Son of Jesus Camp
by: Rev. DanI’m going to go see Jesus Camp this Friday at the Embarcadero Center in San Francisco, and I think you should too (if not in SF, then at one of the other places it’s showing, of course).
Christianity Today has an interesting article and a must-read interview with the filmmakers, Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady. The interview speaks volumes about the film, and I’m glad to understand their perspective before seeing it.
From the article titled “Is Jesus Camp Objective? Or Unfair?”
You’ve never seen this in a movie before—young children speaking in tongues and rolling on the floor, apparently under the power of the Holy Spirit. And what is more, they’re dressed in camouflage, to represent their identity as soldiers in God’s army. They’re asking God to fill the U.S. Supreme Court with “righteous judges.” They’re protesting abortion. They’re shouting prayers for President Bush while they lay hands on a cardboard cut-out of his likeness. And—don’t tell Al Gore—but they’re being taught that global warming isn’t a problem at all.
Jesus Camp is not a drama or a comedy. It’s a documentary, made by award-winning filmmakers Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady, who follow the experiences of three young children—Levi, Tory, and Rachael—as they attend the “Kids on Fire” summer camp in Devil’s Lake, North Dakota. The camp, directed by Becky Fischer, encourages children to embrace Christianity through programs of intense instruction and charismatic worship.
Some Christian media personalities are speaking out against the movie, but for differing reasons. A few accuse the filmmakers of trying to discredit Fischer and her camp, and they rush to the defense of the film’s subjects, saying that their methods of worship and education are to be celebrated. Others are criticizing the film by saying that this documentary footage severely misrepresents Christianity, and that it has been framed to draw viewers into viewing Christians as lunatics.
The Christianity Today interview with the filmmakers, Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady, is a must-read:
CT: Were you initially looking to make another movie about kids, or were you looking more for a political subject, and the kids camp just happened to be a way to get into that?
Grady: Actually, we were looking for a film that focused on children and faith, and we were inspired by Devon Brown, who was in The Boys of Baraka. Neither of us had ever met a child that was so devoted and focused on his church, and it just made us think, Are there other kids out there like this? So initially, we weren’t looking for a film that focused on even the evangelical movement in general; we were looking for a film that would focus on children and faith in a general way. But when we found Becky Fischer’s camp, the film took a different turn.
Ewing: And even after we found the camp, the events that transpired in the country while we were shooting—namely the nomination and confirmation of two different Supreme Court justices—that really was an event that the people in our film and the evangelical community at large were really chattering about. To ignore the political seemed almost irresponsible as filmmakers, and so the film definitely started to take a much more political turn when the people in our film brought the political into the religious in the churches. So that just sort of naturally occurred.
And:
CT: Did anything that happened on camera catch you by surprise, for example, the speaking in tongues?
Grady: It’s one of those things that is sort of surprising initially, and you get used to it very quickly. Heidi and I have both filmed spiritual ceremonies of all different kinds of religions. Heidi made a film where they do body piercing and things that are much more shocking, really. But I guess it became a little more exotic because we had never seen Americans being so devout and so charismatic in their worship. But it’s one of those things. It wears away very quickly, and I think both of us feel that everyone is entitled to worship however they want. I don’t judge anyone for how they want to express their faith.
Ewing: We had a lot more scenes like that, that focused more on the practice of the charismatic faith. And we started to shy away from including a lot of details and explanation of all of these things, because we didn’t want to marginalize charismatics. But again, it’s just a practice. In the end, they all believe in the same Bible and they all listen to the same radio and read the same publications as evangelicals who don’t speak in tongues, so we felt like they had a lot more in common with the greater evangelical movement than they didn’t. That’s why we didn’t start focusing on a lot of their differences.
We actually kind of held back on some of the material we had that might distract people and confuse people and freak people out too much. We felt that we actually toned it down a bit.
(emphasis added)
John Amato from Crooks & Liars wrote a quick blurb about Jesus Camp:
I just watched the new movie called ” Jesus Camp,’ where kids pray to a cardboard cut out of George Bush because he’s a messianic/Jesus figure to them. Are their prayers being answered as he institutes torture?
Variety has a video interview with the filmmakers. (I’m not quoting from it because I can’t seem to get the video to play on my PowerBook… /sigh.)
The Outchurched offer to reimburse you for your Jesus Camp movie ticket still stands. Please take us up on it.
Hello Rev. Dan and all,
The time is long past to stop focusing on symptoms and myriad details and finally seek lasting solutions. Until we address the core causes of the millennia of struggle and suffering that have bedeviled humanity, these repeating cycles of evil will never end.
Why do religious leaders and followers so often participate in and support blatant evil?
History is replete with examples of religious leaders and followers advocating, supporting, and participating in blatant evil. Regardless of attempts to shift or deny blame, history clearly records the widespread crimes of Christianity. Whether we’re talking about the abominations of the Inquisition, Crusades, the greed and genocide of colonizers, slavery in the Americas, or the Bush administration’s recent deeds and results, Christianity has always spawned great evil. The deeds of many Muslims and the state of Israel are also prime examples.
The paradox of adherents who speak of peace and good deeds contrasted with leaders and willing cohorts knowingly using religion for evil keeps the cycle of violence spinning through time. Why does religion seem to represent good while always serving as a constant source of deception, conflict, and the chosen tool of great deceivers? The answer is simple. The combination of faith and religion is a strong delusion purposely designed to affect one’s ability to reason clearly. Regardless of the current pope’s duplicitous talk about reason, faith and religion are the opposite of truth, wisdom, and justice and completely incompatible with logic.
Religion, like politics and money, creates a spiritual, conceptual, and karmic endless loop. By their very nature, they always create opponents and losers which leads to a never ending cycle of losers striving to become winners again, ad infinitum. This purposeful logic trap always creates myriad sources of conflict and injustice, regardless of often-stated ideals, which are always diluted by ignorance and delusion. The only way to stop the cycle is to convert or kill off all opponents or to end the systems and concepts that drive it.
Think it through, would the Creator of all knowledge and wisdom insist that you remain ignorant by simply believing what you have been told by obviously duplicitous religious founders and leaders? Would a compassionate Creator want you to participate in a system that guarantees injustice and suffering to your fellow souls? Isn’t it far more likely that religion is a tool of greedy men seeking to profit from the ignorance of followers and the strife it constantly foments? When you mix religion with the equally destructive delusions of money and politics, injustice, chaos, and the profits they generate are guaranteed.
Read More…
Peace…
>>The paradox of adherents who speak of peace and good deeds contrasted with leaders and willing cohorts knowingly using religion for evil keeps the cycle of violence spinning through time. Why does religion seem to represent good while always serving as a constant source of deception, conflict, and the chosen tool of great deceivers? The answer is simple. The combination of faith and religion is a strong delusion purposely designed to affect one’s ability to reason clearly.>>
Ok, and if you add science to your complaint, whats the difference?
>> Regardless of the current pope’s duplicitous talk about reason, faith and religion are the opposite of truth, wisdom, and justice and completely incompatible with logic.>>
This is nonsense. As a corrective elemenatry extaction of your statement; Logic is not truth, it does show the way though. But to place it, and the other terms in opposition to the others in your schema, like reason… is a bit silly
My first thought after reading this was “uh yeah… ‘Religion is the opiate of the masses’” and also “damn, and everybody thinks that I’m the only one who ‘preaches to the choir.’”
I do differ with your views, but at least what you have to say is interesting. :)
I submit the following, however:
My personal experience with the religious mythology known as “Christianity” has had value to me. Instead of being a largely oppressive force, it actually helped me in a period of my life where I needed socialization and some structure. I’ve grown to reject a lot of that structure, but it was a useful tool nonetheless.
The comment you’ve left is a bit too “black and white.” I don’t think it factors in the reality that science and faith can be reconciled, though doesn’t leave one with a necessarily literal interpretation of the Bible. Faith and Reason aren’t necessarily mutually exclusive concepts.
In fact, that’s one of my massive beefs with contemporary American Christianity… the false teaching that one or the other reigns supreme. The reality is that they should be complimentary.
Personally, I’d like my Faith to be as small as necessary. I dislike uncertainty and anti-Reason. Faith in ignorance is still Faith, but it’s obviously false Faith. I’ll pass on willful ignorance.
Comment by Rev. Dan
2006-09-26 03:46:04
>My first thought after reading this was “uh yeah… ‘Religion is the opiate of the masses’” and also “damn, and everybody thinks that I’m the only one who ‘preaches to the choir.’”>
not sure about everyone, but you do seem preocuppied with it.
>I do differ with your views, but at least what you have to say is interesting. :)>
Good. and thanks for your interest.
>I submit the following, however:>
>My personal experience with the religious mythology known as “Christianity” has had value to me. Instead of being a largely oppressive force, it actually helped me in a period of my life where I needed socialization and some structure. I’ve grown to reject a lot of that structure, but it was a useful tool nonetheless.>
I find htat respectable but are you saying you learned from mistakes that you think you made or learned from false beliefs in order to gain something else? i.e. you found it useful for what?
>The comment you’ve left is a bit too “black and white.” I don’t think it factors in the reality that science and faith can be reconciled, though doesn’t leave one with a necessarily literal interpretation of the Bible. Faith and Reason aren’t necessarily mutually exclusive concepts.>
no doubt about that. and I did not mean to suggest otherwise, that is, i’m in agreement with you. My question about adding “science” to what the poster of the message stated was meaning to find out if he thought there was a difference in faith as to religion or science. I found his remarks to convey nothing of that and what i think is that science is fundamentally faith, and always posed for correction and improvement; but it is faith in theory (which would take us on discussion very far from this topic)
So I agree there is nothing mutually exclusive or necessary regarding faith and reason, which is part of science…i believe it is part of religion or can be if its not already. (faith and reason)
>In fact, that’s one of my massive beefs with contemporary American Christianity… the false teaching that one or the other reigns supreme.>
I know its a false problem, but keeps them busy and the dopes that follow them with something to cling to.
> The reality is that they should be complimentary.>
See above my last statement..but moving on
Comtempory teaching, yes, but perhaps read St. Augustine and other elders (but i strongly suggest in my opinion to stay away from the scholastic if your not familiar with the ancient philosophers) and you my find some interesting teachings. Dun Scotus is one i would emphasize.
>Personally, I’d like my Faith to be as small as necessary. I dislike uncertainty and anti-Reason. Faith in ignorance is still Faith, but it’s obviously false Faith. I’ll pass on willful ignorance.>
Agreed. but for me it has not been such a struggle to demarcate between faith and reason, and to me, like Socrates said, i know how my ignorance, i know myself and how stupid I am, but the wisdom i pass on is cojoined with the wisdom that it may not be wisdom but hogwash. but thats ok and i think honest.
Gotta go, thanks for your time.
RE: More on the Jesus Camp video including Parody
http://beepbeepitsme.blogspot.com/2006/09/jesus-camp.html
@beepbeepitsme
I dunno if I’d label a juxtaposition of a song about fascism from The Producers with the trailer from Jesus Camp as being a “parody” but I’m kinda being a bit of a curmudgeon here. Typically, a parody is a bit more involved than soundtrack replacement. :)
If you replaced the voices in the trailer with contextually interesting juxtapositions (ie.- clips from a speech about fascism by someone else while the camp director is talking), then you’d have something a fair bit more interesting or engaging. Another idea would be to re-edit the video to fit the music closely. If you give the idea another go, post a link and I’ll be happy to give it a looksie. :)
The idea of doing a parody of Jesus Camp is kinda interesting, but the actual content of the trailer itself is pretty shocking/engaging. I kinda think it’d be hard to top the original content. You’ve started down that path though, so why not give it another go?
I think the belt-buckle graphic that you have posted on your page speaks volumes.