{"id":3006,"date":"2017-02-27T04:00:19","date_gmt":"2017-02-27T04:00:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/equipmagazine.org\/?p=3006"},"modified":"2023-08-29T11:21:01","modified_gmt":"2023-08-29T17:21:01","slug":"veggie-tales-whats-bible","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/veggie-tales-whats-bible\/","title":{"rendered":"From Veggie Tales to What\u2019s in the Bible: Following Phil Vischer\u2019s Lead"},"content":{"rendered":"

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The first time I saw Veggie Tales<\/em> I was a high school sophomore in a room full of guys from around the country and we couldn\u2019t stop laughing at Larry the Cucumber\u2019s hairbrush song<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Veggie Tales<\/em> was funny stuff.<\/p>\n

Every half-hour episode was packed with witty cultural references, silly vegetables and a nice moral lesson, always ending with the affirmation, \u201cGod made you special, and He loves you very much.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Almost twenty years later, I still watch Veggie Tales<\/em> with my kids as they\u2019re introduced to Veggie-tized versions of classic characters from Indiana Jones to George M\u00fcller and classic literature from Hamlet to Huckleberry Finn.<\/p>\n

But I\u2019ve known for some time that there\u2019s something conspicuously missing from Veggie Tales<\/em>. Despite being created by Christians with the goal of promoting Christian virtues and values, there\u2019s something missing. Something you need in order to be truly Christian.<\/p>\n

Oh yes, I know what\u2019s missing.<\/p>\n

Jesus Christ.<\/b><\/p>\n

Christianity vs Morality<\/h3>\n

The creator of Veggie Tales<\/em>, Phil Vischer, came to this same realization after the bankruptcy and sale of Veggie Tales\u2019<\/em> parent company Big Idea Productions.[ref]You can read Phil Vischer\u2019s story of Big Idea\u2019s demise here http:\/\/philvischer.com\/phil-news\/what-happened-to-big-idea-part-1\/<\/a>.[\/ref] In a 2011 interview with worldmag.com he was asked, “How are you applying your experience with Big Idea to your new venture, Jellyfish Labs?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Vischer responded:<\/p>\n

After the bankruptcy I had\u2026a\u2026sabbatical of\u2026spending time with God and listening to Him. I looked back at the previous 10 years and realized I had spent 10 years trying to convince kids to behave Christianly without actually teaching them Christianity. And that was a pretty serious conviction. You can say, ‘Hey kids, be more forgiving because the Bible says so,’ or ‘Hey kids, be more kind because the Bible says so!’ But that isn’t Christianity, it’s morality.<\/b><\/em><\/p>\n

That realization led me to a quest to say, all right, I need a new vehicle for teaching where I can go in much, much deeper but still in a fun, lighthearted, witty way\u2026my new series, What’s in the Bible<\/em>\u2026that was such a huge shift for me from the American Christian ideal. We’re drinking a cocktail that’s a mix of the Protestant work ethic, the American dream, and the gospel. And we’ve intertwined them so completely that we can’t tell them apart anymore. Our gospel has become a gospel of following your dreams and being good so God will make all your dreams come true. It’s the Oprah god.”<\/b><\/em>[ref]Emphasis mine. You can read the interview here http:\/\/www.worldmag.com\/2011\/09\/it_s_not_about_the_dream\/page1<\/a>.[\/ref]<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Veggie Tales:\u00a0<\/em>A Reflection of a Bigger Problem<\/h3>\n

Vischer\u2019s realization about Veggie Tales<\/em> is part of a much bigger problem, one that Dr. Christian Smith, professor of sociology at Notre Dame, has coined \u201cMoralistic Therapeutic Deism\u201d. In Soul Searching: The Religious and Spiritual Lives of American Teenagers<\/em>[ref]Christian Smith & Melina Lundquist Denton, Soul Searching: The Religious and Spiritual Lives of American Teenagers<\/em> (New York: Oxford University Press, 2005).[\/ref] Smith utilized extensive research with American teens to summarize their prevailing religious views:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. \u201cA God exists who created and orders the world and watches over human life on earth.<\/em><\/li>\n
  2. God wants people to be good, nice, and fair to each other, as taught in the Bible and by most world religions.<\/em><\/li>\n
  3. The central goal of life is to be happy and to feel good about oneself.<\/em><\/li>\n
  4. God does not need to be particularly involved in one\u2019s life except when he is needed to resolve a problem.<\/em><\/li>\n
  5. Good people go to heaven when they die.\u201d<\/em>[ref]For a short, accessible summary of the book, written by Christian Smith, see http:\/\/www.ptsem.edu\/uploadedFiles\/School_of_Christian_Vocation_and_Mission\/Institute_for_Youth_Ministry\/Princeton_Lectures\/Smith-Moralistic.pdf<\/a>.[\/ref]<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    This sounds very similar to the religion of Veggie Tales<\/em> and so many other products and messages that bear the label \u201cChristian\u201d. It is a warm, fuzzy belief in a distant God whose primary goal is our happiness and fulfillment.<\/p>\n

    It is Christianity without Christ, which means it is not Christianity at all, but a false religion built on a false gospel. And most American teenagers, including most professing Christians, have unwittingly accepted it as their worldview.<\/b><\/p>\n

    Choosing More Than\u00a0Veggie Tales<\/em> & False Religion<\/h3>\n

    So, what can be done?<\/p>\n

    We can begin by taking a page from Vischer\u2019s book. In his new series, What\u2019s in the Bible<\/em>, Vischer works his way through Scripture systematically, focusing on the centrality and supremacy of Christ at every turn.<\/p>\n

    Rather than being content with the Christ-less generalities of \u201cbeing kind\u201d and \u201cGod loves you\u201d, Vischer develops the deep theological <\/a>themes of sin, death, salvation, new life and righteousness in Christ. Yes, \u201cGod loves us\u201d, but we know this because of what God did in Christ. Yes, we should be \u201ckind\u201d to one another, but that is because kindness demonstrates the love of God that is transforming us into the image of Christ.<\/p>\n

    In our homes we need to follow this same pattern. Our children need to be taught how Christ is the center of everything we do and say as Christians. As parents we can only teach this if we are truly believing and practicing it.<\/p>\n

    [bctt tweet=”Our children are a reflection of us. – Israel Steinmetz”]<\/p>\n

    Our children are a reflection of us. The reason so many of them have accepted a religion built on happiness, good morals and personal fulfillment is that so many of us have modeled this religion for them.<\/b><\/p>\n

    We model this false religion when:<\/p>\n