From the publisher
“God is not dead, and Mickey is very much alive. Religion is everywhere in secular America, especially where you least expect it, like in Disney films. Mark Pinsky decodes these epics with a skillful and amusing flair.”
—Harvey Cox, Hollis Professor of Divinity, Harvard Divinity School, and author of the forthcoming When Jesus Came to Harvard
“I think you have a winner here…. [Pinsky] helped refresh my memory and taught much.”
—Martin Marty, professor emeritus, University of Chicago Divinity School, and author of Modern America Religion, in a review for the publisher
“Mark Pinsky has done it again. He has analyzed in depth the religious messages that are often ignored in the ‘pop’ culture of our time. The success of Disney productions is that its people know how to tap into the folk religion that lies behind the sophisticated theological formula of professional religionists. Mark Pinsky helps us to see the religious themes to Disney with clarity and in the end helps us to get a better grasp of the real religion of most Americans.”
—Tony Campolo, professor emeritus, Eastern University, and author of speaking My Mind
In this follow-up to his best-selling The Gospel according to The Simpsons: The Spiritual Life of the World’s Most Animated Family, religion journalist Mark Pinsky explores the role that the animated features of the Walt Disney Company have played in the moral and spiritual development of generations of children. Pinsky explores the religious, moral, and theological themes in thirty-one of the most popular Disney films, including Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast, and The Lion King, and discovers what he calls the Disney gospel: faith and good will prevail, trust in yourself and your friends, and a little bit of something magical. Pinsky also looks at recent Disney developments, including the 1990’s boycott of Disney by Southern Baptist Convention, the impact of the theme parks on American culture, and the role that CEO Michael Eisner has played in the resurgence of the company since the mid-1980s.