{"id":2929,"date":"2005-03-23T10:43:00","date_gmt":"2005-03-23T10:43:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/filmchat\/2005\/03\/millions-and-miracles\/"},"modified":"2005-03-23T10:43:00","modified_gmt":"2005-03-23T10:43:00","slug":"millions-and-miracles","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/filmchat\/2005\/03\/millions-and-miracles.html","title":{"rendered":"Millions and miracles"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Came across two articles on <\/span>Millions<\/a><\/i> today, via CT\u2019s Weblog.<\/span><\/p>\n

The <\/span>Washington Times<\/a><\/i>\u2018 Scott Galupo suggests that the film \u2014 which has been receiving good buzz and even raves from Christian critics \u2014 will \u201csplit\u201d the audience that made <\/span>The Passion<\/i> a hit, because \u201cconservative Protestants\u201d will \u201cfind suspect\u201d the film\u2019s Catholic \u201cmessage of deeds-based charity\u201d. I haven\u2019t a clue what Galupo means by this, as I grew up in a thoroughly evangelical environment \u2014 churches, private schools, Bible camps, concerts, the works \u2014 and donations to organizations like World Vision and Compassion International were always emphasized in all of those venues. Galupo is on slightly firmer ground when he says, \u201cEvangelical Protestants, who believe all true believers are \u2018saints,\u2019 won\u2019t dig the halos on all the capital-S saints,\u201d but even here, I think most evangelicals I\u2019ve known over the years would be happier to see even this form of Christianity affirmed so well on the screen than to see no Christianity at all; quite a few of my devoutly Mennonite relatives were huge fans of <\/span>The Sound of Music<\/i>, which is, of course, all about Catholics.<\/span><\/p>\n

Now, it may be that director Danny Boyle told a reporter, \u201cThe film shows that we should have faith in people rather than icons or a particular brand of religion,\u201d and there is certainly evidence in the film to support this sort of universalist outlook \u2014 the Mormon neighbours, the apparently Muslim bank teller, etc. So the characters live in a pluralistic culture, just like the rest of us do, fine. But the fact remains that the film is very much grounded in a Christian \u2014 and, yes, Catholic \u2014 view of the world, and it privileges Catholicism above all other religious perspectives. It is the Christian saints who appear to the boy and who even seem to have some sort of objective reality that others can perceive without realizing it; there are no similar apparitions by any of the Muslim or Mormon angels or prophets. So, to me, this film seems perfectly compatible with an inclusivist but still basically Christ-centred theology, as opposed to a universalist theology that promotes all faiths equally.<\/span><\/p>\n

The one thing I <\/span>do<\/i> quibble with in the film is the scene where St. Peter gives a naturalistic, non-miraculous explanation of the feeding of the 5,000 \u2014 which is apparently the scene that most captivates the <\/span>Chicago Sun-Times<\/a><\/i>\u2018 Cathleen Falsani. She writes:<\/span><\/p>\n

The miracle was not some magical multiplication of sardines and pita bread, St. Peter explains. The real miracle was that people in the crowd who had stashed food away for themselves decided to share it with one another. They were prompted to do so by a young boy who gave Jesus a sack of a few fish and a few pieces of bread.<\/p>\n

The miracle was the change of people\u2019s selfish hearts.<\/p>\n

They were the miracle.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Well, there is certainly something miraculous about a changed heart, or about anything that turns us from self-centredness towards other-centredness and an appreciation of the \u201cimage of God\u201d in other people. But to re-interpret the miracle of the bread and fish this way seems off, to me. This miracle happens to be the only one that appears <\/span>in<\/a> <\/span>all<\/a> <\/span>four<\/a> <\/span>gospels<\/a> (and in two gospels, it sort-of appears twice, since <\/span>Mark<\/a> and <\/span>Matthew<\/a> both talk about a feeding of the 4,000 that took place on a separate occasion). And if I\u2019m not mistaken, this miracle was more than a mere act of generosity, whether human or divine; it was a sign of the Messiah\u2019s coming, communicated via his ability to feed his people just as Moses had fed them in the desert many generations ago.<\/span><\/p>\n

But I guess that understanding of the miracle would be a little <\/span>too<\/i> particularly Christian for the sort of film that Danny Boyle was making.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Came across two articles on Millions today, via CT\u2019s Weblog. The Washington Times\u2018 Scott Galupo suggests that the film \u2014 which has been receiving good buzz and even raves from Christian critics \u2014 will \u201csplit\u201d the audience that made The Passion a hit, because \u201cconservative Protestants\u201d will \u201cfind suspect\u201d the film\u2019s Catholic \u201cmessage of deeds-based […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1116,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2929","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nMillions and miracles<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Came across two articles on Millions today, via CT's Weblog.The Washington Times' Scott Galupo suggests that the film -- which has been receiving good\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/filmchat\/2005\/03\/millions-and-miracles.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Millions and miracles\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Came across two articles on Millions today, via CT's Weblog.The Washington Times' Scott Galupo suggests that the film -- which has been receiving good\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/filmchat\/2005\/03\/millions-and-miracles.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"FilmChat\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2005-03-23T10:43:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Peter T. 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