the good people stayed clear of us. i honestly didn't know a single person or family that would have thought most of this stuff was evil. seriously, everyone i knew growing up believed in santa. at halloween, we had one house in the entire neighborhood (with 100's of houses) that did not participate and had their lights off. my friends all had cabbage dolls, watched the smurfs, wore shorts, had 70's haircuts that were short like mrs. brady, wore tube tops, etc, lol. movies? we had no real boundaries really from what i remember. we never were taught differently or heard differently from anyone that it was evil.

Edited October 7, 2012 by mytwomonkeys

[Joanne]

I was never told any of these things. My parents are ... not that way. I even had a friend's parent not let my friend come over to my house for fear of moral corruption. ;) I think we did have a ouija board, but I never saw it used.

 

However, I remember when a classmate was shocked, shocked! that I had been allowed to see "Dirty Dancing." The funny thing was, it didn't even occur to me that there was anything shocking about the movie! Then again, I remember seeing a movie with a hanging in it when I was about five, seeing "Sophie's Choice" as a kid, and also seeing "Decline and Fall of the American Empire" in the theater. It's basically a movie about sex. So "Dirty Dancing" seemed very innocent, and with nice music.

 

It's not evil, but I do think Dirty Dancing is one of the most, um, exciting non porn movies. ;)

[Giraffe]

The Simpsons

Credit Cards

Not going to church Sunday, Sunday pm, and Wednesday pm

Ouija boards

Tarot

UPC Codes

Dungeon & Dragons

Anything psychic

Astrology

Witchcraft

Catholics

Mormons

Gays

Proctor & Gamble

 

Not all of these came from immediate family, but they are the things I remember growing up with as known "evils".

[Seeking Squirrels]

Magic the gathering. I guess just because of the name? I got in trouble for teaching my brother to play and nearly kicked out of the house. Not even religious parents either!

 

Pogs! Our youth leader told us they were bad because you could gamble with them. He let us keep playing when we said we weren't playing for keeps. But, uh, we were.

[Impish]

Another MIL 'evil':

Magic School Bus.

 

Seriously, she had a meltdown in my livingroom b/c I put a video on for the kids.

[Wheres Toto]

Do you know what IS evil?

 

The fact that many of you are listing "things" in this thread as being part of your *childhood* that were part of my *parenting* years. :glare::tongue_smilie:

 

I have heard most of the stuff in this thread being talked about as evil; but only in my adult years and from news as a child.

 

Growing up, there was no one in my circle of influence who had that kind of perspective.

 

:lol: Yeah, me too. :tongue_smilie: Except Dungeons & Dragons, which I played all through high school.

 

My oldest grew up watching the Simpsons and has probably seen every single episode. Her first word was "d'oh" said in perfect Homer style. My younger two have recently discovered the show.

 

My oldest played with Pokemon cards and watched the original show, my son is now into them and watches the 5 (!!!) different versions of Pokemon currently on tv. He has Pokemon cards, books, posters and decorations in his room, and just informed me he needs a Pokemon shirt.

 

The only thing I remember my mother telling me when I was young was not to talk to my 5 year old cousin about the anti-Christ after reading "The Omen". I was probably 12 or 13.

[Clear Creek]

Wow. Just wow. I thought I grew up in a very conservative Christian home, but y'all have just made me see my childhood from a completely different perspective. My siblings and I owned/played/watched/listened to just about everything that y'all have mentioned and our parents didn't bat an eyelash. They told us the devil was evil, but that's about it. :lol:

[SwallowTail]

Oh, let's see, so many things: (raised in large Southern Baptist churches in Memphis, TN and Florida)

 

Dancing/going to night clubs (even without alcohol) to dance

Secular music

Christian music that wasn't "just right"

Card games (that was my step grandmother from Slidell, Lousiana)

Eating at any restaurant that serevd alcohol

Alcohol consumption of any kind

Catholic people

Methodist people

Episcopalians

Lutherans... (you get the picture)

Being angry about anything

Dungeons and dragons

Divorced ladies trying to minister to/help out with kids in Sunday school (women who were moms, and who were divorced only because their dh's left them for their secretaries)

Anything they could label as "rebellion"

Smurfs

Ninja Turtles

Tattoos

many other things

 

 

Small wonder I eschew most organized religion/religious people.

[elegantlion]

Oh, tattoos also. Anything that drew you towards those places in town where the immoral people would hang out, which to some people would be anywhere but church.

 

I remember seeing my grandmother in a picture from the 20s. She was wearing a flapper dress with the little headband, siting on my grandpa's lap. I remember thinking that was pretty shocking for her. She probably got called a hussy from her mother for that picture.

 

I grew up in the suburbs of Kansas City. I remember we used to go downtown to Bartle Hall for RV shows and such. At that time there was one block that was all bars and run down and there were always ladies of the evening standing on the corners. As a little kid I remember thinking that was where the evil people ended up. :tongue_smilie:

[dbmamaz]

Do you know what IS evil?

 

The fact that many of you are listing "things" in this thread as being part of your *childhood* that were part of my *parenting* years. :glare::tongue_smilie:.

I dont think of myself as that young, but when the very first Harry Potter book came out, my mom bought it for me to read to my daughter . . . so yeah, saying that Harry Potter was evil in your childhood did strike me totally that way . . .

[Ghee]

Hmmm. I grew up Presbyterian, in Tn. I was told Smurfs, Michael Jackson, ET, and probably more pop culture by our preacher. He appeared to have been fine with Strawberry Shortcake (which seems a lot like Smurfs to me..) and Cabbage Patch, because I played with his daughter and she had a ton of them. My mother rolled her eyes and let me have them, she just told me not to take them or talk about them at te preacher's house. He did let his daughter come play at our house, even though it had the evils inside it LOL

 

My dad was involved in World Wide church of God, and he had a laundry list. Halloween, Christmas, Easter, your own/anyone else's birthday. Also, make up and pants until the church did an abrupt change on that. Also, he had a huge hang up on the word Pride. He said it was vain and felt the church backed him on it, not sure their official stance. He blew a gasket over our school yearbook, for a school with LIONS as a mascot, being titled Pride. The play on words didn't matter one whit to him.

Edited October 7, 2012 by Ghee

[swellmomma]

Okay, I'll bite. What exactly does one do at nine to get expelled from Sunday school?

 

Tell the teacher she was full of crap and didn't know anything about Jesus. I don't remember her the rest of the time but that day I remember her going on and on about judgement day blah blah blah. I didn't like going there at all. Back then I was not a believer. So just like now when I don't bite my tongue as much as I should, I was worse back then when someone pushed me on something.

[Parrothead]

Oh, let's see, so many things: (raised in large Southern Baptist churches in Memphis, TN and Florida)

 

Dancing/going to night clubs (even without alcohol) to dance

Secular music

Christian music that wasn't "just right"

Card games (that was my step grandmother from Slidell, Lousiana)

Eating at any restaurant that serevd alcohol

Alcohol consumption of any kind

Catholic people

Methodist people

Episcopalians

Lutherans... (you get the picture)

Being angry about anything

Dungeons and dragons

Divorced ladies trying to minister to/help out with kids in Sunday school (women who were moms, and who were divorced only because their dh's left them for their secretaries)

Anything they could label as "rebellion"

Smurfs

Ninja Turtles

Tattoos

many other things

 

 

Small wonder I eschew most organized religion/religious people.

Nooooo! Not the Ninja Turtle!

 

I am glad your church(es) didn't solely pick on the Catholics. ;)

[Ghee]

I haven't read this entire thread--just saw it! Just about everything on the first page I had seen referred to as evil or satanic at one time or another, though.

 

But has anyone mentioned unicorns yet?

 

I had a Christian friend whose mother prohibited unicorns because they were evil, and so God didn't allow them on the ark and they became extinct in the flood.

 

Another:

the 52 deck of playing cards (because the face cards are mocking God, Jesus, and Mary...and the Joker is Satan, of course)

h

 

So she believed unicorns existed, at some point, though? LOL What about Pegasus?!

 

just me...

 

My parents didn't believe in anything being satanic or evil (heck they thought it was fun that my friends and I used oujia boards at teens etc), but that is likely because my mom's good friend was/is a Wiccan with a store out in BC and my nana was big on reading tarot cards, got me my first runes etc.

 

BUT as a kid they used to send us to sunday school with a family friend that went to church. That was until I was expelled from sunday school at 9 yrs old and told never to return, that I was going to hell.

 

As one poster asked, how do you get expelled from Sunday School?!

Or, better yet, how did the church feel it was saving souls if they turned away children they felt had been led astray. Jesus must have been appalled...on several counts.

[Dory]

I have to add Ninja Turtles, dancing, playing cards, Catholics, LDS, Homosexuals, and Strawberry Shortcake to my list.

Edited October 8, 2012 by Dory

[Firefly]

Absolutely. This stuff is hardcore. :lol:

 

 

Yep, those ducks are of Satan!!! :lol:

 

X-Files - obviously Mulder and Scully were evil

 

 

 

Nooooooo.... say it isn't so! Not only am I ****ed for being a witch, but apparently also for being an X-Phile. :tongue_smilie:

[swellmomma]

h

 

So she believed unicorns existed, at some point, though? LOL What about Pegasus?!

 

 

 

As one poster asked, how do you get expelled from Sunday School?!

Or, better yet, how did the church feel it was saving souls if they turned away children they felt had been led astray. Jesus must have been appalled...on several counts.

 

I answered the first part a few posts ago, as for the bolded. That part I have never been able to wrap my head around. back then I took it as "proof" that I was right about there not being a Jesus or God. Now that I am a Christian I am sure that that incident is what kept me away from Christ for so much longer than necessary. I also believe He was likely heartbroken that a person put in charge of teaching about God's love etc to young children would do the opposite and drive a child away. I also believe this person will have to answer to Him one day and explain why she felt she had the right to do this. The bible is pretty clear about not hindering the children from coming unto Him. For years I felt the actions of this teacher proved there was no God because the alternative was that there was one and He thought I was evil like she said.

 

I don't want to threadjack. It is more fun to see the lists of what people grew up hearing were evil that I was allowed to have.

 

Reading them all made me laugh. As a teenager my parents bought me my gargoyle statue that sat in my room. They bought my black candles we burned when using the oujia board. Heck they bought my oujia board. We have most of those toys etc listed in our house. My mom says they are christians (though she has never accept Christ as her saviour, she thinks just saying he is real counts), but the only thing she ever counted as evil was things that broke the 10 commandments, and she said the obey your parents was the top one, breaking of that was pure evil. Beyond that anything pretty much went.

[Entropymama]

Well, I remember being taught in church when I was younger that the Catholic church was evil and that Catholic were certainly all going to hell. I became Catholic as an adult so it apparently did not have too much influence.

 

I also remember spending about a year in sunday school discussing the evils of rock music and the messages you could supposedly hear if you played the records backwards. I could never hear anything and never did figure out why anyone would be trying the play them backwards except for the purposes of lessons such as those.

 

I read on a wacko website just a few weeks ago that the Pope was working for the devil. :lol:

[Lovedtodeath]

I was allowed Cabbage Patch Dolls and Smurfs, but afraid of them.

 

Heavy rock music, rap music, masturbation, bingo, the lottery, dungeons and dragons, Catholics, the cross, books written by Christians, any churches, holidays, Christmas, Valentines Day, Thanksgiving, birthdays, hair color that was unnatural, beards, tattoos, yes the hang loose sign as well...

 

apostates. They were the scariest of all, evil incarnate.

[susankenny]

I have to add Ninja Turtles, dancing, playing cards, Catholics, LDS, Mormons, Homosexuals, and Strawberry Shortcake to my list.

 

Aren't LDS & Mormons the same thing? What about Reorganized LDS? And why Strawberry Shortcake? Was it because she had a scent?? LOL.

 

This thread is so funny to me! Loving the comments and learning so much!!

 

Susan

[GWOB]

I read on a wacko website just a few weeks ago that the Pope was working for the devil. :lol:

 

I was told the Pope was the anti-Christ.

[Ghee]

LOL Dot. I was just thinking that I'm sure Harry potter sent my old preacher into a tailspin. He really was a nice man and a good human being, but I thought he took fear of the occult to the extreme. I think some things are just pretend, and the evil is when people can't discerne pretend from reality.

 

I can't think of any other things. I had no idea UPC codes were evil. He did go on about the mark of the beast, can't believe he missed that one.

 

Swellmomma, how sad. I believe you are right, she will have some 'splainin to do...

[Belacqua]

I was told the Pope was the anti-Christ.

 

Imagine his surprise!

[OnTheBrink]

I wasn't raised in a religious home so the only "evil" thing my mother was against was soap operas, which included by her definition, Little House on the Prairie, the Waltons, as well as Dallas, Dynasty, etc. I have no idea why she grouped these shows together.

 

My exMIL, however, being of unsound mind, raised her sons with warnings against these evils:

 

Women. Women were eeeeeeevil.

Dancing. Dancing with eeeeeevil women could make them pregnant. (she seriously told her sons that)

Alcohol

Movies

Deck of cards

Co-ed swimming

Secular music of any kind.

Cartoon monsters of any kind

Magic in cartoons of any kind (she once asked me if I was concerned about Dragon Tales, since dd loved that show. She was convinced DD was going to be sucked into the Dark Side by Zac, Weezy, Emily, and Max.)

Star Trek (she thought her son, my EX, was gay because of Star Trek. Never did make the connection between Star Trek and homosexuality, but whatever).

[susankenny]

These are hilarious, but really, don't the same type of churches today say the same type of things are evil? Isn't it Pokemon, Harry Potter, and evolution? Has anything actually changed?

 

 

I am actively involved at a large southern baptist church & I can honestly say most of these things are totally new to me! I just heard about the peace sign a couple of weeks ago and was really taken back actually! I even vented about it here because I found it so annoying. The opinion expressed wasn't by the majority though ...it was from specific people. Otherwise, I've never heard of most of these things. Pokemon is just short for "pocket monsters" & it really isn't any different than the cartoons I watched as a child (super friends, etc). I have no idea why that is such a hot button! Harry Potter is no different than Chronicles of Narnia or Lord of the Rings. I find it hypocritical when Christians act like one is holy and the other is so evil.

 

 

Susan

[LittleIzumi]

Aren't LDS & Mormons the same thing? What about Reorganized LDS? And why Strawberry Shortcake? Was it because she had a scent?? LOL.

 

This thread is so funny to me! Loving the comments and learning so much!!

 

Susan

 

LDS and Mormon are the same. reorganized LDS is now called "The Community of Christ," I think, and is totally broken off/separate now.

 

 

My dad, who was a church leader (lay ministry where the leadership changes every few years), played D&D and bought me Harry Potter for my birthday. And dressed up as a Star Trek guy for Halloween. And we went to dances as teenagers. And I'm LDS. I'm apparently doomed. :lol:

[mytwomonkeys]

reorganized LDS is now called "The Community of Christ," I think, and is totally broken off/separate now.

 

yes, it is COC now. my dad was raised reorganized latterday saint & everyone on his side of the family still is. i think they did it a couple of years ago?

[GWOB]

Sorry, he can't be. My mom's church has deemed the president to be that guy.

 

Well, of course! I know people who honestly think re-electing the president would bring about the end of the world.

Imagine his surprise!

 

I always thought Pope John Paul II was a little shady:lol:. I don't think Pope Benedict has anything to worry about since his anti-Christ potential is less than the president's.

[GWOB]

LDS and Mormon are the same. reorganized LDS is now called "The Community of Christ," I think, and is totally broken off/separate now.

 

 

My dad, who was a church leader (lay ministry where the leadership changes every few years), played D&D and bought me Harry Potter for my birthday. And dressed up as a Star Trek guy for Halloween. And we went to dances as teenagers. And I'm LDS. I'm apparently doomed. :lol:

 

Maybe YOU are the anti-Christ!!! A dancing Mormon?!?! Keep you evilness away!:lol:

[dangermom]

Maybe YOU are the anti-Christ!!! A dancing Mormon?!?! Keep you evilness away!:lol:

 

That would be all of us then--Mormons love dancing. A lot. :001_tt2:

[GWOB]

That would be all of us then--Mormons love dancing. A lot. :001_tt2:

 

There are no words to describe the evilness of a whole lotta dancing Mormons. That's why Mormons are nice! You're just trying to suck me into your Satan worshiping!

 

 

 

:lol::tongue_smilie::lol:

[Violet Crown]

I always thought Pope John Paul II was a little shady:lol:. I don't think Pope Benedict has anything to worry about since his anti-Christ potential is less than the president's.

Shady Pope Benedict, the Antichrist of Cool:

[athomemom]

Wow! I really thought that my small piece of the south were the only ones who taught what has been listed here. I heard the same things about Cabbage Patch dolls, He-Man, playing rock music backwards, smurfs, t.v., etc. I'm not sure if I am comforted that I am not alone or if I am dismayed. :svengo:

 

I am seriously glad though that my boys haven't been raised that way, but I have serious spiritual struggles as result of my upbringing.

 

I feel we all need a :grouphug:.

[I.Dup.]

My parents didn't harp on things being evil. They became Christian when I was an infant and were pretty worldly before then, and didn't hang out in super conservative circles (thankfully). I think I was more concerned about evil than they were, I was pretty paranoid.

 

However, I have heard all of these since becoming an adult (well, except the elbow thing :lol:)

[teachermom2834]

No one has mentioned Cyndi Lauper. She Bop!

 

We went to Catholic school and we weren't told many things were evil. I do, however, remember being shown a film that focused on all the evils in music. I remember Cyndi Lauper being featured as well as Ozzy and something about "Another One Bites the Dust". There was the whole deal with playing records backwards, etc. and how it all related to Satanism.

 

There actually was a group of teenagers in our town that claimed to be Satanists and they did some pretty creepy things. (Including one kid bring a bat to eat at lunch at the public high school). We also had a series of teen suicides in our town around the same time. So, even though my parents didn't harp on things being evil or satanic I was more than a bit afraid of these things.

 

I am raising my family Catholic and we don't talk about any of these types of pop culture things being evil but we do run into plenty of other homeschoolers who feel that way about magic, Harry Potter, Pokemon, Santa, Halloween, etc.

[ChristyB in TN]

I grew up in a Southern Baptist household and never heard anything about the evils of Halloween, Smurfs, etc. My dad was a minister! I didn't know people really felt that rock music was evil and literally had demonic messages until some crazies decided to teach a youth retreat I attended. They were supposed to teach something else and knew my dad would protest the rock music is evil topic so they kept it a secret until we got there. I had to sit and listen to all of that while wearing my new Journey concert t shirt, it was confusing. Smurfs? Really? It wasn't until I moved it Tennessee and had my own children that there were entire communities of people avoiding Dirt Devil vacuums, Harry Potter, yoga, and all of the things mentioned before my post.

I respect it. I love that we have the freedom to be fanatical. I love that superstition and religion get all tangled up, it makes life fun. I dislike being judged because I don't believe in Satan or demons or that my Dirt Devil is going to get me. I dislike that my parents don't speak to me or have anything to do with my children because we have grown more liberal while they have grown so conservative that we don't recognize them. It is weird to me how science, religion and politics have all been wrapped up together. I dont remember it being like this or at least to this extreme before. I don't know what is going on in this country but I think we all need to take a deep breath and apologize to one another. :)

[Parrothead]

I read on a wacko website just a few weeks ago that the Pope was working for the devil. :lol:

Oh? Only working for him? Often it is that the Pope is the anti-Christ. ;):lol:

[Lovedtodeath]

I dislike that my parents don't speak to me or have anything to do with my children because we have grown more liberal while they have grown so conservative that we don't recognize them.

:grouphug: I am sorry. You are not alone.

[Jennifer3141]

:grouphug: I am sorry. You are not alone.

 

 

No, you are definitely not alone! :grouphug::grouphug::grouphug:

[dangermom]

There are no words to describe the evilness of a whole lotta dancing Mormons. That's why Mormons are nice! You're just trying to suck me into your Satan worshiping!

 

 

Dangit, you detected our plan...:D

 

Here is a story for y'all. You should know that Mormons take the Sabbath quite seriously, and we don't shop or go to movies or whatever on Sundays. One thing we definitely don't do on Sundays is go swimming. But my parents were convert hippies, and they were raising four kids in Bakersfield CA, and we spent every Sunday afternoon at my grandmother's house which had a pool--and they were not about to try to keep us out of that pool. I managed to grow up with the idea that swimming was not only OK on Sundays, but quite Sabbathy. I was in college before I figured out that my attitude was not universal. My friend looked like this::001_huh:

[Catwoman]

Dangit, you detected our plan...:D

 

Here is a story for y'all. You should know that Mormons take the Sabbath quite seriously, and we don't shop or go to movies or whatever on Sundays. One thing we definitely don't do on Sundays is go swimming. But my parents were convert hippies, and they were raising four kids in Bakersfield CA, and we spent every Sunday afternoon at my grandmother's house which had a pool--and they were not about to try to keep us out of that pool. I managed to grow up with the idea that swimming was not only OK on Sundays, but quite Sabbathy. I was in college before I figured out that my attitude was not universal. My friend looked like this::001_huh:

 

Sabbathy.

 

I just learned a new word!

 

And I like it! :D

[Catwoman]

Shady Pope Benedict, the Antichrist of Cool:

 

 

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

[Rosie_0801]

It's not evil, but I do think Dirty Dancing is one of the most, um, exciting non porn movies. ;)

 

I was only allowed to watch it if my aunt covered my eyes at all the interesting bits. It made for a boring movie and I wish she'd picked something else. :rolleyes:

 

Rosie

[happi duck]

Adoption (there are people that are anti-adoption and believe that adopted children carry their biological parents' sins with them, must be diligently prayed over, and strictly raised to remove these inherited sins, etc, etc, via Bill Gothard and ask me how I know :glare: ), you are signing to love an object and care for it as though it were a living being, etc...I'm sure there are more reasons, but I can't remember them all atm.

 

Thanks for the info. (I had asked about CP dolls)

 

This is such an eye-opening thread...I never knew people believed stuff like this.

[Dmmetler]

Oooh, Madonna! I remember my gma once caught me singing along to "Like a Prayer", and I received a lecture. It terrified me and to this day I cannot listen to that song.

 

 

In fairness, I added Madonna to my exercise playlist and was surprised at just how obviously suggestive "Like a Prayer" seemed to me now-when I'd totally missed that response as a teenager.