The Gospel According to Disney: Faith, Trust, and Pixie Dust

Religion journalist Mark Pinsky presents The Gospel According to Disney: Faith, Trust, and Pixie Dust, a sober exploration of the role that the animated features of the Walt Disney Country have carried out in the spiritual, emotional, and ethical development of generations of young adults. Discussing ideological themes in thirty-one of the most popular Disney films including "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs", "Beauty and the Beast", and "The Lion King", The Gospel According to Disney also reaches beyond the impact of the morality plays on the big screen to such issues as the postive and negative contributions that theme parks have on American culture, why the Southern Baptist Convention chose to boycott Disney in the 1990's and the repercussions of that movement, and much more. An astutely researched and written exploration of the interesection between spirituality and one company's domain of popular entertainment.

I review books for a radio network and I found this book to be a real treat. The Gospel According to Disney is an interesting and informative treatment of the different Disney movies, going back to his first full length film, Snow White. All of the major Disney films are discussed in an objective fashion and in great detail. The relative lack of Christian observance by Walt Disney is balanced by his promotion of optimism and hard work, the need for faith in what you are doing and that evil is always punished and good is rewarded. According to Disney's movies, you don't pray to God, you wish upon a star instead. A lot of the personal life of Disney is covered, particularly his early years and I found the entire book to be well written and informative, but without the saccharin-sweet coverage that some authors might have put into their works about this remarkable man. I recommend this book highly for parents and students, particularly those in high school. Whether we like him or not, Disney is an integral part of American culture and, as one of my grandchildren recently said: 'Mickey Mouse rules!'

This book is an excellent example of how to look for the moral narrative of movies, or other types of media for that matter. As with the previous book doing the same with "The Simpson's" Pinsky demonstrates the challenge of looking into a movie and searching for the moral narrative that can be interpreted as the coherent logical paradigm that holds the elements of the movie together. These are the aspects that teach the audience values. Pinsky points out the value in doing this kind of analysis. If we are using these movies to entertain and teach then we should examine them to see what those values are. It is very easy to watch and enjoy a movie without ever thinking about the moral teachings the movie imparts. A point to make is that all movies project such moral narratives since that is the glue that holds the elements together. We should practice this type of analysis on all the movies we watch. Through the powerful educational tool of modern movies, movie makers educate millions of people. We should follow Pinky's lead and concentrate on what they are teaching us.

Mark I. Pinsky, the religion reporter for The Orlando Sentinel, is one of the foremost U.S. journalists covering religion today --- and I write that from personal experience, on two levels. First, as a former religion reporter for The Asbury Park Press, I know how challenging the job can be and how much open-mindedness and fair-mindedness it takes to do justice to various expressions of faith, given the highly personal and emotionally charged nature of the field of religion. Second, I live in the Orlando area and regularly read Pinsky's work. I know of no other religion reporter working today who puts so much effort into understanding the nuances of each stream of faith and every little rivulet that's part of each of those streams. Pinsky's journalistic skills are enhanced by his analytical skills, and both are evident throughout THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO DISNEY. Pinsky understands the Disney "theology" as well as he understands the concerns of religious people who have taken that theology to task over the years. Contemporary readers may be most familiar with the failed Baptist boycott of a few years ago, but as the author points out, both Jews and Muslims have also attacked the entertainment giant. Back in 1933, the American Jewish Congress --- Pinsky is Jewish, by the way --- charged Disney with perpetuating a Jewish stereotype in the animated short The Three Little Pigs, in which the big bad wolf disguises himself as a Jewish peddler with a large hooked nose and a Yiddish accent. Similarly, Arab and Muslim groups expressed outrage over the Middle Eastern stereotypes portrayed in the 1992 feature Aladdin, which I suspect you would have to be blind not to see. As Pinsky points out, the villains are all stereotypical Arabs while the stars of the show, Aladdin and Jasmine, more closely resemble tanned Southern Californians, despite the surfer girl's almond-shaped eyes. But just what is this Disney gospel --- this blend of "faith, trust, and pixie dust"? It's American cultural religion: belief in the ability of the self to overcome adversity, faith in faith itself, adherence to the American ethic of morality and hard work. Pinsky cites a wonderful quote from evangelicalism's Phil Vischer, of VeggieTales fame: "Like a house dressing designed to appeal moderately to almost everyone while offending no one, Disney created a sort of 'house religion,' absorbing much of the benefits of Judeo-Christian belief while leaving behind any 'unseemly' obligation to conform to the will of a higher authority...[appealing to] people who want to believe in something that doesn't require anything of them. That's the religion we've all been dying for." Pinsky traces the evolution of the Disney gospel --- which includes the good news about inclusivism and environmentalism, two terms that rankle evangelicals --- from the studio's earliest releases to the 2003 release of Brother Bear and touches on Disney-related news as recent as the arrest several months ago of Tigger

**** For decades, Walt Disney has stood as an icon of family values, fairy tales, and hope; however, there is a very large but at the end of the sentence. Despite all the warm fuzziness, there is only a thin thread of Christian value to be drawn from the tales we all grew up viewing. Delving into the personal histories of the men who shaped the Disney Empire and analyzing the most notable animated features, the author takes us on an odyssey of discovery. After reading this book, it is childishly easy to see how some of the aberrations of Christianity, notably "word of faith" heresy has been able to grab the weak minded by the throat so easily. I won't go so far as to say it will make those who still love Cinderella or Snow White and borrow children for an excuse to watch them will toss out their dvd's or vhs tapes, but it sprinkles them with salt. There is still some goodness to be found, but you can watch knowing what to be wary of as well. **** Amanda Killgore