Last week, the evangelical world was shocked to learn that Disney has incorporated a pro-homosexual message into their upcoming movie, Beauty and The Beast. But that is not all. We have also learned that the Disney T.V. show Star vs. the Forces of Evil contains a scene where several couples (including homosexual couples) are showing kissing in the background. Evangelicals are left wondering, “Has Disney lost its mind?”
Unfortunately, the answer is no. In fact, Disney probably has a better understanding of the American culture than most churches do.
According to Barna researchers, only 36% of Americans went to church this Sunday. Instead of looking to the Bible for guidance about life 91% of Americans look within themselves to find the answers to life biggest questions. As they looked within, most of them (69%) have discovered that any kind of sexual expression between two consenting adults is ok. And 71% of them approve of divorce and 63% are ok with sexual fantasies.
The LGBT lifestyle and sexual revolution ethic are no longer extreme in the mind of most Americans. Christianity is the extreme. Today, 60% of Americans consider attempting to convert others to your religion to be extreme action. And 52% think condemning same sex relationships because of religious convictions is also extreme.
We have even seen this shift in politics. Both major political parties have embraced the revolution, praising the homosexual lifestyle. In short, Christians no longer dominate the morality of America. Trump’s arrival in the White House has not changed that reality as Disney has reminded us.
Now in all fairness, Disney’s shift away from normative, conservative, evangelical thought is nothing new. As early as 1940, Jiminy Cricket was telling children, “To always let your conscience be your guide.” But now, Disney no longer feels that it has to tiptoe around Christian values. Mickey and company have gauged the cultural winds and determined that is they have the power to directly challenge the biblical family norms they once had to respect.
Going forward, I think we should skip Beauty and the Best. I do believe that watching sinful thing after sinful thing will adversely effect our souls and actions. To some degree, Disney understands this reality too (though the corporation clearly does not view its agenda as morally wrong). Disney want us to accept and to respond to the message of the movie in a positive way. But we cannot because we serve a power greater than the emotions of our fellow men and women.
As Paul encourages us in Romans 12:2 to
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
Perhaps by doing so, we will be able to send Disney a message. But I suspect our boycott will not hurt Disney too much financially since Bible believing Christians are a minority culture. However, punishing Disney should not be are ultimate goal. Protecting our souls and the souls of our children is our primary purpose. As we loving sit out, we will hopefully have opportunities to discuss our convictions and to share our faith with our families and with the watching world.
As we set ourselves apart, we must be careful not to make the homosexual agenda the measure of our success. We must flee sin in all of its forms and protect our children from all the various lusts of the world. We must stop approving of sitcoms that make light of heterosexual immorality, divorce, and affairs. We must stop pretending that pornography has no effect upon our relationships. We must stop lying, cheating, and excusing sins as ‘ok’ because we like them. We must fill our mind with the Scriptures and with movies, songs, and books that are consistent with the divine narrative of the Bible.
We do not have to avoid all secular media going forward to be good Christians. But, we do have to be wise and discerning when we select movies, T. V. shows, albums, and books for ourselves and our kids. We must avoid things that lead us and our kids to embrace sin and to minimize truth. Such discernment will probably leave us with fewer and fewer options because our American culture is no longer synonymous with our Christian culture.
The world where college students can convince their atheistic professors of the existence of God is increasingly shrinking. The world where Disney characters wrestle with same sex attraction is growing. We are living in a digital Babylon. Disney understands this new reality. Do you?
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