I USED TO SAY ‘NO’ TO TYLER PERRY for a number of reasons. I remember going to see one of his early plays a number of years back and when Madea came out on stage and started talking, I thought, ‘isn’t this supposed to be a Christian play?’ You see, Madea is a no-nonse woman who likes to say what’s on her mind, even if it’s an occasional cuss word. She never crossed the line with the ‘heavy curse words,’ but the light ones seemed to be fair game. Oh, by the way, Madea isn’t a ‘real’ woman, she’s a character that Tyler Perry plays. And this character has become a runaway hit for many audiences.

So I used to say ‘no’ to Tyler Perry. When Madea would talk about the bible, she would often misquote scriptures. The kids from my youth group would come to me laughing about her latest antics and say the misquoted scripture. Often times, when I inquired, they couldn’t tell me what the actual verse said. So not only did Madea say the occasional cuss word, but she seemed to be making fun of scripture. Isn’t Tyler Perry supposed to be Christian? I raised the question, but was never concerned enough to do research for the answer, in order to find out what he was trying to accomplish.

Years went by when I didn’t give Tyler Perry or Madea any real credibility. As far as I was concerned, I was not interested in anything he had to say. But then something changed.

A CHANGE IN PERSPECTIVE

One day, just over a year ago, I read an article about Tyler Perry - and it gripped me. I had never taken the time to research his life or perspective. I discovered a moving account of his struggles growing up and how God had brought him through some pretty hard times. If you know anything about Tyler Perry, then you know what I’m talking about; but if you don’t I’ll just sum it up for you. Tyler was abused and molested as a child. He had self-image issues, at one point contemplated suicide and as an adult, was even homeless, living out of his car. But he had a dream to write plays and act. As he placed in faith in Christ, God took him from homelessness to where he is today, while building his integrity and character as a man.

I also had a new understanding about Madea. She’s a combination of a couple of woman from his life. But more importantly, from my perspective, Madea is a social commentary of sorts. She’s a mirror that’s held up in order for us to see ourselves. Madea says what many people think and are afraid to say. Madea does what many people are afraid to do and wish they could. In reality, when it comes to the scriptures, there are many people who don’t know what the bible actually says in a given verse. Just think about the often misquoted, "Money is the root of all evil." How many times have you heard that? I’ve heard it a lot. The bible actually says, "The love of money is the root of all evil." (1 Timothy 6:10) So I can’t argue with Madea over her misquotes, because what Tyler is actually doing is showing us ourselves and places where we can improve. Tyler is opening up the doors of dialogue so we can discuss those issues we take for granted or that seem to be taboo. if Madea brings it up, we laugh and then we talk. That’s genius in my book.

And in those cases where she does what others are afraid to do - I applaud him. In two stories Madea is the only one standing between an abused woman and her abusive man. (I know how tough this can be because In college I had to stand between my friend and her abusive boyfriend.) In another story Madea opts to adopt a child in need. So the character of Madea can and does inspire.

A CHRISTIAN INFLUENCE?

So what about whether or not this is Christian? Let me say that we are all a ‘work in process’ and hopefully in progress. I know people who have a relationship with Christ, who still have a tendency to curse when they get pushed to their limit. So we have to ask the question, ‘how do we begin to define Christianity?’ I remember hearing author/teacher Tony Campolo in a lecture about the Christian’s responsibility to stand for social justice. In his lecture, he cited the statistics on how many children die every day from various social injustices. While stating the statistics he deliberately said a curse word. As soon as he said it, he then stated that many of us in the room were now more concerned about the curse word, then we were about the fact that thousands of innocent children are losing their lives everyday to injustice that we can help to prevent. He was right.

(So let me raise some questions for us to think about and discuss later.) How is a Christian supposed to talk? Where do they draw the line? We often get so caught up in words for words sake. We need to ask ourselves, as storytellers and story receivers, how does language lend itself to a story? Does a particular use of language help or hinder the story? What do a man and woman say when they are in a heated argument about whether or not their marriage should end? What does a woman say as she defends herself against an abusive man? Or a mother as she defends her child from a bully? Does the language convey honest emotion and allow you to see into the heart of the individual? Or does it cloud the situation with gratuitous overkill? I’ve seen a number of movies that would I would have considered great cinematic masterpieces - if not for the use of gratuitous profanity. Tyler Perry’s films don’t fall into this category.

There are many people who don’t curse, but are nasty, vindictive, manipulating, and liars. There are people who say the right things, but have wrong motives and intentions. Madea’s character is not one of them. She simply, once again, holds up the mirror to ourselves. Tyler ventures into a Christianity that confronts issues head on. Tyler’s form of storytelling is one that seeks to look at reality with the blinders off… and then applies the reality of redemption to it. He doesn’t sugarcoat life and he doesn’t glorify a foul lifestyle for the sake of its foulness. He has set boundaries and limits.

So this raises the question about how we define Christianity. Is it simply the absence of the harsh in favor of a sterilized, ‘family friendly’ environment where everybody smiles and wheres nice suits and dresses? Or do we define Christianity as being able to go to where the people are hurting and deal with the issues that affect them? Is it bringing the light of the gospel of Christ’s redemption to bear upon their situation so they can change and grow?

One of the criticisms of the church is that Christians have the tendency to stay within the four walls… where it’s ’safe and comfortable.’ If the truth be told, every person - regardless of their religious affiliations - wants to stay where they feel safe and comfortable. It takes a lot to venture beyond one’s comfort zone. Even so, that does not negate our responsibility to help each other.

WHAT I SAW…

After I gained a new perspective about Tyler Perry, I began to look at his movies: Diary of a Mad Black Woman, Daddy’s Little Girls, Why Did I Get Married, Meet the Browns and Madea’s Family Reunion.

As I watched these movies:

1 - I saw the heart of a man who was creating stories to deal with the serious issues that people face.
2 - I saw the heart of a man who wants to break the negative stereotypes that mainstream media likes to promote about Black men (negative stereotypes which many of us buy into).
3 - I saw the heart of a man who desired to see Black women set free from abusive relationships and empowered to become all they were created to be.
4 - I saw the heart of a man who created characters who encountered and confronted real issues head on - issues that almost destroyed them - characters who cried out to God for help and took responsibility for their actions. When they did this, they were delivered.
5 - I saw a the heart of a man who decided to take responsibility for the messages being sent to African-Americans and the world - who decided to do something positive that would lighten our day, cause us to laugh, cause us to think, cause us to grow, cause us to talk about serious issues and help birth in us the desire to seek freedom.

Sometimes… hot grits just might be a necessary part of attaining freedom. A person has to reap what they sow.(See Madea’s Family Reunion and you’ll understand. :-))

As I take part in the dream of Tyler Perry, I see the heart of a man who is concerned about issues of social justice, self-esteem, faith, overcoming obstacles; issues of fathers and mothers fighting for their children, husbands and wives fighting for each other, the power of a family that sticks together and what it truly means to be a real man and a real woman.

SO WHERE DOES THIS LEAVE US?

Tyler Perry is growing on me. I have to admit that I’m not gung ho about everything he’s created, but he’s growing on me. I tried watching his sitcom, Tyler Perry’s House of Payne, but couldn’t get into it very much. (Maybe it’s because I caught it mid season.) Considering that it made television history with its incredibly high ratings, I’m going to get Season 1 and give it another shot.

This whole experience, of learning more about Tyler Perry, reminds me of a essay from my book, Transition: Breaking Through the Barriers. It’s titled, "Don’t Judge Me Until…" I’ll quote a few lines to sum it all up.

"Many people think they know me. They think they know me not because they actually do, but because they make judgments based on what they see… at least what they think they see. …. But I say, ‘Don’t judge me until you really know me.’ Don’t judge me until you’ve walked a day in my shoes and had a genuine, heartfelt conversation with me. …. So, all you people who think you know me… I’m not telling you not to judge me. We all need our actions and inactions weighed and tried. We all need to be held accountable for our internal motivations. What I’m asking is for you to put all your presumptuous, preconceived notions on the back-burner. There’s a difference between judging and condemning. Too many of us act and react on false information and wrong impressions. I am asking you to not judge me until you really get to know me. And if you get to know me and still feel you don’t like me - then fine. At least you got to know who I am. And I promise to do the same for you."

FINAL WORDS…

I used to say ‘no’ to Tyler Perry. I can now say that I’m one of his fans and I pray for him. No one knows what his future holds: what struggles he will face as he walks in his destiny and purpose; where he will fail and be victorious. Only God knows. What we do know is that we can either choose to pursue the plan God has for us or we can refuse it. Along our journey we will have successes and we will make mistakes. Tyler Perry seems to be pursuing God’s path for him and is encouraging thousands upon thousands along the way. So just keep praying for him and the influence that he has; that he continues to remain grounded in who he is as a man, as a child of God and as an individual who has been given much - along with great responsibility.

I’ve never met Mr. Perry, but two things that Jesus said comes to mind: "Don’t judge by appearances, but judge by what is right." "You will know a tree, whether it’s good or bad, by its fruit." So let’s keep looking at the fruit!

AND DON’T FORGET that his new movie, The Family that Preys comes out September 12th. I’ll be at the movies. So make sure you check it out. Then we’ll have even more to talk about. :-)

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Filed under: Articles • Risks and Opportunities • Sociology • Spirituality • Transition Book Excerpts

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