Bob and Larry (Jesus and T.V. - Part 2)

I remember stand (Stand up, stand up)
For what you believe in, believe in,
Believe in God (He's the one to back you up)
We'll stand with you!

--From the song "Stand Up!" written by Phil Vischer

Slushies. Bible Verses. Singing Cucumbers.

What could these thing possibly have in common? They're all a part of the ever-popular Christian video series known as "VeggieTales." I love VeggieTales...I grew up on Bob's humourous takes on Bible stories and Larry's adorable Silly Songs. However, this post isn't a rant on how wonderful VeggieTales is...

A while back, I was babysitting my baby cousins. As I was channel-surfing for something toddler-friendly, I spotted VeggieTales...on cable television! I quickly hit "select" and was pleasantly surprised to find an old episode I had seen multiple times before on VHS. As the program continued, I began to notice a few changes. First of all, Qwerty (the Bible verse-quoting, pong-playing desktop computer) was missing. Then, Bob failed to end the episode with "God made you special, and He loves you very much!" As another episode began, it hit me: VeggieTales had been completely stripped of its Christian messages in order to be on secular television.

Now, there was nothing inappropriate about this new rendition of VeggieTales: "Silly Songs with Larry" hadn't been replaced with "Satanic Songs with Ozzy Osbourn" or anything like that...it was just void of any mention of Jesus, God, Heaven or the Bible. I couldn't believe it - VeggieTales had given up it's Chrisian message in order to be on television.

Before writing this, I decided to do my homework. I didn't want to slam Phil Vischer (the creator of Big Idea Productions) if NBC censored VeggieTales without his knowledge or behind his back. Then I found this quote which made me almost want to cry: "VeggieTales is religious. NBC is not. I want to focus people more on 'Isn't it cool that Bob and Larry are on television.'"

God blessed Phil Vischer with so much success and he thanks Him with compromise and hypocrisy? Vischer made millions on a franchise that pointed children to God. Now that he's made those millions, he's willing to cover up God's name like Peter denying Christ. Maybe Phil should watch "Rack, Shack & Benny" again and listen to the lyrics of "Stand Up!"  Christians in the entertainment business need to be bold and unwilling to compromise their beliefs in order please others. As long as we have the right to free speech, there should be shows like VeggieTales...the old VeggieTales.

I suppose the point of these posts is "looks are decieving when it comes to entertainment." I'm sure if we were to do a survey asking "Which children's television program features characters who quote Bible verses: A) VeggieTales or B) X-Men?" we'd get a load of wrong guesses. I'll end this article encouraging all of you to do two things. First, we need to pray for Phil Vischer. He's a Christian man being tempted by worldly success. Second, don't ever idolize a Christian book, movie or franchise. VeggieTales has been given a lot of praise over the years for being such a great Christian show for kids. Rightfully so, but that doesn't mean the franchise (or it's producer, Phil Vischer) is perfect.

Kurt (Jesus and T.V. - Part 1)

You don't have to spend very much time with children to discover that one of the strongest influences on them is their entertainment. It is far more likely to see kids running out of a movie theater screaming "Let's play Kung Fu Panda!" then it is to see kids come out of a classroom screaming "Let's play Constitutional Convention!" And it doesn't stop with play...children imitate characters in their speech, mannerisms, food choices, and even their thought process. Clearly, parents need to be extremely careful when it comes to what their children are exposed to. Of course, adults simply being children in grown-up bodies, we teens and adults need to be discerning about what our own eyes see as well.

Now, I'm not about to make a list of movies that are "wrong" to see or "right" to see, because that changes with the viewer's age and spiritual maturity. Also, I believe everyone has to make their own decisions on this topic and it would be wrong of me to condemn anyone's movie choices as evil. After all, the Bible doesn't say "Thou shalt never watch Twilight or else be sentenced to eternity in Hell. However, I am going to give my fiery, blunt opinion on three very different franchises and the Biblical messages in them (which I consider pretty obvious, but may not be to some.) If you are easily offended, or have deep emotional attachment to any of the characters I am about to mention, it may be in your best interest to read a different blog post instead (I suggest "Sister Paintings"...it's less controversial.)


Let's start with my personal favorite: X-Men. Unfortunately, most Christians take one look at the movies (or comics, cartoons, video games, etc.) and immediately label them with a big fat "NO." It's easy to see why. The main premise of the X-Men storyline is a group of superheroes form after obtaining their powers through human evolution. Add that to the fact that the super villain, Mystique, runs around (almost) naked in the movies, and it's amazing such a story could have any inkling of Christian philosophy. It does...and it's more than just an inkling.

Kurt Wagner (or "Nightcrawler" as he's more often referred to) is one of the most devout Christians in all of fiction and my favorite superhero of all-time. He is seen praying before missions, reading his Bible while hanging around the X-Mansion and even quoting scripture to the enemies he encounters. In one episode of the 1990's cartoon (which still re-runs unedited on Disney Channel) Kurt explains his Christian faith to his fellow X-Man, Rogue and hands her a Bible. Later in the same episode, Kurt discovers that his mother tried to drown him as a child because of his mutant appearance. Rather than plot revenge (as far too many "superheroes" do) he tells her "I forgive you...and I will pray that God will give you the peace you need to forgive yourself." Shocked, his mother weeps "I don't deserve your prayers" and leaps in front of a missile to save to him. She falls into a river and disappears. As Kurt and Rogue leave the scene, Kurt asks her "What would cause her to do such a thing for me?" Rogue responds with "Maybe that faith of yours got to her" and Kurt's mother is shown climbing out of the river, eyes full of tears as she looks toward the Heavens. It's that intense. There's countless other examples of these kinds of messages in the X-Men franchise. If there's one lesson to learn from the scaled, furry, mutated X-Men, it's the message they promote more than any other: don't judge by appearances alone.

The Magic We Tend to Ignore

People love the idea of exotic adventures. We dream of exciting travels to far away countries or even far away planets. We fantasize about having fantastic powers or abilities or being specially chosen for a dangerous mission that will require a great amount of courage or heroism. I always have, at least. There's something about science fiction and fantasy that appeals to human nature. Some of us crave a dangerous adventure and wish we could escape to a far-away planet that needs us. We want to be called to do something bigger than simply survive in a cushy little suburbia.

But unfortunately elaborate, super-powered, multi-world adventures are limited to the world of fiction...right? Well, to be honest, I believe we're living in one right now.

Two thousand years ago, a hero from a different dimension came down to Earth. He was not the hero anyone expected; blunt, rebellious and from lowly origins, but he was exactly the hero they needed. His super-human powers were nearly endless. He could bend weather to his will, heal the wounded and the sick, raise the dead, transfigure the elements, see the future and possessed increased strength and endurance that allowed him to go weeks without food. Although he gained the public's love and respect, he made more than a few enemies...just like any superhero.

With great power comes great responsibility, however. This hero's responsibility was to save all of humanity and he did so by offering himself up in self-sacrifice. Like Aslan, Gandalf, Jean Grey, Spock and the Silver Surfer, he willingly allowed himself to be killed so that others may live. However, he was far too powerful to stay dead for long and travelled back to our dimension to set up a new alliance of warriors. These elect soldiers would be hand-selected to carry on his legacy until he returned to our world for the final time...this time, as its king.

Of course, this is the story of Jesus Christ. When you think about it, the Bible is nothing but one big real-life fantasy adventure. It just doesn't seem magical because we've grown used to it. I'm sure Legolas and Aragorn think their world is perfectly normal and boring, while we few Middle Earth to be some fantastic magical world. In the same way, we most of us look at our own world as simple and boring, but if a Mirkwood elf were to go Sacramento, he'd think he was in a magical kingdom out of a fantasy novel. Our reality is just as fantastic as any world of fiction. Christians have blessing of being the heroes. We are Christ's individually selected warriors chosen to light up the world. Spiritual gifts are like super-powers and Satan is our Dr. Doom.

I hate it when Christianity is treated like any other religion. It's not. What I hate even more, however, is when Christianity is treated like a trend. I hate it when kids act like wearing a "Team Jesus" t-shirt makes them a Christian in the same way wearing eye-liner and gages would make them an emo. Christianity should be treated like a mission...and not a make-believe one. Bible Studies shouldn't be cutesy little social gatherings, they should be team meetings. The Bible isn't a religious text, it's a secret agent manual. Christians aren't a political party like democrats, or a trend like goths, or a religious group like Muslims...they're super-powered mutant heroes like the X-Men.

If you happen to be a sci-fi/fantasy geek like me, stop dreaming and start living. There's a real-life mission that you're being called for. There are powers to unlock, people to save and enemies to fight. There's a battle going on right now, and whether or not you're aware of it you are already involved. Make sure you're on the right side.