Adult Faith Formation - Faith & Film Series

Faith and Film
2011-2012
            Join us for a casual evening of movie watching and discussion.  This series includes six films that address themes of faith, morality, and spiritual meaning.  All films will be shown at 7:00 p.m. at the Glastonbury Abbey Center, 20 Hull St. Hingham, MA.  Come to one, or come to all.  Facilitated by Ann Diamond.  Donations are gratefully accepted for the support of the Abbey Center.

Tuesday, October 11
Of Gods and Men (2010, 123 minutes, French with English subtitles)
In 1996 a small group of French Cistercian monks were kidnapped from their monastery near Tibhirine, Algeria and executed by Islamist terrorists.  This film dramatizes the story of these monks who chose to remain among their Muslim neighbors despite rising threats of violence.  For years they provided the villagers with medical care, shared a community garden and enjoyed a relationship of mutual respect.  Individually, and as a community, the monks honor their calling to bear witness to Christ’s message of peace and brotherhood

Tuesday, November 29
Wide Awake (1998, 88 minutes)
When 10 year old Josh’s beloved grandfather dies, the precocious Catholic school 5th grader is full of questions about life and death.  He sets out on a personal mission to find God.  This warm and entertaining story (featuring Rosie O’Donnell as the baseball loving nun who teaches his religion class) sensitively addresses death, religious doubt, and finding personal faith.  It also challenges adults to think about their own faith and how they might answer the questions of a child like Josh. Directed by M. Night Shyamalan. 

Tuesday, January 24
Arranged (2007, 90 minutes)
Two young women from very conservative religious traditions, Rochel, an Orthodox Jew, and Nashira, a Syrian-born Muslim meet as new teachers at a school in Brooklyn.  Both outsiders to mainstream culture, they become friends and share their frustrations with the arranged marriages they are expected to make.  Both women struggle to follow a tradition that defines their identity, and to make their own authentic choices.  Based in part on a true story, this film portrays issues of religious identity, tradition, and interfaith understanding. 

Tuesday, March 13
Whale Rider (2002, 101 minutes)
Pai is the only direct descendent in the lineage of chiefs of the Whangara Maori people in New Zealand.  But despite her skills in tribal traditions, her grandfather will not anoint her chief because she is not a male.  Pai trusts that she is called to lead her people, and undertakes a spiritual quest to prove it.  This film addresses themes of changing tradition and female leadership, as well as the mystical relationship with the natural world affirmed by many ancient peoples. 

Tuesday, April 17
As It Is in Heaven (2004, 2 hrs. 10 min. Swedish with English subtitles)
After suffering a heart attack, a renowned conductor, Daniel Dareus, returns to his childhood village and agrees to direct the local church choir.  He not only transforms the choir, but his presence transforms the community.  As choir members experience newfound potential, joy, and inner strength, Daniel is misunderstood and maligned by those threatened by these changes.  Themes of grace, forgiveness, transformation, and community are woven through this beautiful film that was nominated for Best Foreign Film at the 2005 Academy Awards.

Tuesday, May 22
Tender Mercies (1983, 100 minutes)
In this story, Mac Sledge (Robert Duvall) is a recovering alcoholic country singer who turns his life around through his relationship with a young widow and her son in rural Texas.  The film encompasses several different themes, including the importance of love and family, the possibility of forgiveness and healing, and the concept of redemption through Mac Sledge's conversion to Christianity.