February 2007 - Faith and spirituality really do matter

Stories are powerful and can move our heart, mind and spirit.

Ever been moved to tears, laughter, become angry during or after a movie? Been persuaded to change your opinion after seeing a documentary? Have you pledged money for a child after viewing World Vision’s commercials? What about “WOW” moments… perhaps you referred to it as a spiritual moment?

Our search to find our place and purpose in the world is a universal human longing. What might this personal journey reveal if we spent a moment reflecting on our story?
It may surprise us that a bigger world was revealed beyond those childish games once played and those one-way crushes we had on another. It would reveal encounters of joy, friendship and love; then the pain of betrayal and hate, leaving us a little confused and bruised.

On further investigation we may find, to our surprise we have had encounters with faith and spirituality (which in earlier years had shrugged of as unnecessary and old fashioned) but now plays a part in our journey as we seek some revelation to explain my existence.

Story telling today includes the moving picture, (one picture is worth a thousand words). It allows us to see the created world. Documentaries abound arousing a sense of wonder. A passion within may prompt a response to help preserve the planets diversity, its people groups and their culture.

Step into my world for a moment. I have a view of this world (a world view) that includes a reference about God.  But then, doesn’t everyone have a world view that includes some reference to God? E.g. An Atheist has a world view and would inform you that God does not exist.

When I viewed the five short films my world view became part of my response (as will yours).
The film “7 days with 7 Dogs” caused me to look into one of my Books of Wisdom. I asked myself “How complete was my thinking about animals and what was my response to God putting us in charge of His creation and that He cared about their welfare?” This reference was found: “Good people are good to their animals where as the ‘good-hearted’ bad people kick and abuse them.”(1)

While in this contemplative mood, my thoughts went to “Shelter” and “Mish Mumkim” where the deeper puzzle about human relationships between parents and children (2) brought to mind  God’s concern for Nineveh and all her people (3) and  about my role as a Father and Grandfather. For children, a request is made to them to give attention to Godly parental wisdom; then the child becomes wise.(4)

Now “Mr. Deity” was a refreshing look at (and sometimes my) efforts to out guess God, control Him, put Him in some box or simply dismiss Him; if “Mr. Deity” represented His true character one should. So I spent time meditating upon what might be His revealed character?(5)
“Hope”! Now there is a good word.  The dictionary defines hope as:

• A wish or desire accompanied by confident expectation of its fulfilment.
• One that is a source of or reason for hope: the team's only hope for victory.
• The Hope in Christianity: The theological virtue defined as the desire and search for a future good, difficult but not impossible to attain with God's help.

I am quite sure your own story will reveal to you that faith and spirituality are represented or referred to in some way. Spirituality is an often used word today and shows up in counselling and is commonly promoted in the health and wellbeing industry, just to name a few. Because it matters to many, please consider its worth!

Here is my consideration of faith and spirituality. They sit just beyond what is strictly rational and do not sit comfortably with creeds.

Faith: “If you had faith no bigger than a mustard seed, you could tell this mulberry tree to pull itself up, roots and all, and to plant itself in the ocean. And it would!(6)

Spirituality: God continues His pursuit of us through both general and specific revelations about Himself; we may discover “He is not far from any one of us”(7)

Enjoy the film selection. I look forward to your insights.

1. Book of Proverbs 12:10
2. Book of Proverbs 4:1-5
3. Book of Jonah 1,2,3,and 4
4. Book of Proverbs 1:8-9
5. Book of Malachi 3:5-6
6. Book of Matthew 17:5-6
7. Book of Acts 17:27

Of course faith exists.

Faith is what makes film makers struggle with ideas, actors, rain and bad catering. Faith leads us on with bright hope for the perfect script, beautifully filmed, and startling performances. Faith is the belief in one’s ability to complete a powerful work that reverberates and entertains its enthusiastic audience. Faith drives every creator, every artist, every film maker.

The film makers whose work screens here are to be applauded for getting up in the morning and picking up that camera and turning it on. They had faith! The technical and production values of the films may vary; sound levels and quality may be a little erratic, a fly may settle on the camera lens, an edit may happen too fast to let the viewer read a sub-title, but in the end it doesn’t matter. What matters is that the film makers here really had something they wanted to say.

But does faith matter? That is, that ”other” religious kind of faith? And spirituality? Does it matter too? These 5 films aren’t religious films that proselytise a second (or first!) coming. What they all share is their look at how humans relate - at their strengths, their timidity and their love – love for people, pets and the planet.

The most human character presented in this series of films is the wonderfully vain and cowardly Mr Deity. Like a distant, emotionally-anxious pop-star he is the epitome of human insecurity. He wants to be loved and adored but because he won’t (or can’t) give of himself and really feel what love means his is a vacuous, almost insignificant life spent on a sofa with cups of tea brought by undemanding servants. Through satirical humour we get the message.

The love behind “Seven days with seven dogs” is quite palpable. Even though at times it felt like one was watching a TV-style sponsored travel program, in the end the pets were happy... and the owners got a chance to express their love. Maybe that’s all that really matters. I would have liked to have gotten to know each of the dogs a little better – it was a large cast (or should that be a pack?) for a film running 3:50. The film also makes one reflect that the film makers are lucky enough to live in a country where resources can be devoted to the happiness of a dog.

“Hope” speaks in stepping stone voices - almost hesitant of falling - and not in the flowing sentences of confident conversation. It takes its lead from one of the great speeches of the 20th century - “I had a dream,” by Martin Luther King - and makes its words a plea for acceptance and tolerance for all. The sentiments can’t be faulted. But as a device, the way the film places significance on every word gets in the way of truly hearing the message. We’re being lectured at. What could have been a discussion with the viewer becomes an aural polemic. And at the end, I’m also suspicious of a child’s rote-learned pledge that sounds like the words in a 1950’s American school book - which is kind of odd when the film shows a banner displaying the words “American mass culture is the war on pluralism.”

The final two films look at the role of love and compassion inside the family. The naturalism of “Shelter” compares the love within one “non-normal” family with the violence inside a “normal” family, while in “Mish Mumkin” (I love the title, I just wish I knew what it meant…) [ed's note: "not possible"] we see the struggle between generations inside a Muslim family living in the suburbs. Both make a plea for understanding and acceptance of difference. With love and respect for his son’s individuality, even the father at the end of “Mish Mumkin” can eat the cake and have it too.

Faith and spirituality need only exist within, and between, human beings. In the end there is no need of an external “other” – I don’t think any of these films would disagree with that.