Movies Are Prayers

How Films Voice Our Deepest Longings

by Josh Larsen

Josh Larsen, co-host of the WBEZ/NPR podcast Filmspotting, brings his cinematic expertise to a new book with InterVarsity Press titled Movies Are Prayers. In his role with Filmspotting and as editor of Think Christian, a digital magazine on faith and culture, Larsen has influenced the minds of moviegoers on the applicability of stories to real life, spirituality, and faith for years. Movies Are Prayers explores how modes of prayer—praise, confession, lament—are modeled by all types of films. In this fashion, the book illuminates the richness of both cinema and prayer. | read more»

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About the Book and Author

Movies Are Prayers explores how modes of prayer—praise, confession, lament—are modeled by all types of films. In this fashion, the book illuminates the richness of both cinema and prayer. | read more »

Read an Excerpt

Field of Dreams, in which Iowa stands in for heaven, depicts one man’s spiritual journey of prayerful obedience. Given a vision of a baseball diamond, Ray decides to build a full-scale field on his farm, complete with bleachers and lights. | read more »

Praise for "Movies Are Prayers"

"There's a lot of writing on film and theology, but a perspective like Larsen's—fresh, insightful, and interesting for anyone—is a rare gift to cinephiles and more casual movie viewers alike." —Alissa Wilkinson, film critic, Vox.com | read more »

The Church of Cinema: A Q&A With Josh Larsen

"I know what it means to read a psalm of lament in church, and often that is a powerful experience of prayer. But sometimes a movie that is lamenting the brokenness of the world can function in the same way - and be equally as powerful." | read more »
"Movies Are Prayers" by Josh Larsen
Josh Larsen, Co-Host of Filmspotting, on "Movies Are Prayers"
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