Disney and LGBTQ

DISCLAIMER: I have wavered back and forth on whether I should post this blog entry or not but I have obviously decided to post it. The reason being is that I feel the need to stand up for the truth that I believe in. I feel the need to say this because I don’t see anyone else talking about it. I don’t want to say that I am a Christian but not stand up for what I believe in for fear of upsetting someone. I remind myself Jesus’ words in John 15:18-19:

“If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. 19 If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.”

The world is going to hate us (Christians) because we stand for a truth that goes against what they believe in but that is not a reason for us to back down. We must continue to expose the darkness and point people towards the light.  I want to live out the command in 1 Peter 3:15-16 that calls Christians to:

“But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.”

This blog post for sure is going to get me in trouble but before you begin to get angry or leave this post just hear me out. I know the current culture in America struggles to have a conversation with people of opposing views. We just end up attacking the other person and then run away. I simply want to state the thoughts that are going on inside of my head to see if they are crazy or not. If you feel that they are crazy  then please feel free to address my thoughts. I would be happy to hear how we differ. 

HERE’S THE POST: 
The media giant known as Disney has launched it’s latest product to become the ruling king of all things media by launching DisneyPlus. And let me just say that it is AWESOME! It has all the great Disney classics, Marvel movies and shows, Star Wars, and even Gargoyles (Yeah you know that classic TV cartoon)! I enjoy it better than Netflix because I don’t have to worry about adult content showing up in the feed that my kids can stumble across (Yes, you can go to kids and have controls but the thumbnails will still show up). But now I have to worry about Disney pushing their propaganda onto my kids. Disney/Marvel have a great show titled, “Hero Project” that celebrates young kids who are making a big difference in their respective community. It is a cool series and is great to see kids making a difference but I am not a fan of their latest episode, “The Mighty Rebekah.” And now I am in trouble but again please hear me out. 

The Mighty Rebekah tells the story of Rebekah who is a transgender girl. The episode shows how since coming out at the age of 8,  Rebekah has become a loud and proud voice for the LGBTQ community. There are both positives and negatives to this story but it is mostly negatives for me as the mainstream media/culture continues to push the LGBTQ lifestyle onto the rest of us. My intent with this post is not to attack Rebekah and her family but to ask questions but also to challenge a father who calls himself a Christian pastor. 

First, the positives I see from this episode/Rebekah’s life.  Rebekah is 12 years old and is making a difference not just in her community but the nation.  She is fighting for what she believes in.  She is reaching out to kids who feel casted out by society and is giving them a community to be a part of. The support group she is seen putting on during the episode is really cool. I mean how many kids are putting in that kind of work to help other people? 

Now let me move into the negatives. Again, my goal is not to attack Rebekah but to create a conversation.  There is not necessarily an order to all of these but just my thoughts as I watched the episode. Please note that I refer to Rebekah by name or the male pronouns since that’s what he biologically is. 

What happens when Rebekah hits puberty and doesn’t change like the other girls but actually changes like the other boys? Rebekah will have to take drugs to help become who he “truly” is. I don’t understand this. How can you say you are supposed to be a certain way if your body fights against what you are saying? The response will be, “Because a mistake was made.” And I would respond with, “By whom?” 

7:40 – Rebekah made a comment that his mom said, “God doesn’t make mistakes” which I agree with but not in the sense that Rebekah’s mom uses it.  Why would God make you a boy just so you can later transition to be a girl?  And isn’t this a contradiction with your earlier statement that “God doesn’t make mistakes?” I assuming the following but either way I would assume that Rebekah’s mom would say that God made a mistake when He made Rebekah a boy at birth, but it wasn’t a mistake for Rebekah to become a trans girl?

And on that note how do you know the thoughts of God? Many Trans people say a mistake was made and they were made the wrong way. Who is telling them that? I mean, I know the answer but that’s not the one they will say. If you don’t know the answer then let me tell you, it’s Satan! It’s the same strategy as it was from the very beginning, “Did God really say…” (Genesis 3:1). Satan’s strategy is to sow doubt not outright lies. He will feed us the doubt little by little until we have completely swallowed it and we embrace the lie. And what is the lie that Satan feeds us “You don’t need God. He will leave you empty. Be your own god!”  

Just look at what Paul David Tripp says in his book Parenting: 14 Gospel Principles That Can Radically Change Your Family.* Paul says that there are two lies that every lost child (lost meaning those who don’t follow Jesus as Lord and Savior of their life) believes:
“Autonomy: I am a completely independent human being, and because I am, I have the right to live my life any way I choose to live it.
Self-sufficiency: lie tells your child that he has everything he needs inside himself to be what he needs to be and to do what he needs to do” (Tripp 106).
Or in layman terms: “I don’t need God. I am god in my life.” 

These two lies sum up pretty well how Rebekah is living his life. Rebekah thinks he can live however he wants and be whoever he makes him happy. Rebekah also thinks that the key to happiness is found inside of himself. 

5:30 “None of the other parents wanted her in the group anymore.” Why is it that Rebekah’s parents can get upset that someone dare to refuse to let Rebekah use the same bathrooms or be in the same groups as the girls but if those girls’ parents have an issue they are labeled homophobic/hate mongers? 

Trans Youth talk about feeling isolated and how people treat them but I rarely hear them talk about the other side. Rebekah, who is a boy (they didn’t say they removed his penis yet so he is still a boy), wants to use the same bathroom as the girls. Do all the other girls feel comfortable with Rebekah being in the same bathroom as them? What about showers for sports? Today’s culture doesn’t care about anyone else’s happiness or rights if they infringe upon their own and this is a perfect example of that. Rebekah wants all these rights while stepping on the rights of others. 

4:30 – Rebekah says around the age of 2, he liked the color pink and other things that were considered “girly.” Rebekah also said that it got harder to wear pink as he got older and said people were confused…Ah Yeah? Why wouldn’t they be confused. You were a boy wearing girl clothing. Yes, I believe there are specific clothes for boys and girls. This is the part where I upset the parents. Rebekah’s dad, Chris, is apparently a priest which can I say hat’s off to Disney for trying to connect with the Evangelical crowd and normalize this by going “Look! God approves of this as well.” (Please note the sarcasm).  Seriously!? 

Chris I assume you have read the Bible so what is your role as a parent? To make sure you kid is happy? No! 

Ephesians 6:4 (NIV):“Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.” 

Our role as parents is to tell our children of what God has done for them and to help them surrender their life to God as a follower of Christ. It is not to make them happy. Yes, they will experience true joy when they submit to God’s will for their life so you can say we will make them happy but we are supposed to correct them when they sin. That’s why God put us in authority over our children. 

Let me quote Paul David Tripp again because I think he is spot on:  “Your job is to do everything within your power, as an instrument in the hands of the Redeemer who has employed you, to woo, encourage, call, and train your children to willingly and joyfully live as disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ” (Tripp 184).

6:05 “Really at the root of all the trouble she was having, was an identity. Who she was, wasn’t who she was being and that needed to change.” I agree with you Chris but why is Rebekah’s identity found in his gender or sexual orientation? I mean, is that the most important thing that you as a Christian father are supposed to teach him?  Rebekah’s identity is to be found in Christ and Christ ALONE! I suggest you read Christopher Yuan’s book, Holy Sexuality**. 
Let me share a few quotes from Yuan’s book that talk about finding our identity in Christ: 

“Yet we know that we are created in God’s image (Genesis 1:27). Thus, rejecting our inherent essence and replacing it simply with what we feel or do is in reality an attempted coup d’état against our Creator. We don’t need to find out identity; our identity is given by God” (Yuan 10).

“We begin with a completely theocentric, or God-centered, view of humankind-that we’re all created in the image of God (Genesis 1) but also distorted by sin because of the Fall (Genesis 3). Only then are we able to understand our desires, submit to Christ, and live according to God’s will. Who am I? Who are you? Who are they? Who are we? The answer begins with the image of God and the doctrine of sin” (Yuan 13).

Yuan argues in his book that our identity is found in Christ but sin distorts that identity just like I mentioned earlier in this post. He goes on to say that our ultimate goal is not to find our true self but to find Christ. And in finding Christ we not only find out who we were created to be but we find true Joy. 

I worry for Rebekah has he grows up and begins to develop as a man. What if he wakes up in a few years and realizes that he has been living a lie all these years and he accepts that he is a boy? Can he turn back? Maybe but it will be too hard by that time. I mean he was made into a Marvel hero and has a comic book talking about this.  And his parents…there is not enough time for all that involves but let me just say, “BE THE PARENT!” Why is the 12 year old dictating how they want to live their life? Why are you allowing your kid to wear girly clothes when he is a boy? I think this is so wrong and I blame the parents and not Rebekah. Rebekah is a kid who desperately needs his parents to guide him to be who he was created to be, A BOY! Stop making your kid a mascot for this ridiculous movement. 
Chris, you are a pastor or priest (whatever your denomination calls you) so I can’t understand where in the Bible you see this as being ok. You are the reason I feel the need to say something because we have too many Christians who are afraid to take a stand for Jesus in the culture for fear of offending someone. We don’t condemn sin when we see it. We tiptoe around it. We think love and justice cannot work together, yet it does everyday. 

All kids including Rebekah need their parents to be their parent! Not their best friend. We are ruining a generation by handing them everything they think they need. Our kids need to know we will fight for them and won’t leave when they fight with us.

We are called to prepare the way for our kids so that they can find their identity in the one who created them, Christ. 

*Tripp, Paul David. Parenting: 14 Gospel Principles That Can Radically Change Your Family. Crossway, 2016.

**Yuan, Christopher. Holy Sexuality and the Gospel: Sex, Desire, and Relationships Shaped by Gods Grand Story. Multnomah, 2018.