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Is this an alarming trend?

V

VERITAS DE VOCE

Guest
So I have heard recently Christian stations shrilling for the flop movie 'Evan Almighty'. Saying it's a great family movie and take the kids to hear about God.

Are Christian radio (and TV) stations struggling so hard to be relevant that they will use ploys like that to be heard? It's much like TBN promoting their 'Golden Moments'... ALL HOLLYWOOD TYPES!!! It's borderline disgusting.

Thoughts?
 
Seems to me that they're probably only talking about Evan because their audience is.

You know...being relevant.

What would YOU consider relevant?
 
VERITAS DE VOCE said:
So I have heard recently Christian stations shrilling for the flop movie 'Evan Almighty'. Saying it's a great family movie and take the kids to hear about God.

Are Christian radio (and TV) stations struggling so hard to be relevant that they will use ploys like that to be heard? It's much like TBN promoting their 'Golden Moments'... ALL HOLLYWOOD TYPES!!! It's borderline disgusting.

Thoughts?
Click to expand...

Actually - I agree with the stations. Evan Almighty is much better (scripturally) that its predecessor Bruce Almighty. I was prepared to dislike it, but this one had none of the objectionable material of the first movie, and added some real spiritual depth instead.
 
We saw both Bruce and Evan. I was prepared to dislike both and ended up liking both. They make good conversation starters for families to talk about God and faith, etc. Hollywood makes so many movies that are hostle towards faith, God, and Christianity, but these two aren't. They may not be perfectly matched with scripture, but my guess is that wasn't the purpose of either movie. All "religious" movies can't be the five hour epic "Jesus of Nazareth". You never know how the Lord can use movies like these.

Remember the Rock Opera from the 1970's "Jesus Christ Superstar". Many Christians were greatly up set by the loud rock music and lyrics that offended "say you are the Christ Mr. wonderful Christ, prove to me that you're no fool, walk across my swimming pool...." There wasn't a resurrection scene. The stage production ended with Jesus dieing on the cross. The writers, etc were not Christians. It wasn't their intention to bring souls to Christ, but God had a different plan. I remember watching the stage production in Portsmouth, NH. When the show ended, the audience left the theatre in total silence, because the crucifixion was so dramatic and moving that most folks were touched. I remember reading in Christian magazines back then that many people were led to Christ or were led to become seekers of Christ due to that Rock Opera. What mankind means for evil, God means for good. The Lord can take lemons and make lemonade out of it.
 
If I recall, Christian media -- broadcast and print -- were intentional parts of the marketing of the film, and compensation in one form another was, I believe, part of that.
 
neutralobserver said:
If I recall, Christian media -- broadcast and print -- were intentional parts of the marketing of the film, and compensation in one form another was, I believe, part of that.
Click to expand...

And that is wrong scripturally, or a bad thing, because?
 
We all have our 'touchy areas'..Individually... I remember I really got 'hot' seeing JC-Superstar leave the ending with Jesus hangin' on the timber.. However, I LOVED "Godspell" as the Resurrection was expressed when he came down from the fence, alive and danced on with the new followers dancing with him... I remembered how we watched the original Omen to see what that was about... It was great discusion with our youth groups in the mid 70's.... ;)
 
An acquaintance who is a lolcal theatre producer brought JC Superstar to the University of Dayton (a Catholic university) a few years ago and added the ressurection..it was subtle but powerful.
 
A fictional film... that uses a biblical motif to tell a modern day parable. The horror!!! This is one time I would see the movie before you complain. Never in the film do they refer back to the Noah account in the bible. IT"S NOT THE BIBLE STORY. Besides this was a story two months ago where the heck has everybody been. There is too much complaining on this board about really assinine things.
 
passafistwastaken said:
There is too much complaining on this board about really assinine things.
Click to expand...

Indeed.

As best I've been able to tell, all but one or two here have the strangest thoughts, jump to the strangest conclusions, and/or are insane in one way or another. I've even recently discovered that what I thought might have been some strange prank (that I never quite understood) by someone on this board and his coworkers might have been real, and legal action might need to be ahead.
 
That's a genius post all in itself.

For the record, I asked for thoughts because I haven't seen it. I couldn't stand 'Bruce' and wouldn't even think to take my kids to it. After reading these posts (outside of ones from left field), I saw it. Bruce, Neutral... kudos. Not bad at all, everyone. I can see the redeeming factor of it all. Nicely done.

Yes, it's difficult to market 'King of Kings' and 'Jesus of Nazareth' to the lost. You know, sometimes it really isn't the 'Greatest Story Ever Told' to someone that knows nothing but what the world says about God. It's nice to see it in a familiar package from time to time when done properly.

HOWEVER, TBN really needs to do something about the Hollywood types getting their own hour-long special because the media leaks they found Jesus. Gary Busey anyone? Point made. :D
 
VERITAS DE VOCE said:
HOWEVER, TBN really needs to do something about the Hollywood types getting their own hour-long special because the media leaks they found Jesus. Gary Busey anyone? Point made. :D
Click to expand...

We all fall. I wish there'd be less of a rush to hype the latest Christian media magnet and say "Look at this person, a professed Christian who's successful and cool!"... but then either forget them when they fall, or bury them as "They must not have really been Christian."

But this will probably go on and on as long as Christian broadcasters too often try to stay hip and relevant to the world. It does make the legitimate, steadier Christians stand out, though.

I'm all for encouraging others by sharing celebrity testimonies, but I refuse to put them up on pedestals. Though not quite as exciting as "Kobe Bryant or Paris Hilton seen carrying Bible," I'd much rather hear about people who leave highly respected, influential, or profitable positions to follow their personal callings from God. I find it challenging to ask "Why would they turn their backs on _____?" or "How could they possibly leave ____ for missions?"
 
The hype of Christian celebrities can be a problem, especially to the celebrity themself. They should approach their work as all of us should, that is in following Colossians 3:23-24 that tells us to do our work unto the Lord and do it to the best of our ablities, because it is the Lord we are serving. We are to have a humble heart and attitude of serving others by what work God has given our hands to do.

Unfortuately anyone who is up front and in the spotlight, even at your local church, be they the praise band, choir, soloists, or even the pastor, etc can get "puffed up" with their status and forget who they are serving and why they are up there up front in the first place. It probably is even easier for this prideful attitude to happen to these national celebrities. It must be very difficult to have a humble attitude when everyone is practically bowing at your feet (the adoration that celebrities recieve in our culture today). Imagine the ego trip from being cheered in a theatre or stadum of 70,000 people, or selling millions of records each year, etc. These folks need to be prayed up and really keeping their eyes on the Lord so that ego doesn't pull them astray. The "world's" celebrities are encouraged to let their ego's get puffed up, Christ has a different standard. We should keep these Christian leaders and celebrities lifted up in prayer that they won't get sidetracked by the celebrity status and forget for whom they are serving and why they are upfront.
 
Mike in Del... You're so right... My days in Nashville and in Christian Media were always remembered as keeping an eye on my own ego and making sure that my excitement was because of the great Ministry coming out of the station and the music people.. Not the glamour of it.. As I aged into it, I enjoyed the "Dove Awards" from tv monitors at San Antiono Taco, over dressin' up and hopin' to be scene at the 'show'...
:)
 
Call me lost but I loved Bruce! No, Morgan Freeman was not a fundamentalist characacture of God (who I would imagine would have yelled and screamed at the hapless couple to stop fornicating a get a government license RIGHT NOW!). In fact, Bruce is an alltime favorite. I figured Evan to be a cheap attempt at a sequel but when it hits DVD I'll check it out for sure.
 
Evan Allmighty

I do think God has a sense of humor...

Evan Allmighty was a clean movie. I didn't see anything questionable in it.
 
I thought even the movie "Saved!" had a Christian message at the core of it. It showed how some can get so caught up in appearances and (for lack of a better term) being a "professional Christian."

My favorite quote was when one character throws the Bible at another, who then picks it up and says "This is not a weapon!"
 
MarkLaRoi said:
So at what point do we stop revering God and being bothered that someone, ANYone, makes Him and His word into humor?
Click to expand...

When a movie comes out that openly attacks God. If anything Bruce and Evan Almighty portrays a God that is loving and powerful and at the end forces the main character to realize he cannot do it alone, and that God get us out of our comfort zones. Where do I draw the line? Asking questions about God even in a humorous context can be very good.
 
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