dual personalities

Earlier in the week I read this interesting blogpost about when God speaks to you directly through a movie. The author says that God spoke to him in Little Boy (2015)

in which an eight-year-old boy (“Little Boy”) is willing to do whatever it takes to end World War II so his father can come home. Of course, I had to see this highly-recommended movie!

God, however, did not speak to me through this movie. (Nor did I expect him to.) It was a good movie, but I found it disappointing and even mildly irritating. A well-meaning priest gives the boy a list of things he must do to prove his faith before he can “move a mountain”. When he completes the list, he actually “moves” the local mountain when there is an earthquake. Then (spoiler alert!) the U.S. drops the “Little Boy” atomic bomb on Hiroshima, which eventually does bring his father home. Well, well. To me, this is marred theology.

But I get it. I totally understand what the author means when he says God spoke to him personally through a movie (any movie) and the blogpost got me thinking about when/if this had been my experience.

For me, the movie that comes immediately to mind is Life Is Beautiful (1997) which was written and directed by Roberto Benigni, who also starred in it.

When I saw that movie, I finally comprehended the absurdity and horror of the Holocaust, and God opened my heart to the Jewish people.

Perhaps that is the key: our frozen hearts can be melted by a film and God speaks to us. Can you think of when this happened to you? Has a movie ever changed you?

Discuss among yourselves.

By the way, if you are in the mood for a “feel good” movie, I recommend Eddie the Eagle (2016) about the British ski jumper and Olympian Eddie Edwards. It actually made me feel good and I enjoyed watching Hugh Jackman as Eddie’s American “Coach” Bronson Peary.

Have a good weekend.

*Guido in Life Is Beautiful (1997)