You all know my love and affection for Disney (see Theology of Disney)...
One of the reasons? There is so much good quality biblical imagery tucked away in them. I certainly didn't catch on to it when I was younger - at least not on this level - but I enjoy finding them now.
I just finished watching Beauty and the Beast (hey, self care takes all forms, right?) and found a beautiful baptismal imagery in the Beast's transformation. He quite literally dies from Gaston's attacks before Belle weeps, "But I love you." And just like that, he glistens with light and shines and bit by bit, the furry exterior changes into the body of a young man. It is her love that changes the Beast into a brand new man.
Love transforming a troubled (and sinful?) beast into a new man.... sounds pretty baptismal to me!
And on a side note, I think the things the villagers chant on their way to "kill the beast" speaks about our own tendancy to hate what we do not know.
They rage:
"We don't like
What we don't understand
In fact it scares us
And this monster is mysterious at least
Bring your guns
Bring your knives
Save your children and your wives
We'll save our village and our lives
We'll kill the Beast!"
What beasts do we have around us, waiting for love to transform them into something brand new?
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