If you missed the movie premiere of The Armor of Light, the important and timely documentary about guns and Christians, and specifically one Evangelical pastor’s crusade against the prevailing Christian gun culture, you’ll have a chance to watch it tonight for free at 8pm EST on PBS’ Independent Lens. The film will be followed by a Town Hall conversation about faith and guns, moderated by NPR’s Michele Norris. You can also tune in to npr.org at 9:25pm for a live stream of the Town Hall; check your local listings to confirm your local showtime.
“We began production on Armor three years ago because we wanted to spark a new conversation about our moral and spiritual response to gun violence, outside the traditional battle lines of the pro- and anti-gun debate,” say director Abigail E. Disney (of the famous Disney family). “After hundreds of screenings across our country, from Waco to San Francisco, and discussions with dozens of pastors and lay leaders, I can say this with confidence: the conversation is starting to happen.”
The Armor of Light, follows an Evangelical minister and the mother of a teenage shooting victim who ask, is it possible to be both pro-gun and pro-life?
In what RogerEbert.com calls “one of the years’ most powerful documentaries” and The Christian Science Monitor describes as a “gripping portrait of courage,” director Abigail E. Disney tracks an Evangelical minister trying to find the moral strength to preach about the growing toll of gun violence in America. In THE ARMOR OF LIGHT Reverend Rob Schenck, anti-abortion activist and fixture on the political far right, breaks with orthodoxy by questioning whether being pro-gun is consistent with being pro-life. Rev. Schenck is shocked and perplexed by the reactions of his long-time friends and colleagues who warn him away from this complex, politically explosive issue. Along the way, he meets Lucy McBath, the mother of Jordan Davis, an unarmed teenager who was murdered in Florida. McBath, also a Christian, decides to work with Schenck. Lucy is on a difficult journey of her own, trying to make sense of her devastating loss while using her grief to effect some kind of viable and effective political action. ARMOR follows these unlikely allies through their trials of conscience, heartbreak and rejection, as they bravely attempt to make others consider America’s gun culture through a moral lens.
For more about The Armor of Light, visit the Patheos Movie Club.
Click here for our Patheos exclusive interview with Abigail Disney from last fall.
And finally, here’s the trailer:
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