Religulous

Bill Maher has done everyone a favor.

As only a comedian can, with his acerbic humor, he cuts through the fog of religion to reveal it's heart ... and, frankly, as one who has been a believer for 64 years, and a Presbyterian pastor as well, of the liberal sort, Maher uncovers the elephant in the room, the dirty little secret harbored in the back rooms of thought - that much of what passes for religion is invented and dysfunctional.

That Maher doesn't talk with folks like Desmond Tutu or Bishop Tom Wright leaves the impression that religion is pretty much the domain of kooks and imbeciles harboring the worst kinds of prejudice.

Well, if the shoe fits wear it.

Folks like Wright and Tutu are a voice in the wilderness, and though their voice is important, it's the wilderness that prevails.

Even in the sweetest folks I've known over the years, an unthinking acceptance of ideas, few of which are grounded in Jesus, but mostly in unexamined traditions that have more to do with culture and prejudice than faith, hope and love.

Maher sounds a warning that many within the folds of religion are wont to ignore, but only at great risk. From the Truckers Chapel in Raleigh, NC to the Creation Museum in Petersburg, KY, there is apparently no end to the incalculable depths of ignorance, blind belief and prejudice.

Yes, there are a lot of great and good minds at work, and women and men of vision and courage, who believe, and do so with great integrity, compassion, wisdom and wit.

But the Palins and Huckabees stand stage center - Palin is actually a believer; Huckabee a huckster - like glove and hand, a dangerous but an oh-so-comfortable fit.

I suspect that some who listened to Jeremiah and Jesus would say, "But it's not that bad!"

But it is, and only by going to the heart of the craziness can we ever hope to send the demons packing.

Anyway, as a documentary - excellent.

Editing is terrific ... and the whole thing, greatly entertaining. The title itself, amusing and important: a combination of "religion" and "ridiculous."

Maher's comments in the car after an interview, the sub-title comments during the interviews, the interspersed film and news clips, are hilarious, but don't let the humor fool you - Maher is a thoughtful man who's done his homework. The questions he raises and his sense of "doubt" are a needed ingredients for anyone who wants to a person of faith.

Doubt, the source of humility, was recognized by Paul Tillich in his book, The Dynamics of Faith and by St. John of the Cross in his Dark Night of the Soul.

Sometimes the best prayer is simply, "I don't know."

But I have question: not for Maher, but for the reader: What's the alternative? Smoke a joint and pursue whatever the instinct might be? Become our own little, very little, god? Retreat into some ultimate hedonism of self-interest? Pleasure?

Though religion is "shamelessly invented," there remains for me something good and important strong enough and good enough to counterbalance the centripetal energy of the ego. Hence, Mother Teresa, or Martin Luther King, Jr., or a Shane Claiborne.

Check out Toby Jones, an emergent church thinker for some further reflection on the future of faith and the church. Or David Crumm's "Explore the Spirit."

Is the film worth seeing?

You bet.

If you believe without thought, if you need others to be wrong in order for you to be right, you'll find this offensive and disturbing.

But if you want to see religion in the mirror of critical examination, and you're willing to see how bizarre your "fag-hating, bible-thumping" cousin down the block is, then "fasten your seat belt" and get ready for bumpy ride with lots of laughs and a serious message: "Grow up, or die" - "because we figured out nuclear weapons before we figured out how to be rational and peaceful."

Rambo

Okay, so I'm a sucker for Stallone.

I liked it.

Great soundtrack, good story, Rambo with his sullen, silent rage, and all the 50-caliber mayhem you could want.

I was particularly taken with the story and its portrayal of Christians. So often, Christians are simply stereotyped as either bigoted and shallow, or perverted and evil. Here, they're real people, with passion and compassion. They're shown interacting with the people: doctors dressing wounds and giving out medications; missionaries teaching the gospel - caught in the middle of a terribly difficult situation, where violence, sadly, has its place. The writer of Ecclesiastes said it well: "There is a time for war."

The soundtrack was one of the best - the visual beauty of the jungle and the river was captured well - reminded me of "Apocalypse Now" and "The Mosquito Coast."

The battle scene at the end - what we're all expecting - doesn't disappoint. Well choreographed, well filmed and edited, it's one of the best!

Is Stallone an actor?

Yes. I've never forgotten him in "Cop Land," one of Stallone's best performances. Here, in Rambo, Stallone, captures a character - troubled, alone, carrying huge demons of the soul, nonetheless, with a sense of justice and shreds of compassion. And like all beasts, here we see beauty taming him. The plot at this point might have gone south - a first kiss and then some steamy sex - but thankfully, the writers didn't go there. Rambo remains Rambo - a man looking at life from afar.

Stallone is criticized for this roll, but it touches a nerve in our spirit and tells a story lived by many. Veterans of war all carry some demons, but millions of human beings live lives of quiet desperation, never quite knowing who they are or where they're going, weighted down by some unnamed weight of rage.

In the end, we see him back in the US of A, on a country road by a weathered mailbox, and on it, the name Rambo. As the credits roll, we watch John walk the long driveway downhill to the farm where his father lives. How long has it been?

It's home for him.

And that's a good prayer ... for all the Rambos of our world - for they are many - to find home again ... if not literally, at least in their own soul and memories, or with a friend ... with God ... somewhere, somehow, to be reconciled and find peace.

The Golden Compass

Everyone, settle down ... especially so-called evangelicals spoiling for a fight with the devil, and tight-jawed Roman Catholics who see a heretic in every question.

This is a profoundly thoughtful film, spiritually energizing, technically so well done, with a stellar cast, especially Dakota Blue Richards who plays the central character, a young girl, gifted and wise, Lyra Belacqua.

This is film all about truth and those who repress it. Is this not a familiar theme throughout human history and, sadly, the story of the church? Power, whatever its cast, political or religious, sooner or later becomes a distortion of itself, and resentful and fearful of anyone who suggests the emperor may be buck-naked after all.

A faith that cannot take a question is no faith worth anyone's time.

If it has to be defended by violent means, repression and mind-control, with a ton of religious dictates and eagled-eyed guardians ready to pounce in a moment, it is, by definition, defective and far from the truth is pretends to offer.

And for some thoughts from a Roman Catholic, please see: http://www.salon.com/ent/movies/feature/2007/12/07/freitas/

An excellent analysis by a writer/scholar thoroughly versed in Pullman's books. We are rightfully reminded that Pullman'sposture is not so much against faith and hope and love, or even God, but against the powers of the church - those silly trappings that really aren't so silly, but dangerous to mind and heart, body and soul. The organization that brought the world the inquisition is still capable of terrible efforts against the soul.

As the film so powerfully depicts, the Magisterium seeks to separate us from our souls, and the earlier the better - get to the children first - lest we think and challenge its power.

What or who is the Magisterium?

Could be the church ... could be governments ... could be parents ... could be angry evangelical preachers shouting too loudly ... anyone or anything driven by fear and compelled to conceal and control.

No need to worry. Pullman uncovers the little man behind the curtain and reminds all of us that the God of the Church is quite often no god at all.

Turn to the text, especially Genesis; read the gospels and listen to Jesus as he contends against the Magisterium.

Read the foundational stories again, thoroughly ... and know that following Jesus is liberation, whereas following the dictates of religion is oppression.

Religion?

Can we ever have a world without it?

Not likely, but we can be mindful, we can be wise ... the enemies of faith are never those who raise questions, or even attack it, but those who defend their kingdoms with power and fear - they, like the ones who crucified Jesus, are the real enemies of faith!

Go see the movie and enjoy a fine story about a very brave young lady. Read Pullman's books and discover a Truth behind our truths, a Church behind our churches, a God, living and good, behind the cruelty and harshness of a dogmatic god constructed by tradition.

Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah - the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God and Father of Jesus, is alive and well, and thanks be to God for those who unmask our hideous pretensions and help all of us regain our senses.

3:10 to Yuma - the movie

All right, I'm a sucker for hope.

I've never seen the original (1957) nor read Leonard's short story of the same title, so all I have is the current film.

Russell Crowe and Christian Bale are favorites of mine, and they deliver: Crowe is evil and intelligent, and Bale is stubbornly in need of money and determined to show his son the right way. Both are ruthless.

Though some reviewers have dissed the ending, I loved it - a parable of sorts - the courage of Bale elicits respect in Crowe, and Crowe responds, bloody and cruel, in such a way that Bale could achieve his goal - not the money, but the admiration of a son.

It's a tough and tangled world ... good and evil, wheat and weeds, all run together. We settle for moments of grace - we head for the 3:10 no matter what. The son is rightly impressed, and with a whistle, the train pulls away, and Crowe's horse comes a-running. Good and evil remain, having touched one another, effected and changed one another.

Hope and goodness are sometimes, often times, forged in blood. Evil, in a strange and incomprehensible fashion, becomes a partner with redemption.

I guess that's what the Cross is all about.

Calvary, the 3:10 to Yuma for Jesus.