Filed under: Inspirations
Luci Shaw’s friendship, generosity, and writing has been an inspiration to Anne and me. Luci was the one who persuaded Madeleine L’Engle to write Walking on Water: Reflections on Art and Faith, a book that transformed my understanding of creativity and Christianity. And Luci herself has written several volumes of poetry, as well as The Crime of Living Cautiously, an inspiring book about living courageously, and a new memoir called Breath for the Bones.
I did a lot of work on both Through a Screen Darkly and Auralia’s Colors at Luci’s home beside Lake Whatcom. What an inspiring, spirit-filled place. It’s good to see that The Washington Times (in the other Washington) saw fit to interview her about her new book.
When I was a kid, I always liked the story about The Little Engine that Could.
I’m reminded of that as I occasionally find mentions of Through a Screen Darkly on blogs. It just keeps chugging along, finding new readers everywhere. It’s nice to see folks like Brian Rice continuing to discover it and share it with others. I’m glad it’s proving useful.
This week, the book will be introduced to yet another audience: Radio listeners in Australia.
I spoke via telephone with Sheridan Voysey, host of the Australian radio show Open House. Voysey’s a true professional, who reads his notes before he sits down at the microphone. It wasn’t a live broadcast — it was recorded for a podcast and later radio broadcasts. But we had a delightful conversation about meaningful movies, the power and purpose of art, and the challenges of being a Christian in the cineplex.
Our conversation will be broadcast on radio stations all over Australia.
I immediately became a big fan of Sheridan and his approach to thoughtful radio conversation. When I turn on Christian radio, almost 75% of the voices I hear are complaining about how corrupt the world has become, and how we have got to stop the homosexuals before they take over the world. (Seriously… almost half of my Christian-radio interviews about my work have been preceded by a report or a call-in rant-session about homosexuality. It’s rather embarrassing… especially since these programs are broadcast in the name of one who said he did not come into the world to condemn the world.)
Sheridan’s goal, by contrast, is to provoke thoughtful dialogue between Christians… and also between Christians and their non-Christian neighbors. There was a quality of grace and peace and warmth in Sheridan’s manner that I greatly appreciated, and that I’ve only experienced on only a few other programs.
Filed under: Discussion
A fine fellow named Karl Weston Magnuson has gone and started a Through a Screen Darkly Facebook group!
Thanks, Karl!
Filed under: Reviewers on "Through a Screen Darkly"
Notes on Through a Screen Darkly in a Foursquare Church publication:
Overstreet must go far beyond the obvious and the traditional to show how spiritual issues are raised or that God can be seen in some of Hollywood’s most unlikely films. And he contends that we can learn from the good in movies as well as the bad. … Though some readers will find Overstreet’s views controversial, others will find it rich fodder for discussion of relevant topics faced in the world today.
Letters like this make my day. I hoped that the book would inspire people to meet together, watch great films, and discuss them. And it’s happening. I continue to hear from people who are discovering the book and starting their own discussion groups. Here’s one that came today:
… [M]y dad purchased your book for me and I read it over the summer while I was working as a counselor at a Christian camp. I cannot remember being so enamored of a book and eager to read since the first time I picked up and started the Tolkien books in middle school.
I am now back at school … and have started a small group with about seven close friends. I have never led a small group before, much less one in which I am attempting to incorporate reading out of the meeting time and discussion over the reading in our meeting time plus trying to watch at least one of your most discussed movies per chapter and discussing it as well. For our first meeting i handed out your book to all the group members and then we watched The Story of the Weeping Camel.
…
I just wanted to tell you all of this because your book has greatly influenced me and encouraged me as a Christian who really enjoys movies and (until recently) hated to feel like I had to condemn movies because of “bad” things in them.
Along similar lines, a blogger named Stephanie is exploring new territory “through a screen darkly” too….
We are reading [Through a Screen Darkly] AND watching a film a week to discuss on Sunday morning. This past week we watched a film called Don’t Come Knocking …. I was not real keen on watching this movie. I dislike heavy drama. It does not entertain me much. But I enjoyed the film much more than I would have thought especially after discussing it with Edward once it was over. And my estimation of the film grew even more after sharing thoughts with the class on Sunday morning. We all agreed that had we seen it in the movie theatre we would have soon forgotten it and probably not have recommended it to friends. But by the end of the hour of discussion we were all talking about seeing it again because it was so rich and deep. haha.
I must admit that the book, Through a Screen Darkly, would never had been my choice for the class either but Edward was enthusiastic at a time when I had no energy to suggest anything else. So I find myself reading a book I would never have picked up AND seeing movies I would not have choose to see either. So I guess this is where I admit that my life is richer for it and I am happy for the opportunity to step out of my little box. I know Edward is smirking as he reads this. (Quit it!)
Filed under: Endorsements
This just in:
For years many evangelical Christians have written about movies primarily as weapons in a culture war. Thank God for Jeffrey Overstreet, who writes about film as an art form. Through a Screen Darkly is beautifully written, and Overstreet’s love of film shines through on every page. My “Theology and Popular Culture” students love this book, which stimulates deep discussions and about film and faith. I also highly recommended this book to youth workers struggling to articulate a consistent theology of pop culture.
- Steve Rabey
Adjunct faculty, Fuller Theological Seminary
Editor, YouthWorker Journal
Filed under: Uncategorized
In case you missed it…
Mark Moring, editor of ChristianityTodayMovies.com, contributed a column called “Jesus at the Movies” in the Summer 2007 issue of Leadership magazine.
On the same page, under the heading Books on Outreach with Movies, I was delighted and honored to find Through a Screen Darkly: Looking Closer at Beauty, Truth and Evil in the Movies listed at the top of the heap.
Thanks, Leadership! Thanks, Mark!
Filed under: interviews
Jason Panella interviewed me for a website called culture.ish.
Part One of our conversation was posted this week. Bookmark it so you can go back later, for Part Two.
Here are Panella’s questions:
- When did you first realize the importance of taking a critical/thoughtful approach to viewing films?
- How did you end up as a film reviewer? What is the role of the film critic?
Those are challenging pitches to hit, but I took a couple of good swings. You be the judge as to whether I scored any points.
Filed under: Reviewers on "Through a Screen Darkly"
A big “Thank you!” to Steven Greydanus, one of my favorite film critics, for being so kind as to highlight Through a Screen Darkly in his latest batch of answers to inquiries at his Decent Films website.
When someone asked for a recommendation of a book about Christian perspectives on film, Greydanus answered:
Jeff doesn’t just tell you whether or not he liked a movie. He offers you a seat next to him as the movie unfolds and he points out and reflects on the things that thrill, fascinate or trouble him. It’s an invitation not only to look more closely, but to ponder more deeply and appreciate more fully.
There are other books out there, such as Robert K. Johnston’s Reel Spirituality: Theology and Film in Dialogue and Brian Godawa’s Hollywood Worldviews: Watching Films With Wisdom & Discernment, but Through a Screen Darkly is the one I’d, um, recommend.
Thanks, Steven!
Filed under: Bloggers on "Through a Screen Darkly"
Matt Page has a blog where he tracks the development, release, and reception of movies that are in some way based on the Bible.
This last week, he came down with a cold, and he suffered through it by reading Through a Screen Darkly. He’s posted a few comments…
