The presence of magic in cartoons

[Supercryptid]

We know that the Bible condemns all forms of magic. Magic, as it is present in the real world, is an occult practice and comes from the Devil.

Several cartoons feature magic in some form or another. A couple of well known examples are The Fairly Oddparents and The Grimm Adventures of Billy and Mandy. No doubt some of you here have heard of these cartoons, and you may even watch them.

So let us consider the following question: are all of the current-day, cartoon-based forms of magic evil?

The definition of magic has expanded greatly over the years. The term "magic" has been used to describe a larger number of things than it was originally created for. While magic can still be used to describe occult practices, modern culture has expanded the meaning to encompass pretty much any fictional energy or force. Take the Fairly Oddparents for instance. The fairies don't say any magic words, nor do they perform rituals. They just raise their wand and "poof" something bizarre happens. Their magic is an intrinsic part of being fairies. In the Grimm Adventures of Billy and Mandy, you have the Grim Reaper (Death personified). It goes without saying that he has supernatural powers. He uses his scythe to open portals to the underworld, to give other people super-powers, and of course, to end people's lives (though I don't think that's ever shown on screen).

Harry Potter's magic is stated to be witchcraft. There is an obvious occult overtone to his stories. That is why I avoid Harry Potter. But are the other forms of cartoon "magic" like the ones described above evil as well? Should a cartoon, comic book, or movie be avoided if there is a mention of magic in it? Let me hear your thoughts.

[Shammu]

One of the reasons, I dislike TV. Almost all programming is against the Bibles teachings. I don't know the cartoons, y'all is talking about so I can't comment on them.

[Soldier4Christ]

There is a saying that has been around for quite awhile now ... "garbage in garbage out". What we watch, read or participate in does have an effect on the way we see things and the way that we understand things. We do need to be careful what we do.

[Supercryptid]

Let me see if I can think of more examples that you might be aware of. Aladdin has a magic genie. Cinderella has a fairy godmother that can cast spells. Shrek has magic potions (not exactly a cartoon, but anyways...). Mickey Mouse has been portrayed as a wizard before.

[Sapphire W34P0N]

Oh geeze, yeah, I agree. You hear about the recent murders involving kids who cast deadly spells on a bunch of people?

I blame it on The Fairly Oddparents.

Satan's work, it is.

[Wandering in the desert]

Well, Sapphire is being sarcastic but points out a valuable position.  Is the bane of existence for Christians in today's society Mickey Mouse or Shrek?  Probably not.  But if Christian's aren't careful about the overall lessons that we allow to filter down to our children the values and ideas that we cherish as believers can be watered down or diffused to something that falls short of our goals.  I think that the concern with regard to magic being portrayed in pop culture is that is blurs the line between the everyday and Jesus' miracles.  By being bold in our convictions and thourough in our teachings, our children will realize that when someone does a "trick" and looks like a rabbit is pulled out of a hat is nowhere near feeding the multitudes (source of our symbol the Ichthys) or rising on the third day.  Jesus' miracles stand as a symbol of the power of the Lord, and thus, the power of our faith.  Shrek is just something funny to laugh at (although he does have a lot of "fart jokes."  Bad taste).  We should be able to show our children the difference.

I'm new to the boards so you don't really know me yet.  I consider myself to be a pretty progressive Christian but, I'm sure like most of us, I haven't lost my traditional barometer for right and wrong.  Also, since we can agree, there will ALWAYS be another Shrek or Mickey Mouse or Harry Potter to come along, and thanks to the Hollywood marketing machine, they will be everywhere;  it is nearly impossible to stop our children's exposure to them.  Perhaps we would be better served drawing the aspects of pop culture which reflect or resemble Christ's teachings, and use them to better develop the faith in our children. That and encouraging the development of more mainstream Christian entertainment through patronage and praise.  No one would argue that the production of "The Ten Commandments" last week wasn't helped by the financial success of "The Passion of the Christ". 

The point is, the existence of "magic elements" doesn't automatically mean that a piece of fiction is evil, even if it certainly doesn't help.  More than the existence of a magic potion, what we could instead look for is the lesson or idea conveyed by magic within its use.  Evil does exist in the world as the means by which we marginalize our beliefs or values through exposure to certain elements.  With children, often just a reminder that what they just saw was not real, but Jesus' miracles, and especially his love are real; will do more to fight off that evil that any protest or boycott.  Reminders of our faith, consistency with our convictions, and especially, our standing as a symbol of God's word through our actions and words;  that will have a bigger influence on our children than any cartoon or movie could ever hope to achieve.

But let me know what you guys think!

[Soldier4Christ]

Hi Wandering,

Welcome to Christians Unite. I hope to see more posts from you here. Yes, I agree that we cannot shelter our children completely from such things. They must know how to deal with life as it is and this world we are in is indeed very evil.

Evil is evil and good is good. We as Christians must not fail to point both out to our children for what it is. If we only teach one side then we are only teaching them halfway. As Paul said,

Gal 3:24  Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.

Rom 7:7  ................ I had not known sin, but by the law ...............

No, we are not under the law but through the law we know what sin is. We must therefore teach our children what sin is and what we must do to avoid the consequences of that sin.

[Rookieupgrade1]

OK, how about the Chronicals of Narnia.

Fiction indeed....definatly pushing a Christian adjenda

What of the wardrobe?

[airIam2worship]

OK, how about the Chronicals of Narnia.

Fiction indeed....definatly pushing a Christian adjenda

What of the wardrobe?

I did not watch the Chrinicals of Narnia, I've heard a lot about it but not enough to be able to give an honest opinion. However, I do believe that the 'television industry' does contain a lot of things that I find unfitting for Christian parents to allow their children to watch. Some of these are: Samantha the teenage witch, Buffy the vampire slayer, and many others. There are a lot of animated movies and cartoons that are specifically geared towards the younger children, that contain a lot of undesireable material, of course while it is not always possible to shelter children from watching certain programs, it is possible to filter out those programs that corrupt the minds of our younger children. How do you explain the difference between good and evil to a 2-4 year old child? It is not possible, therefore it is the parents' responsibility to protect their children from such exposure until they are old enough to understand.
My dad always used a lot of sayings to bring home the meaning of things.
Some of the things he said were; tell me who you walk with and I will tell you who you are, be careful with the little ears and the little eyes of children, for their hearts are very receptive. What you pour into a glass is what you will have to drink

I used a lot of discretion with what I allowed my children to watch, and I always explained to them my reasons. Of course this was when they got older, when they were toddlers, I had my rules and they were obeyed. I do not feel one bit guilty for protecting my children from satan's tactics.

[Rookieupgrade1]

I did not watch the Chrinicals of Narnia, I've heard a lot about it but not enough to be able to give an honest opinion. However, I do believe that the 'television industry' does contain a lot of things that I find unfitting for Christian parents to allow their children to watch. Some of these are: Samantha the teenage witch, Buffy the vampire slayer, and many others. There are a lot of animated movies and cartoons that are specifically geared towards the younger children, that contain a lot of undesireable material, of course while it is not always possible to shelter children from watching certain programs, it is possible to filter out those programs that corrupt the minds of our younger children. How do you explain the difference between good and evil to a 2-4 year old child? It is not possible, therefore it is the parents' responsibility to protect their children from such exposure until they are old enough to understand.
My dad always used a lot of sayings to bring home the meaning of things.
Some of the things he said were; tell me who you walk with and I will tell you who you are, be careful with the little ears and the little eyes of children, for their hearts are very receptive. What you pour into a glass is what you will have to drink

I used a lot of discretion with what I allowed my children to watch, and I always explained to them my reasons. Of course this was when they got older, when they were toddlers, I had my rules and they were obeyed. I do not feel one bit guilty for protecting my children from satan's tactics.

Amen Sister.

I just thought I would get others take on a movie I had seen.

I don't have television at all. nothing to see there.

I do watch movies.........At times I have to censor the things I pour in my glass too...........some junk I just don't need to see.

[LittlePilgrim]

Hmm... I think we need to be VERY careful on this issue. It is far too easy to swing in one direction or the other on this, and I think the right area is a fine line between.

Let me explain a bit... Where I look is in the message of the story or the film, the point it is trying to make. A story, film or not, makes it's point through four elements: Protagonist (Main character), Antagonist (Villain, not always an 'evil person;), conflict (The primary problem of a story), and resolution (That is, how the conflict is solved).

The problem I have with such films as Harry Potter is it glorifies magic. It says that witchcraft is neither good nor evil, that it only depends upon who wields it. The primary(stated) goal of the children at Hogwarts is to become wizards and witches. This is CLEARLY against Biblical teaching.

But there are other areas where I think the line has been skewed too far in the other direction by our culture's understanding of 'Magic'. For example, The Lord of the Rings primarily portrayed 'Magic' as a BAD thing! Even the most magical character, Gandalf, was not a 'wizard' in the traditional sense, though that is what he was called. In reality, he was one of the 'Istari', a group of beings sent by the god of that trilogy to aide humanity. Gandalf, in both word and deed, is far more of a Christ or angelic figure than a 'wizard.'

Where I have a problem is where WITCHCRAFT, magics black or white, are glorified. Other forms of magic like fairies, super powers (Super man anyone? That is a form of 'Magic'), etc. are COMPLETELY fictional and are made as a means to tell the story. They are not the means by which the conflict of the story is resolved, and therefore, while they move the story along, they are NOT the point of the story.

Someone mentioned Narnia... Yes, the wardrobe was 'Magical', yet it becomes clear as one reads the series that it is Aslan who calls the children into Narnia by his own will. (As a side note: Though C.S. Lewis did NOT intend Narnia as an allegory, it quickly becomes clear that Aslan IS the Narnian personification of Jesus Christ. Such becomes evident in such complex scenes as the Stone Table, which is HIGHLY remniscent of the cross, or in such subtlties as his names, one of which is 'the king above all high kings'. At the end of the 'Voyage of the Dawn Treader', Lucy makes a remark, upon being told by Aslan that neither she nor Edmund will be able to return again, that it is not Narnia they will miss, but rather, it is Aslan himself. Aslan replies that he exists in our world as well, and that is why the children were allowed to visit Narnia for a time, that by knowing him there for a little while, they would know him better in this world.)

Meanwhile, the most 'magical' character of the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, is indeed, the White Witch. And yet her craft is shown as the vile filth that it is.

Therefore, I do not believe that Narnia portrays magic as a desirable thing, whether in the books or films.

What is the lesson a film tries to teach? How does the hero of the story solve the conflict? In the Lord of the Rings (Sometimes oft rejected by Christians as Harry Potter), the hero, a plain-spoken hobbit named Frodo Baggins destroys the most sought-after power of that world, sacrificing his own life in the process. In Snow White, the heroine is saved by the courage of seven simple men, dwarves, and the love of a prince. These examples and be found all over the place, and I think we need to be careful about merely glancing the surface without delving down to see what a film or a book is truly trying to say.

Yes, as Christians we must use discression, but we should be careful not to judge a film or a book by what is on the surface, just as we should not do so when we face humanity itself. Thankyou.

[Brother Jerry]

LP

Amen and wonderfully done.  I think that is one of the more well written pieces I have seen on the discerning of messages in movies, books, and TV. 

And one worth remembering.  One that I agree iwth and have used before.  I read the first Harry Potter book for example.  And although I thought the author was very good and it was written well I did not like the primary focus being on magic or the potrayal of magic.

And like the fairy god parents in the show.  They are not he primary focus of the show.  Timmy is, and although he uses his god parents in selfish manners, he usually gets a lesson in humility by the end.

Sincerely
Brother Jerry

[Sapphire W34P0N]

*Yawn*

I've been on these boards long enough to say that this whole topic is just beating a dead horse.

[nChrist]

*Yawn*

I've been on these boards long enough to say that this whole topic is just beating a dead horse.

   The horse is still alive.

Hello Sapphire,

It's great to hear from you. I know that you don't understand why many Christian parents care about topics like this, but you will one day. It's really a matter of trying to find out about various media and make informed choices for our children. It really boils down to trying to be a good, Christian parent. We should be doing the same thing with music and everything else we allow into our homes. Not caring and allowing everything isn't doing our children any favors.

Love In Christ,
Tom

Matthew 5:6 NASB  "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.