Finding Faith At The Movies

Experience God in the movies! A valuable resource guide examining over thirty films and their theological impact. Excellent for film buffs and church leaders alike.

Is there a God? - What might God be like? - What is the relationship between faith and certainty? - Can intelligent people believe in spiritual realities? - Why are there so many religions? - Is it possible to experience a relationship with God--and if so, how? If you've asked questions like these, you're in good company. From songwriters such as Bob Dylan and Jewel Kilcher to TV shows such as The X Files and Touched by an Angel, the media and the arts reflect postmodern men and women's search for a living faith and a spiritually oriented life. Real faith isn't blind believism. It is a process that engages your intellect as well as your emotions. If you think faith requires turning your back on truth and intellectual honesty, then Finding Faith is one book you really ought to read. With logic, passion, and even-handedness that the thinking person will appreciate, this book helps you face your obstacles to faith by focusing not on what to believe, but on how to believe. Whether you want to strengthen the faith you have, renew the faith you lost, or discover faith for the first time, Finding Faith can coach, inspire, encourage, and guide you, and help you discover more in life than you'd ever imagined or hoped for.

Bryan Stone engages the cinema to open a discussion of theology and the culture of our time by pairing specific Christian doctrines found in the Apostles' Creed with popular movies and videos.

Kit finds her family's move to Utah to be coupled with culture shock. When her feelings for Adam go beyond friendship, she is torn. Does she really want to devote her heart to a boy who is planning to leave on a mission? Can she support him when she does not believe his religion?

Academic philosophy may have lost its audience, but the traditional subjects of philosophy—love, death, justice, knowledge, and faith—remain as compelling as ever. To reach a new generation, Paul W. Kahn argues that philosophy must take up these fundamental concerns as we find them in contemporary culture. He demonstrates how this can be achieved through a turn to popular film. Discussing such well-known movies as Forrest Gump (1994), The American President (1995), The Matrix (1999), Memento (2000), The History of Violence (2005), Gran Torino (2008), The Dark Knight (2008), The Road (2009), and Avatar (2009), Kahn explores powerful archetypes and their hold on us. His inquiry proceeds in two parts. First, he uses film to explore the nature of action and interpretation, arguing that narrative is the critical concept for understanding both. Second, he explores the narratives of politics, family, and faith as they appear in popular films. Engaging with genres as diverse as romantic comedy, slasher film, and pornography, Kahn explores the social imaginary through which we create and maintain a meaningful world. He finds in popular films a new setting for a philosophical inquiry into the timeless themes of sacrifice, innocence, rebirth, law, and love.

This informative guide helps readers combine their love of movies with their desire to grow closer to God. Foremost experts on faith and film, all connected with the Reel Spirituality Institute at Fuller Seminary, explore forty leading movies from the last four decades to encourage movie lovers and small groups to reflect critically and theologically on their film choices. God in the Movies introduces and analyzes the spiritual content of top films from the 1980s through the 2010s, opening viewers up to a conversation about life, faith, and God. Following a format similar to Barsotti and Johnston's successful Finding God in the Movies, this completely new book covers different films spanning four decades. This engaging resource contains production notes and film synopses, relevant Scripture texts, theological reflection, discussion questions, film stills, recommended film clips, and more, serving as a treasure chest for hours of film viewing, discussion, and ministry. Clips from the movies referenced in each chapter are available online.

A lively, discerning guide to what's good, beautiful, and true at the movies "Richard Leonard, SJ, expertly guides readers through some of the most popular recent films and shows us how even the most unlikely movies can encourage us to pray and draw closer to the divine . . . fascinating, lively, and often witty." --James Martin, SJ, author of "My Life with the Saints " This thought-provoking and inspiring work by popular film critic and Jesuit Richard Leonard explains how movies are today's parables and why people of faith need the skills to converse about them intelligently and productively. In "Movies""That Matter," Leonard views fifty important movies through "a lens of faith" and offers surprising insights on the spiritual dimension of each film. From Finding Nemo to Gandhi to The Godfather, Leonard's informed, Christian point of view guides us to a new appreciation of both the films and our own spiritual beliefs. Leonard also lists teachable moments found in each movie and provides questions for personal reflection or group dialogue. In addition, Leonard teaches today's religious educators, parents, and film buffs how to "read" a film with the eyes of faith, and how to meaningfully engage with others through the media of film. He offers realistic advice on such topics as: valuing our story, sex and violence in films, ratings, and how to be a critical consumer. This entertaining and reliable guide will enrich your movie-watching experience. ""Movies That Matter "is a book every person in pastoral ministry will want to use as he or she seeks to be relevant and faithful in a media world." --Rose Pacatte, FSP, coauthor "Lights, Camera, . . . Faith "