How the Romantic Comedy Was Born (and how it relates to Lent)

In 1930 all of the major guilds of the motion picture industry ratified the Motion Picture Production Code. This code was the beginnings of the rating system that we still have now. Part of the new rules established by the production code determined that passionate kissing was only allowed once in an entire movie, and there were to be no sexually explicit scenes whatsoever.

Movies had been getting raunchier and this was meant to be a course correction. But it came as a huge blow to those who were telling the romance stories of the day. The romantic, often steamy and sexually suggestive movie had been taken away from movie makers, and at the time they had no idea how they were going to replace it. There was a void.

What do you do if you want to make a love story, but you can’t show kissing more than once?

Witness the birth of the Romantic Comedy.

What movie makers began to do was to keep the man and woman apart for the whole movie, usually through comedic circumstances, until the very end when they would finally get together and have their one kiss. It was brilliant! Think about it, where’s the pay-off if Harry & Sally get together in the first scene?

And it all came about because they were required to abstain from what was considered lewd film-making.

The practice of Lent is analogous to the impact the Motion Picture Production Code had on movie makers. The code forced them to give something up. What grew in its place was a whole new way of making movies. During Lent we force ourselves to give something up. What will grow in its place will hopefully be a greater vision of the Kingdom of God.

Lent is not meant to be a slavish burden, but an opportunity to allow ourselves to be transformed by the ever present working of the Spirit of God.

My church has 4 Lenten practices that I’ve grown to really love.

Since we finally have our own place this year, we are adding the observance of Ash Wednesday. It’s actually going to be a self-guided prayer exercise which will culminate with the imposition of ashes. Redemption Churchwill be open from 7 to 9pm tonight. Come pray with us and begin the observance of the season of Lent.