Fireproof

This past Friday night, some of us from church decided to go see Fireproof. I would recommend the movie to young people and couples, those whose marriages are fine and those which are not. I believe the principles laid out in the movie are good, even for those who may not believe their marriage needs God.

This is not just some silly ‘chick flick.’ There is both action and comedy, but the storyline is very much serious. But, if you are looking for some high definition special effects, you will easily miss the importance of the message. The purpose of this film is not merely to have one veg-out watching a meaningless movie, but to consider ones own lifestyle and marriage by the time they walk out the theater.

Before making the showing, I had heard some discontent that the movie did not have more of a church scene, meaning the couple attending church or finding help from a particular local church. Although, that may be the case, the plan of salvation and Christian testimonies from co-workers and family members were clearly displayed throughout. And, without giving much away, the end gives reference to attendance at a local church if one would pay close attention.

It was also noted that some had made mention that Kirk Cameron will not kiss anyone besides his wife, so she stood in for the kissing scenes at the end. If such is the case, I would highly commend Kirk Cameron, for why would a husband wish to make a movie about ‘fireproofing your marriage’ while kissing another woman on screen?

Overall I enjoyed the movie, and believe anyone that would take pleasure in watching a good clean movie would also enjoy it. I also believe any young person or couple could benefit from watching such a film.

Unregenerate Director Strives To Deface Christ

Anyone with any sense about them will clearly see through the smoke and mirrors of director Paul Verhoeven’s desire to swindle persons with his desire to claim “Christ probably was the son of Mary and a Roman soldier who raped her during the Jewish uprising in Galilee” in his upcoming so-called “biography of Jesus.”

According to Fox News’ quote of Donohue, apparently he notes that Verhoeven has “been working 20 years trying to sell this argument and hasn't come up with anything.” But who says a biography of someone, clearly Verhoeven has never met nor personally knows, has to be nonfiction? Clearly he doesn’t have a problem with writing a fictional biography. (I jest.)

Interestingly, it seems that Verhoeven claims to be a Catholic (according to the article), but makes his money causing others to break the very commandments of God, namely fornication, in his choice of movies to direct.

Is there really any wonder this man “states that Christ was not betrayed by Judas Iscariot, one of the 12 original apostles of Jesus, as the New Testament states” and “was a regular attendee of the Jesus Seminar, which was co-founded by the late religion scholar Robert W. Funk. The seminar called into question miracles and statements attributed to Jesus.”

Come on Verhoeven, simply repent (as we all should) and accept Jesus Christ (the very Son of God) as your Lord and Savior. The Spirit, through the Scriptures, will give you a much better picture of Him than your human attempt at a recreation biography of another Jesus ever will.

Atheism or Anti-Theism Taught In The Classroom?

We seem to hear a lot about “separation of church and state” and about how we need to keep religion and Christianity to ourselves or in the privacy of our own homes, but interestingly Scholastic would like to introduce the concept of The Golden Compass: Language Arts Lessons & Activities to our children through their teachers.

Check out the advertisement:
[http://content.scholastic.com/browse/unitplan.jsp?id=284]

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Welcome Teachers! We hope you enjoy this language arts program featuring The Golden Compass, the soon-to-be-released film based on the multi-award-winning novel by Philip Pullman. You’ll find turnkey, skill-building materials on symbolism and characterization that help students understand the relevance of literary themes in their lives. The lessons and activities, while connected to the book and film, can be taught independently to supplement any language arts curriculum.

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Here are some SparkNotes concerning the book:
[http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/hisdarkmaterials/summary.html]

Now, let’s recount what the author said himself about these books:
"My books are about killing God"

So, let me ask…

We should not allow the teaching of how great God is in school, but the reading and teaching of the “symbolism and characterization” of killing God should be allowed?

Is this because the Scriptures are a work of fact, and His Dark Materials are a work of fiction?

An Atheist’s Fantasy of Killing God

Verified at snopes.com, coming this December 2007, is a movie entitled The Golden Compass.

Origins: “The film is based on (released in the U.S. as The Golden Compass), the first offering in Phillip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy of children's books, a series that follows the adventures of a streetwise girl who travels through multiple worlds populated by witches, armor-plated bears, and sinister ecclesiastical assassins to defeat the oppressive forces of a senile God.”

Snopes also notes, “The series' author, Phillip Pullman, is an avowed atheist who has averred that "I don't profess any religion; I don't think it's possible that there is a God; I have the greatest difficulty in understanding what is meant by the words 'spiritual' or 'spirituality.'" Critics of Pullman's books point to the strong anti-religion and anti-God themes they incorporate, and although literary works are subject to a variety of interpretations, Pullman left little doubt about his intentions when he said in a 2003 interview that "My books are about killing God." (Conservative British columnist Peter Hitchens labeled Pullman "The Most Dangerous Author in Britain" and described him as the writer "the atheists would have been praying for, if atheists prayed.")”

Bill Donohue, president of The Catholic League, has said: “Look, the movie is based on the least offensive of the three books. And they have dumbed down the worst elements in the movie because they don't want to make Christians angry and they want to make money. Our concern is this, unsuspecting Christian parents may want to take their kid to the movie, it opens up December 7th and say, this wasn't troubling, then we'll buy the books. So the movie is the bait for the books which are profoundly anti-Catholic and at the same time selling atheism.”

“Other critics, however, have described Pullman's works as being more generally anti-religion rather than specifically anti-Christian or anti-Catholic: In "His Dark Materials," Pullman's criticisms of organized religion come across as anti-authoritarian and anti-ascetic rather than anti-doctrinal. (Jesus isn't mentioned in any of the books, although Pullman has hinted that He might figure in a forthcoming sequel, "The Book of Dust.") His fundamental objection is to ideological tyranny and the rejection of this world in favor of an idealized afterlife, regardless of creed. As one of the novel's pagan characters puts it, "Every church is the same: control, destroy, obliterate every good feeling."”

I guess this is just: An Atheist’s Fantasy of Killing God.