MondayMorningInsight.com > Dobson vs. Sponge Bob: What Would Bob the Tomato Do?

HOME | CONTRIBUTE A STORY! | ABOUT MMI | CATEGORIES OF INTEREST | CONTACT ME

bob the tomato

Dobson vs. Sponge Bob: What Would Bob the Tomato Do?

Orginally published on Wednesday, February 02, 2005 at 8:53 AM
by Todd Rhoades

Last week, we discussed the current controversy about some remarks that James Dobson has said about a new video being distributed to public schools featuring Sponge Bob Square Pants (and many other current cartoon characters). This has made a lot of the national press recently. (You can read our post from last week to find out more). Well, Christianity Today recently interviewed Phil Vischer, the creator of VeggieTales about the situation. (You can read the interview here). In the last part of the interview, they ask Phil if he thought any good could come out of this story. Here’s his reply…

I doubt if this specific incident will amount to anything more than another "look at the wacky evangelicals" sidebar. But on the positive side, the huge success of recent overtly Christian media like The Passion, VeggieTales, and the Left Behind books is slowly chipping away at the NY/LA media machine's confidence that they "own the mono-culture." Not only are they beginning to recognize that there isn't a "mono-culture" anymore, they're also beginning to recognize that there are huge segments of the audience that don't like what they make. As much as we evangelicals can find America's philosophical diversity disconcerting, Hollywood is finding it profoundly discombobulating. And therein lie the seeds of opportunity.

I think Phil makes a great point. My fear is that most of the world looks at this as whole incident as Dobson being a 'wacky evangelical'; and when that happens, I'm afraid that in many ways it does more harm than good. Here's another excerpt:

To be honest, I'm really not sure what we're trying to accomplish here. I find somewhat baffling the great shock we evangelicals register when we catch the world acting, well, "worldly." I mean, isn't that kind of the point? They're the "world," right? When you start with the assumption that the world is fallen, you're much less likely to be disappointed when you find it actually to be the case.

In a day when news reports are filled of churches and denominations approving of homosexual bishops and running pro-inclusive advertising, why are we so taken aback when the world acts like the world? Like Phil said, they are the world, right?

And a final word from Phil:

Kids' shows themselves very seldom have agendas beyond the crassly commercial. Individual writers, however, sometimes do. Writers may slip something into a script for their own amusement or socio-political gratification that the producers of the show will never notice. We evangelicals will pick up on those subtle intrusions and assume they are systemic.

Looking at the world of kids' television today, I can't think of any shows with an overt sexual identity agenda. I do think that will change over the next 5-10 years, though. Since the early 1970s, promoting diversity has been considered vitally important in children's television, especially in the New York-Washington D.C. school of children's programming exemplified by Sesame Street. Nickelodeon has made it a major focus as well.

But for the last 30 years, diversity has meant gender and race. As a result, liberals and conservatives could agree on their children's programming. Sesame Street, a product of the "Blue States," worked just fine in the "Red States" as well. Over the next 5-10 years I think this will change. Sesame Workshop (the foundation behind Sesame Street) and Nickelodeon will come under increasing pressure from their Blue buddies to positively portray sexual diversity alongside racial and gender diversity. The day a same-sex couple moves onto Sesame Street will mark the day the Red States and the Blue States (or more accurately, the Red Counties and the Blue Counties) will no longer watch the same children's shows. How far away is that day? Maybe two years. Maybe ten years. But it will happen.

Being in the world but not of the world is always tough for Christians. Any way that we can stand for Biblical principles and ideals without looking like 'wacky evangelicals' sounds great to me. That, many times though, is easier said than done.

Any thoughts?

This post has been viewed 305 times so far.

TRACKBACKS: (0) There are 13 Comments:

Posted by

Wednesday, February 02, 2005 at 11:11 PM

Dobson needs to get a life.
Posted by

Thursday, February 03, 2005 at 12:21 PM

I thought Christians were supposed to LOVE those in the world. Why do we just judge them. Unfortunately, the message of the Church to our world is one of CRITIQUE AND JUDGEMENT. And then we wonder why people don’t want to go to church????? Who would want to go to a place where you are already judged before you walk through the front door? If the church’s message was LOVE, people might feel differently.

And honestly… doesn’t Dobson have anything better to do with his time than to sit around looking to see if Spongebob is holding a male starfish’s hand???? Why do we chap unbelievers for acting like unbelievers???? The only reason for people to behave morally is Jesus inside them. you would figure Dobson would know this by now.

These are the kinds of things that make me not want to go to church either.

Congratulations, Jim Dobson, on helping to keep the Church from reaching the world. Have you lost your mind?????
Posted by

Thursday, February 03, 2005 at 1:05 PM

Good article. You wrote:

“When you start with the assumption that the world is fallen, you’re much less likely to be disappointed when you find it actually to be the case.”

I agree - the issue of fallenness is a key factor in present debates. We Christians, unlike non-Christians, believe that we are fallen creatures in a fallen world (due to original sin). No small difference. To the world this belief is utter foolishness. Their mantra: “Just give us a little more time, and with a little more education, a little more tolerance, this world will be set right.” And they really believe this!

Therefore, when we as Christians start from the supposition that we’re fallen - that something drastically went wrong, and that God’s way is the only way to resume sanity in an insane and “wicked world” (1 John 5:19) - the world thinks we are the ones who are utterly insane.

And what is God’s way? It’s to understand how laws are from God to restrain sin and sustain us from destroying ourselves. It’s to believe in Jesus Christ in order to be forgiven and have eternal life. It’s to understand that this life isn’t all that there is - that this is a testing ground for a Kingdom to come (we’re made for another world), and to use this life as an investment in the next.

And though, in the public square, we mainly address the first of God’s ways ("laws are from God to restrain sin...” Romans 13), without an understanding of our fallenness, nor of our purpose here, don’t be shocked when the world views us as insane. From there we can either bow to the world (for their acceptance) and deny the truth, or we can keep standing in the gap - for sanity in our culture (laws to protect the unborn, marriage ammendment, etc), and to invoke God’s mercy rather than passively allow His judgment.

I’m thankful for ministries like Focus on the Family and Breakpoint (Chuch Colson) that continually and unashamedly speak the truth with love. Thought they’re looked at as judgmental and crazy from those who don’t understand, one day all will see just how insane things here really were.

Anyone ready to follow their good example and be crazy for Jesus’ sake?
Posted by

Friday, February 04, 2005 at 2:30 PM

Amen! and Amen! to Micheal’s article. May God continue to bless those brave Christian men and women who dare to take a stand on Christian values.
Posted by

Saturday, February 05, 2005 at 6:56 AM

I can’t believe that after a week, poeple are still bad mouthing Dobson, because of something he was accused of saying, which he has since denied and clarified. To continue blogging on people’s opinions on a topic that is skewed is just sad. Read some of the links to Dobson’s page before you malign his character. After a life of character, integrity and commitment to the family and the Church, you could read what he says before you trash him over what the media says he said. Be fair.
Posted by bernie dehler

Monday, February 07, 2005 at 10:35 AM

Phil Vischer has great insight about Hollywood and others waking up to seeing Evangelicals in the community now. Yes, we should be salt and light to this culture. Let’s never be ashamed and not hide the light under a bowl. Let’s put the light on the lampstand, as our Lord commanded us.

...Bernie
http://freegoodnews.blogspot.com/
Posted by

Monday, February 07, 2005 at 4:14 PM

There seems to be a line in the sand, don’t you think, particularly when it involves the development of worldview in children? We, as Christian parents, must check and double check, no, make that, choose wisely what enters our children’s little eyes and ears. It is one thing to assess the world according to its fallenness, and another to receive its fallenness in the form of tolerance packaged for children. I would not always do things the way that Dr. Dobson does them, but no doubt he is not a moralizer any more than we are. He simply has the fortitude to act boldly on what he believes honors God, particularly when it comes to children. And when the millstones are handed out for misleading and harming little ones, I don’t believe he’ll be receiving one. But what about me? What have I done to ensure the welfare of the unborn or the helpless? Not nearly as much as Dr. Dobson has. I pray that we all act with similar fortitude.
Posted by

Tuesday, February 08, 2005 at 9:35 AM

I just finished reading all I could find on the “controversy” involving Dr. Dobson, and I wrote an e-mail to the few media people who were the most critical. What I was suprised to find was that even some Christians have done what the uninformed media types did - react before they had their facts.

To the person who wrote, “doesn’t he have anything better to do?”, I ask, did you bother to research this at all? If you had you would realize that Dr. Dobson’s stance has been against homosexuality and the promotion of an immoral lifestyle, not Spongebob or any other fictional character.

There are some who profess to know Jesus as Savior that go around nit-picking so to speak. I do not believe Dr. Dobson is one of those people.

What Dr. Dobson did has Biblical precedent. You can find examples in the Bible where a prophet of God spoke to a group(Jonah in Ninevah)that was “worldly”, and told them the truth of God. His comments were not mean-spirited unloving, or untruthful.
Posted by

Friday, February 11, 2005 at 11:03 AM

Well said, JaY. I must admit I was a bit perplexed when I first heard of the controversy.....UNTIL I did the research on what really has happend. My compliments and support to Dr. Dobson. Thanks for being the “watchdog” for those of us who are lost in our own little worlds.

WJM
Posted by

Friday, February 11, 2005 at 4:35 PM

Finally, you guys agree with me. I have commented everytime this topic has been on the blog and most of the comments have been like john’s. I believe that God’s hand is on Dobson and he is not a nick-picking evang. I have also researched this thing, and I encourage everyone else to not comment until you have.
When something is right you back it, when something is wrong you fight it. We are not to sit back and let this world teach our children whatever they want.
Posted by

Thursday, February 24, 2005 at 5:50 PM

If Christians and other people opposed to the subject of homosexuals then why could they not just ignore the topic and let other people(not Christians) believe what they want. Religion should not be forced upon people. Christianity is not the only religion and if you can not deal with “homosexuals” on tv then don’t watch the program. I am sick of hearing what Christians do and do not like. They do not run what is on tv, the radio and what is aloud and what isn’t.
Posted by

Friday, February 25, 2005 at 11:35 AM

Actually Chris we do have a say about what comes on T.V. and radio. Believe it or not we are the consumers for the stations, and if they want to make the money they need to provide us with entertainment we want. If they don’t then infact we do not watch, they lose their commercial support and it goes off the air.
Indeed we do understand that Christianity is not the only religion out there, but we are the only religion with the One True God that can bring people salvation. We have an obligation to call the people to a life worthy of their calling. They were created by a loving a God, who longs for them to come back home. What are we to do sit on our thumbs and let the Satan have our brothers and sisters?
The answer is no Chris, we are to fight for them with all we have and that is exactly what Dobson is doing. Think twice before you judge him, and I call on you as a Christian brother to rethink you position.
With all respect.
Posted by

Tuesday, November 22, 2005 at 1:36 PM

John Wrote: Congratulations, Jim Dobson, on helping to keep the Church from reaching the world. Have you lost your mind?????

Kent: Give me a Break! Here’s Dobson trying to protect the family and your kids warning against homosexual influence, and he gets chapped like this?

So typical of todays selfish christian more concerned about the world loving than their own kids well being. Sad.

Page 1 of 1 pages

Post Your Comments:

Hi... I'm Todd Rhoades. I'm a Christ-follower, husband, father and I love to connect leaders with other leaders. Hopefully you'll find something here at MMI you like and will return often. If you want, you can find out more about me or follow my every step on Twitter.