Movies Christians Love to Hate

Christians have been in an uproar about a few controversial movies. It started with the Harry Potter series. Poor Harry was under fire no matter how good his heart seemed to be, just because he was a wizard. Christians put Harry and his fellow actors/actresses on the hot seat, along with the famous genius of an author, J. K. Rowling, who wrote the corresponding books that preceded the movies.

Next came The Golden Compass. I've heard many, many complaints about this movie from people in public, in the magazines and newspapers, and from the television interviews. Many Christians hate this movie. As a Christian myself, I must admit first and foremost, that I was appalled when I heard that an atheist had come up with a movie that was going to be wildly popular and a threat to Christians world-wide.

Well, a movie store owner I met actually admitted her personal uncertainty as to whether or not to even carry The Golden Compass once it was to be released to video stores. I could see why she would feel unsure about something that could possibly cause her to lose valuable membership from those many who would oppose the movie viciously. However, I noticed that she did finally choose to accept the movie as one of her stock. She didn't order many copies, but she did place them on the shelf. As a business owner, it takes courage and determination to go against something you fear might could harm your public image.

I might come under fire from Christian friends, family, and even strangers for my own personal opinion about these movies, the Harry Potter series and the Golden Compass. But, I, too, am entitled to my opinion and feel I have every right to stand up for it. I love my God, and I respect my God. But my opinion is that Christians do tend to carry their convictions too far from time to time. To show hatred against something such as this is to be petty for the sake of being petty. It has nothing to do with Christian values.

Daring to do what I felt must be fair and most UN-hypocritical, I decided to rent the movies to see for myself if they were truly as un-Christian as they were accused. Also daring to go against what would be considered Christian by many, I feel the need to voice my opinion on what I saw. So, what did I see?

I saw talented actors and actresses performing remarkable roles. I saw the genius of the creators of these movies and the thought and creativity that went behind the story lines. What I saw was your typical good versus evil stories. I did not read anything into what I saw that wasn't there. I saw the movies with open eyes and an open mind and imagination. THIS is what I believe was meant for the public. What I believe was not meant is for the movies to be taken out of context and misconstrued to be evil when in fact, they are not.

So, whether or not an atheist is behind the movie is not my concern. Gasp! Yes, I said it. We buy products every day that could be made and sold by atheists, believers in magic and wizards or non-Christians. We do business every day with people from whom we have no right to question as to their religious backgrounds and beliefs. They are in our schools, our towns, our restaurants, our daycare centers, our production of products, and so on. Our bricks for the churchs could be manufactured by atheists. But unless it is brought to light, everyone who is Christian will choose to ignore and overlook this possibility. Should we just shut ourselves into a little corner of the world and not interact because we have no idea who is or isn't a fellow Christian. Even so, all Christians do NOT believe alike. Therefore, the word Christian itself can be controversial.

So, unfortunately, even though I do feel a loyalty to my God, I must wonder why the Christians feel a need to hate these movies and make such a fuss. Does this make me a hypocrite? On the contrary. This makes me someone who is being honest about my own beliefs and opinions. Too often, sadly enough, our Christians decide to judge and point fingers and put themselves in the spotlight for the wrong reasons. What do I believe was the motive? It pains me to say it, but I believe the motive was just that.......to get into the spotlight and to use the movies as a vessel to carry them there.