I actually discovered Mr. Rogers as a young adult.
I was working with children after I graduated from high school and sometimes there would be time set aside for educational television for those that wanted to watch.
The choices were always PBS which would show Sesame Street, Mr. Rogers, Reading Rainbow, and the Electric Company back to back.
Since I was still very young and really just entering adulthood, I did not immediately take to Mr. Rogers. I thought his slow way of speaking and running explanation of everything he was doing was kind of creepy and a little strange. But it did not take long for me to notice that the younger children responded in a very profound way to his show, and I learned to not only respect his message but even to recognize the value of how carefully he explained things so that the children would understand.
And if you think that his methods only worked with children then I invite you to watch Mr. Rogers in 1969, appearing before the United States Senate Subcommittee on Communications. His goal then was to support funding for PBS and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, in response to significant proposed cuts by President Nixon.
Watch how he turns a combative Senator John Pastore into a supporter of PBS, and children's broadcasting, in less than seven minutes.
Fred Rogers did not judge those who did not share his faith, or use his program to proselytize to the innocent children who adored him. He simply lived his life as he felt his faith dictated that he do, and just look at the positive impact he had on us all.
I only wish that when I pictured Christianity today that it was Fred Rogers kind open face that imagined, instead of Franklin Graham's, or James Dobson's, or Rick Santrorum's.
But it's not.
His life should be a model for people. I have massive respect for him and his tolerance.
ReplyDeleteThese links are 2 that were on Reddit in the past day:
http://i.qkme.me/3ocn7k.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/OIekj.jpg
Gryphen, when I saw the title of this post, I rolled my eyes and thought "here we go. another one of Gryphen's 'pick on the Christians' posts."
ReplyDeleteI honestly thought when I clicked through, I would see "the church lady" or an equally facetious choice staring back at me.
Imagine my nice surprise when I saw one of my treasured childhood touchstones, the incomparable Fred Rogers. As a young black girl in a nearly all white school, it was Mr. Rogers who constantly reminded: you are valuable. You are worth time and attention. You are special.
Long past the age when Sesame Street and Mr. Rogers were considered age appropriate viewing, I would secretly watch and relish in the simplistic but sometimes elusive to me truth- I was fine just the way I was.
Changing gears, have you seen this? Of course it reminded me of you. I'm glad these atheists aren't taking this obnoxious forced Christianity. These idiots are right up there with Sarah "God made us all special except for that black guy" Palin in terms of making all Christians look bad.
http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/headlines/2012/03/atheists-wash-florida-road-
christians-anointed-with-oil/
I appreciate this so much. Mr. Rogers impacted a lot of children in a very positive way and, yes, he epitomizes what Christianity really is. What's sad today is that today's Christian has given Christianity a very negative image so that many people now are recovering from the damage that the Christian religion has caused in their lives. I am a Christian, but I am totally turned off by today's organized religion. Today I am a very spiritual person and I do my best to accept people right where they are when it comes to their faith, whether their Jewish, Catholic, Baptist or whatever. I do my best to accept them no matter where they are in their lives. A kind word, a smile, or a "hello, how are you today?" is what people need more than anything. But how many of us do that, especially to the stranger in the store, walking down the street, pumping gas, or whatever.
ReplyDeleteAmy,
DeleteAs a non-Christian I would like to thank you for your acceptance and kindness to people of other faiths. I wish there were more people with your outlook on people of different faiths. Never doubt a kind word or smile to a stranger can make an impact even if you don't see it.
In fact I would like to thank all of the Christians that are truly living Jesus's words of loving your neighbor and accepting others. Many have spoken on this blog and it is encouraging to read such thoughts.
Mr. Rogers was also a part of my upbringing, as well as Reading Rainbow and Sesame Street. Mr. Rogers's messages and gentleness were always soothing and encouraging for me. I really hope that we will have PBS and this sort of programming in the future for generations to come.
Thank you for a beautiful tribute to a beautiful human being... my daughter still speaks of him with awe (she's 20).
ReplyDeleteI watched Mr. Rogers with my son on my lap.When he was two, he wrote a letter to "Boof" as he called Mr. Rogers (for an obscure reason). Well, Mr. Rogers wrote back immediately, and signed his letter "Boof"!
ReplyDeleteWe reminisce together (my son's now 25) about Mr. Rogers' trip to a mushroom farm, and how he showed us how straws are made, and laugh a little about King Friday and his kingdom. There is always a small, secret part of both of us that internalized "I like you just the way you are." It was magic then, and will remain so.
I read somewhere that, as a minister, Fred Rogers structured his half-hours like church services, with his donning of his sweater, his calm sermons, his music and "hymn singing" and then his departure for another day. "It's such a good feeling to know you're alive..."
He gave a commencement address at Middlebury College about ten years ago -- I heard it once, and, if it can be discovered, some of his thoughts given in that speech are profound and timeless.
Dear Gryphen: I like you just the way you are.
You are adorable. Love your post.
DeleteWow. I didn't get goosebumps, but I felt like crying -- for the beauty of Fred Rogers and for how he's died now. Talk about immortality!
ReplyDeleteMr. Rogers Neighborhood was part of my children's childhood. Last month, my daughter (now 28) was visiting Saint Vincent College and was thrilled to discover that the Fred Rogers Center there was MISTER Rogers. He was a friend to children and it is no surprise to find him on the right-wingers' list of bad liberal stuff.
ReplyDeleteDespite all the gains which have been made, ignorance remains rampant. Just last week I encountered someone who maintains that HIV was engineered and released into the gay community as a "final solution" to "the gay problem". It is difficult to fathom how such people ever learned to breathe.
ReplyDeleteFred Rogers didn't just display this love and tolerance on his TV show. A friend of mine grew up in his neighborhood, and said Rogers displayed this true Christianity in his life as well. I also grew up next door to Christians like that, people who were always there with a helping hand and no judgments.
ReplyDeleteAs you say, too bad the public face of Christianity is one that is so full of hate. However, as the Islamic terrorists do not truly represent the full kind face of Islam, the Christian Taliban does not represent the full kind face of Christianity.
I LOVED Mr. Rogers.
ReplyDeleteI took care of young children after college and he had a profound
affect on them. Many were in the throws of their parents divorces
or displacement. Their entire being would change when Mr. Rogers came on. The would calm down and be rapt with attention.
Its interesting that many adults disliked Mr. Rogers. I always found that the ones who did were not comfortable with his gentleness, seeing Mr. Rogers as not "manly" enough. But I did see many parents change their minds about him because of the way their children were comforted by this amazing man. He was such a gentle soul who sincerely cared about
the lives of children.
We are all better that he was here.
Typical congressman. Never even viewed the programming he was about to defund.
ReplyDeleteThank you Gryph.
ReplyDeleteMaybe "what do you do with the mad inside?" should be the question asked of everyone running for office and at every job interview.
Right now, we all need to remember we can just stop. I love Mr. Rogers. That's authenticity.
I always had great respect for Mr. Rogers. When my son was little he would play while it was on tv - paying attention for some minutes and then returning to his little cars on the floor. Mr. Rogers had a wonderful calming effect - on kids and their moms!
ReplyDeleteBeaglemom
Amen. Some years ago, a group of asshat copy writers in Albuequerque decided to ridicule his style of speaking and optimism in a radio commercial that had nothing to do with Rodgers, except that these guys had a schtick they wanted to run.
ReplyDeleteSuddenly I was freakishly angry. I called the radio station and was told as is typical for dj rubes to get with it lady, we're funny.
I called Fred Rodgers' foundation (He had recently died) and was promised a letter would go out that day. I noticed that the ad disappeared the following day.
I too learned to admire him while taking care of little ones, but he did me one last favor. He unleashed my closeted activist.
He did a lot of good.
I'll bet you weren't the only one to call the radio station and complain. It's good to act on these impulses even if the immediate response isn't what you want to hear. Once the radio station heard the same complaint over and over again they probably paid attention.
DeleteWell, just tune those guys out and remember Mr. Rogers. You are correct that he is the real thing, a true Christian. People like to make fun of him, but I think it's because deep down he made people nervous. Authentic Christianity is extremely difficult to practice.
ReplyDeleteWe can keep blaming the media or our political system for defining things for us, but the true meaning of a thing is unalterable, whatever noise and negative distraction may be confusing our understanding.
Go ahead and dislike the other guys you mention, but do know that they are not true Christians as long as they pass judgement on other human beings regarding sexual orientation, religious identification or other issues.
Fanned!
DeleteThis is why we have freedom of choice.
ReplyDeleteMr. Rodgers was a valuable part of my young life and that of my kids. My father and husband made fun of him but to me he was the essense of how to treat others and how to love life, through curiosity and good-nature and kindness and honesty. He taught and encouraged us to express ourselves with an even manner and without drama. Plus, he modeled and encouraged Imaginative free play. I have to say, the much dreaded "Barney" does the same and has provided an effective way to bring civility to our youth. Now that my kids are older, we have lost touch with current shows, but PBS is still near and dear to us and our go-to channel.
ReplyDeleteGryphen: "I only wish that when I pictured Christianity today that it was Fred Rogers kind open face that imagined, instead of Franklin Graham's, or James Dobson's, or Rick Santrorum's. But it's not."
ReplyDeleteI honestly almost wept when I read this. It is such a sad truth, and I say this as a Christian. The frauds have almost completely hijacked this faith, with a LOT of help from the media, who never seek a voice on Christian matters from people who are actually practicing the faith with sincerity and humility. I guess they don't provide hateful and sensational enough soundbites.
And Christians wonder why youth are leaving the faith in droves. They are repulsed by the far right frauds' hateful interpretation and practice of Christianity. I believe these hateful frauds who hide behind the respectable badge of Christianity are doing no less than the Devil's work. I know that many posters on IM scoff at the idea of a "Devil." But, the Bible tells us that Evil often takes the form of false prophets, a "wolf in sheep's clothing."
"The Devil's greatest accomplishment is to convince the world he does not exist".
DeleteFrench poet: Charles Pierre Baudelaire.
And by the way, I will NEVER go to an Extraordinary Women's Conference. It is so clear this is yet another for-profit venture under the guise of Christianity, in this case, rightwing Christianity. That they can let this arrogant, vengeful woman to represent Christianity tells me all I need to know about this Conference.
ReplyDeleteSorry, meant to post this on the Extraordinary Women Conference/The Screech thread.
DeleteMe, too, Gryphen. Me, too.
ReplyDeleteThe faux Christians have taken the public spotlight and are ruining the reputation, and even the character of the faith.
Many have stood up against them, but their voices seem muted as compared to the harsh, shrill, shouting and hate-filled rants of the "Christian"-right.
Mr. Rogers, we miss you.
I have always and will always love Mr. Rogers.
ReplyDeleteWhen my son was turning four, he didn't want to talk about it. When I finally asked him why, he said, "Mr. Rogers likes me just the way I am." When Mr. Rogers died, my son (then 35) admitted that he actually shed a few tears. Wow! What a powerful and wonderful role model!
DeleteI loved Mr. Rogers too. Even as a adult, he calmed me when I was in need. Bless him!
DeleteThank you for posting a reminder to all of us that there are Christians in the world who truely are Christians. I feel better just thinking about Mr Rogers this morning, unlike my normal feeling of disgust and revulsion when I think of the false Christianity of the religous right of Paylin and her ilk.
ReplyDeleteWhen the clip of Mr. Rogers with Senator John Pastore ended, one of the youtube recommended videos was a clip from FOX and Friends (today show for retards). The disgusting venom that spewed from those people was horrible.
ReplyDeleteThanks for showing this. I didn't know. It brought tears to my eyes at the end.
ReplyDeleteMr. Rogers was the epitome of gentleness, love, and kindness. He was a man of faith who lived in the true meaning of Christianity.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was four, I thought he was creepy. I didn't like how he spoke. My parents were pretty direct with me and it worked well for me. As I got older (past 25) I appreciated him. Thank you for your post on this Sunday morning. Now I have to join my husband at the church where the leaders are decent, but the congregation is smug and self righteous. I'll be conveying the king of Christianity that Fred Rogers conveyed, not judging, simply loving.
ReplyDeleteYou reminded me that I'm not there for me, but for others. Thank goodness for the Internet in that FR can keep influencing!
Certainly there are many extremely vocal individuals who call themselves Christians who ignorant, hate-filled, cram-it-down-your-throat, bigoted, homophobic, racist morons...anything BUT Christ-like. But I assure you there are many more of us who are highly educated, intelligent, open-minded, liberal, kind, loving beings who respect others right to believe or not believe. Unfortunately, as with many situations, the ugliness tends to get the attention of the masses.
ReplyDeleteI was in my early 30s when Mr. Rogers passed away, and I will admit that I cried for a solid hour when I heard the news. What a lovely man. He helped me to love myself, helped millions of children to do the same. There is no greater gift.
ReplyDeleteMr. Rogers was such a great show to watch as a kid, as a parent. I remember coming home from elementary school during a time that was extremely stressful with my parents getting divorced. I was never sure what I would come home to. So I would turn on the TV and get my snack and watch Mr. Roger's Neighborhood. And for a short time everything was calm, quiet, in its place and we all knew what to expect.
ReplyDeleteThat said, I am also reminded about Eddie Murphy's twisted Mr. Roger's Neighborhood ---"Here comes the landlord. Hello Mr. Landlord." Soooo funny!
Thanks, G - Mister Rogers is my favorite Christian (and hero), too. And I believe he summed up the essence of all religions when he said, "I like you just the way you are." Long after the words of judgment and hatred from some religious leaders turn to dust, Mister Rogers' words of acceptance and love will remain.
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting that Santorum grew up (literally) in Mr. Rogers's neighborhood. Penn Hills, a suburb of Pittsburgh.
ReplyDeleteHe clearly never got to know Mr. Rogers. What a shame
DeleteOne cannot but imagine Mr. Rogers inviting Sarah Palin into the Neighborhood, to see what wonders he could wreak on her dark heart.
ReplyDeleteMore Essential Mr. Rogers - it's long but you will wish it to never end.
http://www.pittsburghinwords.org/tom_junod.html
MicMac
Lovely article about Mr.Rogers, Anon. Thank you for providing the link to it.
DeleteYes, his way was kinder and gentler but the indoctrination was accomplished nonetheless. Now they have better faster methods where they go deep for the child's very psyche in order to install the guilt trip.
ReplyDeleteSo Mr. Rogers as himself, that's o.k., right up until you decide to bring in the Christianity mix and that's where we need to be cautious of him and his ilk. the christian ilk.
Rogers did NOT proselytize to children.
DeleteExactly, Gasman!
DeleteGasman and Ardiva - exactly - I never heard him proselytize to children or adults on his show! My daughters both loved him - especially the older one, now 38! He had a way of speaking that really made it seem as if he was speaking directly to her, in real time. She would actually answer his questions as if they were conversing! And, God Forbid, both my daughters and I are atheists now - and are still good, moral humanitarians. Mr. Rogers was unlike the other children's shows - which relied a lot on over-hyped loudness, too much overstimulation to grab short attention spans! the truth is - even very young children's attention can be very focused if the topics are interesting to them - without the rapid-fire 2 minute skits, loud music, loud dialogue, etc.
DeleteI don't think you ever watched the program. I watched for many years starting when my daughter was two. (She's 45 now). She watched even when she was an adolescent. I knew Fred Rogers was a minister, but you'd never know that watching his program.
DeleteMr. Rogers = christianity
ReplyDeleteChristianity = child molestation
child molestation = evil.
Mr. Rogers stood on the side of evil.
Fuck you. That's just goddamn bigotry. Care to cite any evidence indemnifying ALL Christianity? You cannot tar and feather a billion or so people with broad strokes of your bigoted brush and not expect to be called out on it.
DeleteSaying that ALL Christians are child molesters is just as bigoted as saying ALL Muslims are terrorists.
You stand on the side of ignorance and stupidity.
You have simply lost touch with reality.
DeleteStop trolling this blog.
DeleteThat is all I am willing to say to you.
G: I flag this one! It is simply beyond the pale.
DeleteMy children are 29 and 32. Everyday they would sit and eat lunch while watching Sesame Street, and then wind down with Mr. Rogers before their nap. It was a perfect combination of fun, excitement, learning, and quiet time. I miss those times with my children.
ReplyDeleteMe too!
DeleteHas anyone else noticed how anyone who loudly proclaims to be a "Christian" is usually more the OPPOSITE of one?
ReplyDeleteI had no idea that Mr. Rogers was a member of ANY sort of religion, as he did NOT lay claim to that, nor did he (even subtly) try to convince his viewers to believe in anything more than THEMSELVES and the beauty of life.
I have a feeling we are in for a lot more "I'm more Christian than YOU are" as the elections bear down on us.
God help us all.
Agreed. If they are behaving in a Christian manner, they don't need to tell anybody. We'll figure it out. If not, we aren't going to believe them anyway.
DeleteIn my limited experience, there is a big difference between the faiths. So far, I've found that Presbyterians, Lutherans, United Methodists, Episcopalians, and American Baptists are pretty welcoming to all. Southern Baptists, not so much. Has anybody else experienced this?
Agreed! In fact - I didn't even know he was a minister until years after my kids had stopped watching his show!
Deletei cried!
ReplyDeleteanon 10:11 a.m. you obviously never watched mr. rogers. too bad.
ReplyDeleteMy children never seemed to particularly like Mr. Rogers, but as a mother always feeling inadequate, I was helped. I learned a lot about children from him.
ReplyDeleteI learned a lot from him too. His patience was a great lesson for me.
DeleteMr. Rogers is a evil Man according to FOX News:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=29lmR_357rA
Just one more thing Fox got wrong. I've had it with the paranoia, logical fallacies and hate on that side of the political spectrum. Fox isn't news - it's a series of poorly researched, poorly thought out opinion pieces designed to scare people into boosting its ratings numbers.
DeleteFred Rogers fairly epitomized what I find appealing about the Presbyterian Church. For the most part, we welcome just about everybody. There are some odd conservative congregations, but we tend to be a pretty liberal lot.
ReplyDeleteFred Rogers once stopped in our church while he was in Santa Fe. He seemed as genuine and caring in person as he did on his kids' show.
He was a true Christian and a real gentleman.
I think he was an amazing human. He had the ability to grab the attention of a child and hold them rapt. My daughters adored him. And, when and if they have kids I am a little sad he isn't alive today.
ReplyDeleteDo you ever think it is a little weird The Lawrence Welk show is still on? I do, but then again it reminds me of my grandma and I like that memory of her. She really loved that show.
Mr. Rogers is a national treasure.....and what a fine upstanding example of Christianity.
ReplyDeleteI grew to love Mr Rogers. What impressed me most was how he educated children about expressing feelings openly, that whatever they were feeling was ok, and then gave them coping skills. There were generations where children were marginalized (should be seen and not heard). For me, teaching a child to openly express their emotions and to talk about them is very important.
ReplyDeleteHis was one show that I used as a teaching tool for my kids, especially my son.
When he came out of retirement to address how adults should approach their children when discussing the tragedy of 911, just blew me away. I tried to find the clip on you tube, but it's not there. I remember feeling terror and trying not to make it affect my kids, his advice helped immensely. Just hearing his voice calmed me.
Here's a lengthy interview archived for those interested in his life, in his own words, and his views on Religion. It's rather long, nine segments, but well worth watching. It shows him in a new light.
http://www.emmytvlegends.org/interviews/people/fred-rogers
mr rogers was a real christian - sarah palin and her ilk are fake christians
ReplyDeleteI had the the distinct honor and pleasure of meeting Fred Rogers back in 1991 when I worked for Putnam & Grosset Publishing in NYC.
ReplyDeleteHe was witty, charming and funny, very down to earth - a real mensch. He is the real deal.