As a native of Fullerton, California—raised just a mere 4-1/2 miles to the north of Disneyland—I grew up with wonder of all things Walt Disney. In fact, during evenings in the summer months of the ‘60s and ’70s, my family could hear the distant sound of fireworks popping over Matterhorn Mountain, which drifted through the screen of our family room’s sliding glass door. The memories are still vivid, and I cherish them to this day. When I travel back home to Orange County I usually make plans to drop the $100 plus to enter into the Magic Kingdom; it still takes my breath away, even as I am a grandfather now and am disappointed at how small the California park seems in comparison to when I visited as a kid.
Walt Disney wasn’t a perfect person, as many have learned from various biographies. It is said that he was a colossal failure at several endeavors: His first animation company formed in Kansas City in 1921 failed because he couldn’t pay the rent; the character he named Oswald the Rabbit in 1926 was contractually taken from him by the distributor, and subsequently his artists were lured away, too; the movie Snow White almost didn’t happen because of budget overruns, etc. It is said that Walt suffered from depression, supposedly going back to his early days of hopeless struggle and challenge as a lonely paperboy who couldn’t quite please his father.
Through his movies and the park, Disney desired to portray an idealistic America where his own disappointments would fade into a white-washed version of history and of the future—much as it has done for millions, including myself. In a 1953 prospectus for possible investors in the Disneyland project that brother Roy presented in New York, Walt wrote: “Disneyland will be the essence of America as we know it…the nostalgia of the past, the exciting glimpses into the future. It will give meaning to the pleasure of the children—and pleasure to the experience of adults. It will focus a new interest upon Southern California through the mediums of television and other exploitation. It will be a place for California to be at home, to bring its guests, to demonstrate its faith in the future…” This post-WWII modernistic ideology, with it’s hope for the future in the shadow of the Cold War, was pervasive back when Walt designed the park. Since then, it is apparent that “faith in the future” is something for which postmoderns are still wrestling. Even so, Walt has given joy to so many in an age where hope has been on the decline.
I don’t know if Walt was a Christian, or if faith in Christ ever made an impact on him. In a 1949 Guidepost magazine article, Disney wrote: "I believe firmly in the efficacy of religion, in its powerful influence on a person's whole life. It helps immeasurably to meet the storm and stress of life and keep you attuned to the Divine inspiration. Without inspiration, we would perish. All I ask of myself, 'Live a good Christian life.' To that objective I bend every effort in shaping my personal, domestic, and professional activities and growth." Eric David, in a November 4, 2009 Christianity Today article, wrote: “[Disney focussed] all of his films on the victory of good over evil…Disney's films also lift up the Protestant work ethic, the beauty and energy of upbeat music, and the old adage that cleanliness is next to godliness.”
In a fairly recent interview, retired Disney musician, Rod Miller, told of an encounter Walt had while on one of his many trips to Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico. Having asked a tour guide if it was possible to stay the night unaccompanied in the caverns, she—not wanting to turn Walt Disney down—gave permission. Walt spent the night in what may be the grandest vault of the cavern, one purported to be inspiration for some of the caves in Disney’s original Pirates of the Caribbean attraction. When the guide came back early the next morning, Walt was found lying on his back with arms folded, looking straight up to the majestic ceiling of the cave. When asked how he slept, Walt said he hadn’t, and went on to declare, “When you spend a night in a place like this by yourself is when you realize the hand of God is what built this."
However one looks at life, be it through a lens of despair or of faith, realizing that there is a great God at the very core of life—that God has created this earth and humanity for the expressed purpose to worship the Creator—one’s very attitude must be affected. Though Walt Disney may never have professed faith in Christ, he did, on that early morning in Carlsbad Caverns, declare the wonders of God. Today, may we as believers proclaim the wonders of God as we behold His magnificent creation. Yes—in the midst of a hopeless world—He is spectacular!
The heavens are telling of the glory of God;
And their expanse is declaring the work of His hands.
—Psalm 19:1
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