There’s no official list. But there’s something better: a way of thinking about everything you let into your mind.
Orthodox Christianity doesn’t hand you a rulebook of approved movies or banned TV shows. Instead, the Church gives you the tools to discern what helps you grow closer to God and what drags you away from Him. This is harder than a list would be. It requires you to pay attention.
Guarding the Heart
The Fathers talk constantly about “guarding the heart.” Not in a sentimental way, they mean watchfulness, what the Greek tradition calls nepsis. You’re supposed to notice what you’re consuming and how it affects your inner life. Does this show stir up lust? Does that podcast feed your anger? Does scrolling through videos leave you anxious or despairing?
St. Basil the Great wrote advice for young people reading pagan Greek literature that applies perfectly to Netflix. He said to be like bees: take the honey, leave the poison. You can watch something that isn’t explicitly Christian if it contains truth or beauty or genuine human goodness. But you’ve got to be honest about when you’re just making excuses to watch something that’s harming you.
Most of us aren’t that honest with ourselves. We’ll watch three hours of something that leaves us feeling hollow and then wonder why our prayer life is flat.
The Practical Question
So what should you actually watch? Start by asking what you’re feeding on. If your media diet is 90% secular entertainment and 10% anything that mentions God, that tells you something about what you’re becoming. You can’t live on junk food and expect to be healthy.
Ancient Faith Radio offers dozens of podcasts that’ll actually help you grow. Fr. Thomas Hopko’s talks are there. “Search the Scriptures” with Dr. Jeannie Constantinou will teach you to read the Bible with the Fathers. “The Lord of Spirits” explores the unseen world. “Ancient Faith Today” covers everything from theology to culture. These aren’t dry lectures, they’re conversations with people who know the faith and can explain it.
For music, Byzantine chant beats pretty much anything on the radio for keeping your mind settled. You can find recordings of the Divine Liturgy, Vespers, festal hymns. Listen to those in the car instead of whatever’s designed to make you feel vaguely dissatisfied with your life so you’ll buy something.
What to Avoid
The Fathers were blunt about entertainment that corrupts. St. John Chrysostom preached against the theater of his day because it trained people in vice. He wasn’t being a killjoy, he’d seen what it did to people’s souls. We’ve got the same problem, just with better special effects.
If something glorifies adultery, call it what it is. If a show treats cruelty as entertainment, you don’t need it. If you’re watching people destroy themselves and calling it “gritty realism,” maybe ask why you’re spending your evening that way. And if you find yourself defensive about any of this, that’s worth examining too.
You’ll notice I’m not naming specific shows. That’s deliberate. What tempts you might not tempt me. You’ve got to do the work of discernment yourself, probably with your priest or spiritual father if something’s a real struggle.
For Families
If you’ve got kids, you’re forming their taste right now. What they watch at eight will shape what they want at eighteen. So be the parent who says no sometimes. Be the parent who turns off something that looked fine but turned out not to be. Let them see you make those choices.
Try fasting from screens on Wednesdays and Fridays. See what happens when your family has to talk to each other instead of staring at devices. You might hate it at first. That’s diagnostic.
And for heaven’s sake, fill the void with something better than just emptiness. Read aloud. Listen to the lives of saints. Put on music that’s actually beautiful. Go outside. Southeast Texas has mosquitoes, sure, but it’s got sunsets too.
The Real Answer
Here’s what it comes down to: you’re becoming something. Every choice you make, including what you watch and listen to, is forming you into a certain kind of person. Orthodox Christianity says you’re meant to become like Christ, to be united with God. That’s theosis.
Does what you’re watching help with that or hinder it? Be ruthless in answering that question. Not legalistic, ruthless. There’s a difference.
If you don’t know where to start, start with Ancient Faith. Spend a month listening to Orthodox podcasts instead of whatever you usually listen to. See if it changes anything. Then go from there, asking God to help you see clearly what’s helping you and what’s just noise.
You don’t need permission to watch good things or a list of forbidden things. You need the humility to admit when something’s got hooks in you, and the courage to turn it off.
