Sunday, March 26, 2017
The year was probably 1992. Beauty and the Beast was a new Disney animation that came out in 1991. I say 1992 because we were watching it on VHS because you see it was considered wrong to actually go to the movie to see it (I am going to leave that right there). It was my sister's favorite movie. We watched it probably 100 times. She had Beauty and the Beast posters and other items to do with the movie. It continued to be one of my favorite movies and loved sharing the animation version with my girls a few years ago. So it is natural that when it was announced that a real life version of the movie was going to be released I was so excited! When I found out that Dan Stevens (Matthew Crawley from Downton) was going to play the Beast I was completely sold.
A few weeks before the movie was to premier I got on FB one morning and my news feed was blowing up about the changes the creators of this movie had added and with pitchforks raised we as Christians were to boycott this movie and stick it to Disney. I do not get involved with this drama. I have private conversations with people I trust, but I refrain from social media rants.Some people politely shared an article just letting others know what was included in the movie and some just went too far with their opinions. I admit that I was a little disappointed and I made the decision that I would not take the girls without seeing it first. It also added to a list of so many times that I feel like Christians are putting way too much energy in. I am being honest, I get so tired of the ridiculous over sharing of the madness in this world. Those who are trying to fight so hard against something do more advertising for the secular company that the company does. We spread news of their agenda and they are just sitting back watching it spread like wildfire. Now, before you think that someone has hijacked my computer, I am uber conservative. Every time we are going to watch a movie or a new TV show we go online and check out Christian reviews ( legitimate Christian views, not FB). We read what warning they have and then we make a decision if we want to watch it or let our kids watch it. The truth is that we live in a secular world that produces almost everything we watch. If I were to protest this movie then I would be a hypocrite if I continued to have a television. Almost everything I watch is tainted someway by the agenda of this world. Even watching sports you see commercials advertising things that are against Biblical principals or the athletes live lives not according to God's plan. " A tale as old as time", the fact that every story is a struggle between good and evil. My freshman year of college I had an amazing professor that spent an entire semester teaching us how to objectively watch movies/TV or read books from a Christian worldview. Even in secular avenues you can find a redemptive aspect of the story.
I went Friday night to see the movie with some friends. I loved the movie. I smiled and I cried and I bought the soundtrack as soon as I got home. There was probably 45 seconds of the whole movie that were slightly tainted, but the rest of the movie was an absolute treasure. With all the hype of those 45 seconds I watched the movie from a Christian worldview and I realized that if I was watching this movie with a non-believer I could totally have a gospel conversation from this story. First, we see that the basis of this movie is that you cannot judge someone by the way they look. Relate it to the fact that the Lord does not look at the outward appearance, but our heart. Second, we are all under a curse of sin, We are all prisoners because of our selfishness. Our Hope of freedom comes from the Love of our Savior. I am not trying to be super spiritual, I just wish that we would stop focusing so much on the things that are broken in this life and focus on the One who can restore the brokenness. Not for one second am I saying we should be consumed with trash hoping we come across some treasure, but we should not throw out a treasure because it has a little dirt on it either. We live in a mad, mad world. It seems to be turned upside down most of the time, but the way we respond, the way we lash out on social media (even with the best intentions) usually pushes people further away from Truth.
There is a line from The Mob Song from the movie that just made me think about all of the controversy that has been stirred up with this movie and any other news headline. There has to be a better way.
There's a beast running wild, there's no question
But I fear the wrong monster's released
A few weeks before the movie was to premier I got on FB one morning and my news feed was blowing up about the changes the creators of this movie had added and with pitchforks raised we as Christians were to boycott this movie and stick it to Disney. I do not get involved with this drama. I have private conversations with people I trust, but I refrain from social media rants.Some people politely shared an article just letting others know what was included in the movie and some just went too far with their opinions. I admit that I was a little disappointed and I made the decision that I would not take the girls without seeing it first. It also added to a list of so many times that I feel like Christians are putting way too much energy in. I am being honest, I get so tired of the ridiculous over sharing of the madness in this world. Those who are trying to fight so hard against something do more advertising for the secular company that the company does. We spread news of their agenda and they are just sitting back watching it spread like wildfire. Now, before you think that someone has hijacked my computer, I am uber conservative. Every time we are going to watch a movie or a new TV show we go online and check out Christian reviews ( legitimate Christian views, not FB). We read what warning they have and then we make a decision if we want to watch it or let our kids watch it. The truth is that we live in a secular world that produces almost everything we watch. If I were to protest this movie then I would be a hypocrite if I continued to have a television. Almost everything I watch is tainted someway by the agenda of this world. Even watching sports you see commercials advertising things that are against Biblical principals or the athletes live lives not according to God's plan. " A tale as old as time", the fact that every story is a struggle between good and evil. My freshman year of college I had an amazing professor that spent an entire semester teaching us how to objectively watch movies/TV or read books from a Christian worldview. Even in secular avenues you can find a redemptive aspect of the story.
I went Friday night to see the movie with some friends. I loved the movie. I smiled and I cried and I bought the soundtrack as soon as I got home. There was probably 45 seconds of the whole movie that were slightly tainted, but the rest of the movie was an absolute treasure. With all the hype of those 45 seconds I watched the movie from a Christian worldview and I realized that if I was watching this movie with a non-believer I could totally have a gospel conversation from this story. First, we see that the basis of this movie is that you cannot judge someone by the way they look. Relate it to the fact that the Lord does not look at the outward appearance, but our heart. Second, we are all under a curse of sin, We are all prisoners because of our selfishness. Our Hope of freedom comes from the Love of our Savior. I am not trying to be super spiritual, I just wish that we would stop focusing so much on the things that are broken in this life and focus on the One who can restore the brokenness. Not for one second am I saying we should be consumed with trash hoping we come across some treasure, but we should not throw out a treasure because it has a little dirt on it either. We live in a mad, mad world. It seems to be turned upside down most of the time, but the way we respond, the way we lash out on social media (even with the best intentions) usually pushes people further away from Truth.
There is a line from The Mob Song from the movie that just made me think about all of the controversy that has been stirred up with this movie and any other news headline. There has to be a better way.
There's a beast running wild, there's no question
But I fear the wrong monster's released
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