Fr. Thomas M. Pastorius
July 3, 2016
Spiritual Ponderings
Faith & Film: The Peanuts Movie
 
                 There was a part of me that was really excited when I heard that there was going to be a big screen movie about Charlie Brown and his loyal dog Snoopy.  Peanuts was always one of my favorite comic strips and I always loved watching the television specials that came on around each holiday.  My personal favorite was the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown and the Christmas Special.  There was also a part of me that was afraid to go because I was afraid that the director may have decided to add a lot of dirty jokes and foul language under the excuse of trying to appeal to a modern day audience.  I am very glad that the director chose to remain very faithful to the classic comic strip and the television specials that I had remembered watching growing up. 
                The plot of the movie was very simple.  Charlie Brown, the young boy who cannot seem to do anything right, becomes infatuated with the new kid in the neighborhood.  Charlie Brown does his best to impress the “little red-haired girl” but it seems that everything he does blows up in his face and makes him look like a fool in front of her.  At the end of the movie, Charlie Brown discovered that the “little red-haired girl” has looked past all his mistakes and sees his kind and generous heart when she agrees to become Charlie Brown’s summer pen pal. 
                A small side story within the larger movie is Snoopy learning to write a book on an old typewriter that he discovered in the trash.  He writes a novel in which he as the main character must rescue the love of his life by defeating the dreaded World War I German flying Ace the Red Barron. 
                The first spiritual insight I discovered in the movie is that you do not have to be crude, obscene, or disgusting in order to be entertaining.  It saddens me with how much of television, movies, songs, and comedic routines feel the necessary to use foul language or talk about subjects that should be taboo.  I really appreciate how clean and violent free the movie was.  I am glad that “good grief” was as close to a cussword that we got.  As Christians we are called to clean up our language and humor because they could lead others and ourselves into sin.
                The second spiritual insight, I discovered watching Charlie Brown was what it truly meant to have the virtue of perseverance.  No matter how many times in the past he had failed, or how scared he was he persisted in doing his best.  In this way the Charlie Brown was as heroic as any DC or Marvel comic book super hero.
                I also appreciated Charlie Brown’s optimism.  Many of us when we find things going against us would become depress and start making negative self-fulfilling prophecies.  Charlie Brown always believed that things were going to get better.  We Catholics would do well to follow his example. 
                Another spiritual insight that I found in the Peanuts Movie was  that Charlie Brown in many ways is an example of the Gospel Passage: The second spiritual insight is that Charlie Brown could really be an example of the “greatest among you will be your servant.  For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” (Matthew 23:11-12). 
                Charlie Brown’s servant heart is manifested over and over again throughout the movie.  Charlie Brown humbles himself by giving up of his time at the talent show to assist his baby sister Sally when her talent show act goes bad. He also tries his best to make sure that the book report that he can when he and the “little red-hair girl” are assigned to work together and she has to leave for a week to go and visit a sick relative is the best that it can be. 
                He also demonstrates the virtues of courage and trustworthiness when he discovers that his test was mixed up with Peppermint Patty’s test and the perfect score that everyone thought he had earned by admitting that the test was not his own.  In all these ways he humbled himself only to have the “little red-haired girl” lift him up by pointing out the different virtues that she saw him.  These are the things that make him great in the eyes of the “little red-hair girl.”  These are the things that elevated him more than any trophy or perfect score on a test ever could. 
                The last spiritual insight, I discovered when I stopped and realize that in a way the “little red-hair girl” was also a role model.  She did not pay attention to the labels that others had put on Charlie Brown or that Charlie Brown put on himself.  She at the same time is willing to take a moment and affirm the person that everyone else looks down upon.  The more and more I reflect on the movie the more and more I want to be like the “little red-haired girl” because I want to see the good in others instead of focusing on the negative. 
                Finally watching this movie made me thankful for my loyal friends who help make me who I am.