By Mary DeTurris Poust
Well, it looks like I'm the rare Glee fan who was not blown away by the hit Fox show's take on religion this week. Others are talking about how inspiring it was, and, to be sure, there were flickering moments of inspiration, but I couldn't see those sparks through the dark, hazy clouds of stereotype. Let's see, we started off the hour with Billy Joel's "Only the Good Die Young." Really? "You Catholic girls start much too late?...You didn't count on me when you were counting on your Rosary?" Really? You lost me at "Virginia."
Everyone seems to be falling over themselves to point out that this was such a deep and touchy-feely look at religion. No it wasn't. It was more of the same. Excuse me if I don't get all warm and fuzzy when
Hollywood accuses my faith of being anti-gay, anti-woman, and anti-science (and it did just that in those words). I am a Catholic Christian , and I am none of those things, nor are any of my Catholic Christian friends. But there it was, hanging out there, as Bill Donohue of the Catholic League would say, the one remaining acceptable prejudice. It was totally unnecessary, and it detracted from what could have been a really powerful message about real faith and real acceptance of all people, no matter what or who they believe in. But, as is so often the case in TV land, Jesus is the One no one is allowed to believe in, at least not without some snarky comments.
Hollywood accuses my faith of being anti-gay, anti-woman, and anti-science (and it did just that in those words). I am a Catholic Christian , and I am none of those things, nor are any of my Catholic Christian friends. But there it was, hanging out there, as Bill Donohue of the Catholic League would say, the one remaining acceptable prejudice. It was totally unnecessary, and it detracted from what could have been a really powerful message about real faith and real acceptance of all people, no matter what or who they believe in. But, as is so often the case in TV land, Jesus is the One no one is allowed to believe in, at least not without some snarky comments.
I'm all for good humor and can appreciate -- and often initiate -- irreverent but respectful commentary on faith, but I'm not going to pretend that offensive and stereotypical comments designed to fan the flames of hate are all part of a kinder, gentler spirituality.
Were there moments of this week's Glee -- which looked at faith through the prism of one character's confrontation with the possibility of loss -- that were really good? Yes, absolutely. I will give them that, but unfortunately they were lost to all but the few Catholic Glee fans who got what was surely a coincidence.
I mean, do we really believe that the writers of Glee had one of the main characters, Finn, eating his "Cheesus" sandwich -- a grilled cheese sandwich with the alleged face of Jesus on it -- while the choir sang "What If God Was One of Us?" in the background as a witness to eucharistic theology? Even some theologians would have missed that one. No, I think it was the writers showing us that Finn had given up on religion (He did, after all, sing the REM song "Losing My Religion.) Having Finn eat what he had once thought was sacred but now thought was bunk was the writers' way of showing us that they think God is disposable, just an illusion. It was not some high-minded Catholic evangelization, in my opinion. It was the typical Hollywood dismissal of all that we hold to be holy and sacred.
I've been a huge fan of Glee, to the point that my husband kind of dreads the Tuesday night routine, and I actually love many of the songs they chose for their so-called religion episode. I've been holding fast to the idea that this show, while not appropriate for children or young teens, has something good to say. But, I can't jump on the "Don't Stop Believin'" Glee bandwagon anymore. I've lost the faith.
UPDATED: Go check out a response by Mike Hayes over at Googling God, and tell us what you think in the comment section here.
