Documentary film assignment
RELI 1001 Documentary Film Assignment
Assignment Guidelines
The goal of this assignment is to learn a little bit more about one of the religious traditions that we have discussed over the course of this class. The point of the assignment is not to summarize the film. I would ask that you all keep summaries to about one page of your assignment. You can give a brief overview of the film’s plot, but then only go into detail about scenes or events when they figure in your analysis of the film. The bulk of your assignment (the other 2-3) pages should revolve around assessing what kind of information you gained from the documentary. How does this information compare with that in the textbook? How does it compare to the lecture material? How does it relate to your previously-held assumptions about the history and/or nature of the religious tradition in question?
Further, who made the film? How is the religion/religious tradition portrayed? Do you disagree with this portrayal? Is there anything problematic about it? These are just some of the questions that you might consider when you watch these films. Other questions are welcome to figure in your analysis as well, just remember to write a good, critical reflection rather than a simple opinion piece. Explain why you understood the film the way you did. Below is a list of documentaries sub-grouped according to the religion to which they pertain and a few guiding questions that you are welcome but not obliged to use. Choose ONE from the list (not one per tradition) for this assignment:
Judaism
Among the Believers
This documentary traces the history of Judaism throughout the Medieval period, comparing both Christian and Muslim intolerance and how Jewish communities continued to flourish in the face of persecution.
Guiding Questions: How have Jewish culture and practice been informed by and in turn influenced surrounding religions/cultures? Is persecution inevitable for religious minorities? How might you explain the phenomenon of persecuting minorities? Does it have a certain function in terms of consolidating a group identity? How do these identity concerns relate to economic issues and overall stability (where does identity/ideology seem to trump things like profit)?
https://uga.kanopystreaming.com/video/among-believers
Bonjour! Shalom!
A look into the lifestyle of the ultra-orthodox Hasidic community in Quebec, Canada. This film examines the tensions between insular, Hasidic communities and the outside world.
Guiding Questions: One of the scholars interviewed at the synagogue deems the separation between Hasidic Jews and the rest of society a “religious wall.” Is such a wall ethical? Can it exist forever? Do religious communities have to engage with the outside world if they feel that it disrupts their practices? How can one ethically place this “religious wall”? The narrator frequently uses the term “disturbing” to describe the Hasidic presence in Outremont. What does this choice of wording indicate? How much are any of us free to choose our religion, with regard to family, culture, etc.?
Note: Francophone (native French speakers) within Quebec and throughout much of Canada feel like a threatened minority. Consider this in the film’s treatment of the Hasidic community.
https://uga.kanopystreaming.com/video/bonjour-shalom
Christianity
American Jesus
A survey of some contemporary forms of Christianity in America that comments on the relationship between religions and the state in the United States. Watch out for the snakes.
Guiding Questions: What do you notice about demographics in each of these Christian movements? What is the relationship between “church and state” in America today? What’s the bias inherent in this phrase? Are these institutions truly separate? Can they ever be? Was America really founded only for those with a Judeo-Christian religious heritage? Who gets to determine what’s “Christian” and what’s not? How are some of these groups using terms like “religion” versus “relationship” or “spirituality”?
https://uga.kanopystreaming.com/video/american-jesus
The Story of the Storytellers
This portion of the FRONTLINE series From Jesus to Christ explores the historical world of the Gospel writers.
Guiding Questions: How does this film articulate the relationship between Christianity and Judaism? What are the key differences between how each Gospel writer portrays Jesus? How does Roman culture (as well as religion, politics, etc.) influence the development of Christianity, especially within the Gospel of Luke? What is the relationship between “religion” and history? Or Between a religion and its historical context? Is a religion more than its history? Does it matter to you or to practicing Christians or indeed to anyone today if the Gospels are at all “historical”? What does this term mean and why do we value it so highly?
https://uga.kanopystreaming.com/video/frontline-jesus-christ-first-christians-pa-1
Islam
Between Allah & Me (and Everyone Else)
Examining the experiences of various Muslim women in Canada who consider how the Hijab contributes to their sense of spirituality and affects their interactions with their larger communities.
Guiding Questions: How does the Hijab enrich the spiritual lives of the women who wear it? How is it viewed by their families and communities? Should one be forced to consider the perspectives of others in the pursuit of a more spiritually fulfilling lifestyle? How do forces of tradition affect women’s choices to veil or not? What do practices around modesty such as veiling and limiting physical contact between sexes contribute to one’s religious experience (in your opinion and according to the film)? Can religion possibly be just between an individual and their chosen god or does it always involve interaction with others/the outside world?
https://uga.kanopystreaming.com/video/between-allah-me-and-everyone-else
The Hidden Art of Islam
This documentary explores the history of Muslim iconography and the theological tensions that undergird understandings of what makes for proper Muslim art.
Guiding Questions: What is it that makes art religious? How do theological concerns affect the definition of “religious art”? Is there a divide in some contexts between “secular art” and “religious art”? What forces create and sustain this divide? What does this preoccupation with representation indicate about monotheism within Islam? Does this complicate your understanding of what art is and how it functions within religious communities?
Answer
Documentary film assignment
By: Essayicons.com
The film’s plot summary
From the snake catchers’ chapels to the giant of the ex-burbs, “American Jesus” examines Christianity in every facet of American society. Athletes of many kinds—from ranchers and riders to comedic performers, surfing purists, and cage-fighters—all do it for the love of Christ. Aram Garriga goes from his home Barcelona to the politically polarized United States to document this particularly American picture of religion and materialism, politics, and personal emotions. Through the frank and often enlightening testimonies of a diverse cast of individuals, including religious and secular figures, American Jesus paints a vivid picture of a contemporary America searching for consolation and purpose in the modern world. From comedies to heavy metal to the Christian superheroes, Bibleman, the film takes a humorous look at Christian alternative products. Douglas Rushkoff, Andrew Beaujon, and David Dark are the cultural and theological experts who have contributed to this pastiche are meaning.
A Movie-Related Massage
There is a lot to see and experience in this film on weird religious subcultures. On and on, the array continues with just fleeting views of Christian MMA and yoga, as well as the churches of cowboys, skaters, and bikers. On to a lighter look of Christian alternative products, such as Christian heavy metal and the superhero known as “Bibleman.” Douglas Rushkoff, Andrew Beaujon, and David Dark are the cultural and theological experts who have contributed to this pastiche are meaning. For instance, Garriga uses the example of convicted felon turned Baptist church preacher Phil Aguilar and Francis Schaeffer’s son Frank Schaeffer to bring awareness to the Christian faith. Compared to numerous others, Aguilar’s conversion and spiritual celebrity narrative do not seem any more intriguing or worthy of attention (Shane Claiborne, Bob Beeman, Steve Taylor, Craig Gross). Schaeffer’s position is more understandable, warning against the merger of politics and religion. Premillennial Dispensationalists, it seems to me, rule the evangelical movement in the United States and have twisted our foreign policy to meet their perspective of the end of the world. This is what American Jesus seems to be trying to say. Though we are warned to take this danger seriously by the foreboding music, seeing it as the end of the “discovery of Christianity in every aspect of American life” sounds absurd to us. If Garriga had thrown 100 unrelated clips into the hat, he would have plucked out Christian Zionism.
Knowledge from the film and the lecturer material discusses modern versions of Christianity in America and the link between faiths and the United States. This information can be found in both of these sources. According to the cited sources, the Christian religious tradition in the United States has a unique character and history. From snake handlers’ chapels to giant churches in the ex-burbs, sources describe an investigation of Christianity across every facet of American life. Athletes of many kinds—from cowboys and bikers to comedic performers, surfing purists, and cage-fighters—all do it for the love of Christ.
The Film’s Depiction of Religious Customs and Traditions
The film depicts the Christian faith in the United States. Garriga’s video focuses on white male conservatism’s recovery of manhood as a motivation to attend church, which is a valid point. The religious leaders shown in this painterly painting on and off the pulpit include motorcyclists, movie stars, mixed martial artists, and ex-convicts. Christians such as Steve Taylor, for whom lyric video for “I Blew up the Clinic Real Good” has a retro aesthetic that contrasts sharply with the attitude expressed in the song’s lyrics are among the alt-American reactionaries on the rise in music.
After decades of societal upheaval, spiritual conservatism is seen as a reactionary force in this film’s third act. Nonetheless, the diluting of Christianity into a political entity seems like the turning of wine into water. The film has a problem with this.
In conclusion, I believe that Aram Garriga is not doing much with his essential “America Jesus,” even though he claims to be. A snake-handling priest dashes all dreams she had with that Spanish director, changing American Christianity the way Alexis de Tocqueville achieved for the country as a whole.
