A Moment With Pastor Fred

“One of the most noteworthy theological trends in 21st-century pop culture has been the rehabilitation of the ‘villain,’” so writes Brett McCracken of The Gospel Coalition. “From Cruella to Maleficent to the Joker and more, iconic villains are now routinely given spinoff movies and sympathetic backstories that complicate our categories of good and evil … Giving villains origin stories is intriguing. But I think this trend’s rise is also connected to the post-Christian culture’s confusion about sin and evil, morality and justice.”

Perhaps the clearest display of this is in the play/movie “Wicked.” Now Susan and I attended a few years ago the musical at the Wharton Center. We were dazzled by the music, acting and costumes.  The play – and now movie, is the backstory of the Wicked Witch of the West. I was terrified as a 5-year-old boy watching Margaret Hamilton play her. But in Wicked she is good-natured – a woman who has been misunderstood. McCracken writes, “Wicked is perhaps the clearest example yet that contemporary pop culture struggles with the category of evil.” One of the main songs – “I hope it makes you happy” has become the grid of our moral evaluation in a post-Christian world.

So, when we are entertained let’s not turn off our thinking-caps. Watch and listen redemptively. How does what I’m viewing fit into my biblical worldview? 

To read Brett’s entire article, look at The Gospel Coalition, The Post-Christan Morality of Wicked, November 22, 2024.