The book Faith and the Magic Kingdom by Randy Crane is a delightful book in the niche genre of Disney theme park devotionals. I received this book as a Christmas gift (after putting it on my Christmas list). The book focuses on the original Disneyland park, which I last visited on Good Friday in 2008 (I will plan to recap that trip soon). As you may know, Disneyland has been shut-down since the start of the pandemic (whereas Walt Disney World reopened in July 2020). So besides watching ride videos on YouTube, the best way a person can experience Disneyland right now is through books. And a book like this one can also help to see the rides and sights of Disneyland through the eyes of faith.
Faith and the Magic Kingdom has many references to Sacred Scripture, usually several quotes in each devotional. In fact, the book could be viewed as more of a Christian devotional first and foremost centered on the theme of things found in Disneyland. Randy has visited Disneyland many, many times—both personally and professionally (i.e. leading a tour through the park). His experiences and knowledge of the park are peppered into the devotionals, which gives the book a very personal feel to it. Randy chooses to focus on some things that are (at least for me) easy to pass over when I am at a Disney park. For example, he has a devotional about the “berm”—basically a hill that surrounds the park so it is more difficult to see outside of Disneyland. The conclusion of that devotional is that we (as Christians) sometimes need to change our perspective so that we have a Christian worldview. Some other parts of the park that he gives several devotions for are outside the park entrance, in Main Street U.S.A., and on Storybook Land Canal Boats. One devotional that stands out to me is the Pirates of the Caribbean one that he titles “Dead Man (Used to) Tell Tales” (a take from a line at the beginning of the ride). A ride scene had been modified n 1997 so that the pirates were chasing food (rather than women). Randy points out that all of the 7 Deadly Sins used to be on display in the ride, although many of them still are. The moral of the ride is that sin ultimately leads to death. If you or someone you know is a fan of Disneyland, this book might be a good “stocking stuffer.” More importantly, though, it might be an evangelistic resource for someone who is open to hearing more about God and Christian faith (but might not know where to start in a Bible). I connected with Randy via e-mail. He used to have a blog and a podcast. The main ways now to find out more of what he is doing is by checking out his speaker pages: https://www.christianspeaker.net/listing/randy-crane/ https://www.speakermatch.com/profile/speaker/randycrane/
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