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The Gospel According to The Simpsons: The spiritual life of the world's most animated family
Mark I. Pinsky
Westminster John Knox Press, 2001, 172pp, £7.99
The Simpsons not only trades in irony, it exudes it. It is a
cartoon that provides some of the most grown up
entertainment on television. It mercilessly lampoons
mercenary hypocrisy, while ruthlessly flogging its
merchandise to children, and explaining to parents worried
by its content that it is not really for kids. This book
reveals another irony: that a show depicting religion so
affectionately, intelligently and frequently is still held
in suspicion by many Christians, and other religious
interests, in its homeland. This is something The Gospel
According to the Simpsons aims to redress, and it will have
a significant impact.
Pinsky's demonstration that there is a great deal of religion in The Simpsons will not come as what he calls an 'epiphany on the sofa' to anyone who actually watches it - though it might persuade those who have been hiding their TV under a bushel for ten years to tune in. But for fans it does a fine job of surveying the presentation of religion and offering some analysis. Pinsky considers religious practice and beliefs in Springfield, the portrayal of figures such as the Evangelical Ned Flanders and the heathen pewfiller Homer, the role of religious minorities, and the depiction of God, the Devil and their respective realms. His conclusion is that The Simpsons presents faith positively, and - despite President Bush Snr's famous denunciation - promotes family values.
Pinsky is a Reform Jew, though he clearly has a predominantly evangelical readership in mind, with whom he shares much common ground. In fact much of the book reads as an attempt to claim The Simpsons for evangelical-type religion. Its strength is in documenting the importance of faith in the life of the characters; its weakness is that it does not do justice to the show's criticism of contemporary Christianity. Pinsky argues that The Simpsons is alone on TV in adequately representing American churchgoing, which has been largely excised from the screen despite being so popular in reality. Certainly from what we see of American life on British TV, you would never guess that 45% of them will be in church this Sunday. However Pinsky rather underplays the fact that for all apart from the Flanders, Marge and possibly Rev. Lovejoy it is a pointless ordeal that has little impact on their lives.
Similarly he makes the mistake of assuming that to depict something in satirical fiction is to endorse it as a reality. When God mentions having to go and appear in a tortilla in Mexico, Pinsky asks "Is this a dig at believers who report seeing religious visions in unlikely places? Clearly not, because God says he will actually be present in the tortilla." The correct answer is "Yes, of course it is."
Pinsky avoids too much generalisation about the series, opting instead to cram in as many quotations and detailed plot summaries as possible. On balance, this is wise, making for an entertaining and thorough book. He is similarly extensive in his reporting of religious opinion about the programme. The disadvantage of both aspects is that they make the book essentially a catalogue, and I would have liked a lot more analysis. Most frustrating was the treatment of the extraordinary episode where Homer starts his own religion: after three and a half pages recounting the story it culminates in a mere eight lines of analysis, mostly quoting others, when it was crying out for an examination of what it says about the tension between organised religion and individual spirituality.
What analysis there is perceptive though. Pinsky makes the intriguing point that religion in Springfield is largely 'Old Testament' - ethics rather than grace, God rather than Jesus, and no Easter story - suggesting that this comes from avoiding sensitive areas, though I think it is also about making the religion of the show more generic.
There are times, in discussions about the theology of worship or suffering, when it comes quite a jolt to remember that Pinsky is writing about a cartoon show. Still, it is one that deserves taking seriously, as well as being laughed at.
