I work for a theater chain, and on any given night I am expected to report, without quibbling, to whichever theater I am assigned. Some of the houses show X-rated films. Am I wrong to keep this job?

If there is anything that is worth close scrutiny, it would be the influences that we consciously allow to enter our lives. If there is no opportunity for you to keep your job and not work at X-rated movies, then my suggestion would be to find employment in some other sphere where evil is not so prevalent. Money just can’t be worth the price one pays for any loss of virtue or good qualities of character.

Larry Bates, Age 24
Calgary, Alberta, Canada

“One of the first steps would be to seek the advice of your branch president. Coupled with this, an approach to the management would not be out of place, but fasting and prayer should take place before meeting with them. If the management won’t help you in your schedule so as to avoid the X-rated movies, you should seek employment elsewhere. Working at a place doesn’t mean that you watch the movies, but association often implies that you agree with what is going on.”

Barry Barge, Dorsey Sweat, Debra Bond, Deborah Cook, Janice Millsapp
Atlanta, Georgia

There are three aspects to consider in deciding whether or not a certain employment is worth maintaining. First, any work situation, in addition to providing important income, should provide for some type of increased knowledge concerning either technical skills or the mechanics of business procedures that are used in the public world. Second, personal growth should be a possibility from any job. I mean an increased understanding of oneself as an individual and as a member of a larger social structure with an enhanced appreciation of one’s position as a son or daughter of God and a personal recognition of the overall value of His standards. Personal growth is often sorely hindered and usually cannot occur in an environment that is not of acceptable quality. The third aspect is whether or not other people are being hurt by what one is doing.

“While you might learn something about the theater business and about human nature, the X-rated environment, if encountered very often at all, cannot be beneficial to your own growth. In addition, working in such an environment implies acceptance of it to those who may come in contact with you under such circumstances. I would not keep the job, explaining my position to the managers, and I would trust in the Lord to help me in my own efforts at finding other suitable employment and in keeping his commandments. Such decisions are often difficult to make, especially in light of some very practical necessities, but a righteous life requires that a very full, firm, and active commitment be made. If we have a working faith in the gospel principles and in the Lord’s concern for us, we can do whatever is required to maintain that commitment.”

Lorelei Crompton, Age 23
Albuquerque, New Mexico

Barry Barge, Dorsey Sweat, Debra Bond, Deborah Cook, Janice Millsapp; Roy Stanford; Ann Bradley; Jolene Pitcher; Marjean Gutzman

Carl Wuebker; Rhonda Leath; Marolee Williams; Darrel Blair, Brenda Wilson, Lezli Park, Ann Park, Cathy Millerd, Fay Perschka

Laurie Salmon; Robert Charles Ackroyd; Patricia Stewart; Anne Campbell; John Merrill; Georgia Dillon; Marsha McAdams

Richard Winget; Kay Williams; Larry Bates; Christine Evans; Brenda Done; Lorelei Crompton