OF GODS AND MEN

Chapter discussions and book or film reviews of Orthodox Christian and secular books that you have read and found helpful. All Forum Rules apply.
Pravoslavnik
Sr Member
Posts: 518
Joined: Wed 17 January 2007 9:34 pm
Jurisdiction: ROCOR- A

OF GODS AND MEN

Post by Pravoslavnik »

I watched a DVD of the 2010 French movie Of Gods and Men this weekend. It is quite good, and a rare positive portrayal of monastic Christianity in the West. In fact, the film won the Grand Prix Award at the Cannes Film Festival, but was shunned by the Babylonian American Academy Awards this year. It is based on the true story of nine French Trappist monks who operated a free medical clinic at their monastery in Algeria during the Algerian Civil War of the late 1990s. We would, of course, call them heterodox, but I must say--hopefully without provoking a howl of execration-- that this is an important film about Christianity vis-a-vis Islam.

Code: Select all

  The monks are very charitable to the local Muslim citizens in their neighboring community, and are well-respected and appreciated by the local villagers.  However, all are engulfed in a worsening reign of terror as a faction of militant Islamists begin to engage in a civil war with the Algerian government.  Throats are slit in the community, and the tension is palpable as the monks deliberate about whether to flee to France or remain in their monastery to face almost certain death.

    One of the most thought-provoking things about the film was the deliberate response of these monastic brothers to militant Islam [i]in their own community[/i].  It was not an academic, theological debate for them, but an urgent, daily matter of life-and-death.  The film ended with a commentary from the writings of the monastery's abbot on the subject of Islam, including his expression of love for the local Algerian villagers.  It reminded me in some ways of the history of the Desert Fathers at Scetis who were massacred by Saracens after the fall of Egypt to Islam.
jgress
Moderator
Posts: 1382
Joined: Thu 4 March 2010 1:06 pm
Jurisdiction: GOC/HOTCA

Re: OF GODS AND MEN

Post by jgress »

I never saw that film, but I know the story and it's very moving. I don't see how being moved by this film would entail an acceptance of Roman Catholic dogma. Recognizing our dogmatic differences does not require us to believe all RC are completely depraved.

User avatar
Cyprian
Sr Member
Posts: 684
Joined: Sat 12 November 2005 6:40 am
Faith: Orthodox Christianity
Jurisdiction: GOC
Location: near Seattle, WA
Contact:

Re: OF GODS AND MEN

Post by Cyprian »

Forgive my skepticism, but this film probably falls into the realm of yet another Western propaganda piece, designed to plant a permanent fixture in people's minds associating Islam with terrorism and brutal violence. The truth of the matter is, many of the well-publicized terrorist episodes around the world are schemes hatched up by various intelligence agencies, often working in concert, which have been infiltrated by Zionist double-agents, whose ultimate loyalty rests with the agency whose motto is said to be: "By way of deception, thou shalt make war." Of course Arabs are useful as patsies, to cover their tracks.

jgress
Moderator
Posts: 1382
Joined: Thu 4 March 2010 1:06 pm
Jurisdiction: GOC/HOTCA

Re: OF GODS AND MEN

Post by jgress »

So there is no actual correlation between Islam and violence? Were the New Martyrs of the Turkish Yoke also the victims of Zionist agents?

Pravoslavnik
Sr Member
Posts: 518
Joined: Wed 17 January 2007 9:34 pm
Jurisdiction: ROCOR- A

Re: OF GODS AND MEN

Post by Pravoslavnik »

Cyprian,

Code: Select all

  Islam has [i]always[/i] been violent, since its inception.  Violence and the conquest of the dar-al-harb (the territory of the infidels) is integral to Islamic theology and praxis, based on many specific teachings of the [i]Koran[/i] and the [i]Sunna[/i].   Perhaps you should do some  reading on this subject, beginning with historian Bat Ye'or's book [i]The Decline of Eastern Christianity Under Islam [/i](Farleigh Dickinson Press.)

 The real "Western propaganda" is the modern secular notion that all religions are equally bad-- as if the teachings and acts of Mohamed and his followers were like unto those of our Lord Jesus Christ!  

 This film certainly gives the lie to our distorted secular concepts of religious history, which is one reason that it was ignored in America.  It has nothing to do with Zionism or anti-Semitism, as you imagine.   Rather, it is about men who strove to live a Christian life-- loving God, and loving their neighbor-- in a world overwhelmed by evil.
User avatar
Cyprian
Sr Member
Posts: 684
Joined: Sat 12 November 2005 6:40 am
Faith: Orthodox Christianity
Jurisdiction: GOC
Location: near Seattle, WA
Contact:

Re: OF GODS AND MEN

Post by Cyprian »

Jonathan,

Do understand, that I am not unaware of the history of violence perpetrated against Holy Church by the Mohammedans. Neither am I unaware of the history of violence against the Church perpetrated by Jews, Papists/Uniates, Protestants, and other groups as well. Sometimes these enemies ally with one another in their plots and schemes against the Church. The Church has many enemies who seek her demise. Never will you hear me call Islam a "religion of peace," like our former president mindlessly stated.

But it seems that both you and Pravoslavnik misunderstood my point.

The media has completely fallen into the hands of the Zionists. There is really no sense in attempting to deny it, or pretend it is anything otherwise. As you well know, the Zionists are enemies of Holy Church, and they seek to undermine her every chance they get. The stranglehold they exert over the media is one of the key weapons in their arsenal by which they seek to undermine the Christian Church, and to subjugate all the people of the earth to their diabolical schemes, as outlined in the Protocols.

Since the Zionist media mavens are enemies of the truth, and their father is the father of lies, naturally they do the will of their father, seeking to mislead the unsuspecting masses by means of their crafty propaganda campaign. This involves telling outright lies in the media at large, whether it be via the press, television, radio, film business, and now more recently, the Internet.

This cabal is fully aware that they cannot tell nothing but lies 100% of the time, for people would quickly discover their ruse, and revolt. So, like their father the devil, they mingle in some truth here and there to lace the cup of poison with honey, so to speak.

Their diabolical devices can be summed up as the six D's:

Deceive, Distract, Deflect and Defer, Discriminate and Deny.

Deceive: They can simply report outright lies, which they often shamelessly do.

Distract and Deflect: They can completely ignore or at least marginalize an important issue or event that the public should be made aware of, and instead substitute some trivial news matter about some celebrity.

Defer: They can choose to not report on certain matters of vital importance in a timely matter, when it suits their advantage, but only inform the public after it is too late, when the information is no longer useful.

Discriminate and Deny: Now we come to the one that applies to my original post. A favorite tactic of the media, since they have to report some truth at least some of the time, is to be discriminatory in their reporting, denying the public the full truth, but only reporting selectively what works to further their own selfish aims. Even if there is some basis in truth to what they put in their movies or on their television reports, they can still manipulate public sentiment by simply denying us ALL the facts, and simply telling only one portion of the story.

Does any fair-minded person think it would be acceptable to only report black crime every night on the evening news? Even if the crimes that were being reported actually took place, and therefore it could be argued were accurately reported on, would it be fair to single out black crime only, to the exclusion of reporting on any white crime taking place? Of course not.

How often in the media do we hear phrases such as "radical Islam," "Islamic jihadists," "fundamentalist Islam," "Islamic terrorists," "fanatical Islam," "Moslem terrorists," "Arab terrorists," etc.

When is the last time you heard descriptions in the media such as: "fundamentalist Judaism," "radical Jews," "Jewish terrorists," "fanatical Jews," etc.?

Quite the contrary, you are more inclined to hear things such as: "Jewish persecution," "anti-Semitism," "Judeo-Christian values," and other such tripe from paid prostitutes in the media.

So let me make my point exactly clear. You are never going to get an accurate understanding of anything by turning to the so-called "mainstream media" or the film industry to learn your lessons of history. A corrupt tree cannot bring forth good fruit.

If one wishes to learn something useful about the violent nature of Islam, he can read the lives of the saints. One need not watch some French film. In reading the lives of the saints, and the Holy Scriptures, one will also get a balanced view regarding the historical nature of Jewish violence waged against the Church, as well as Pagan, Papist, Protestant, etc.

We will never get that balanced view from the film industry or the nightly news. So its value is extremely limited, and also very dangerous.

Cyprian

User avatar
Cyprian
Sr Member
Posts: 684
Joined: Sat 12 November 2005 6:40 am
Faith: Orthodox Christianity
Jurisdiction: GOC
Location: near Seattle, WA
Contact:

Re: OF GODS AND MEN

Post by Cyprian »

Islam has always been violent, since its inception.

Aye, indeed. So has Judaism. Why don't you suggest a long-list of award-winning films depicting the long struggle of Jewish violence waged against the Church, and not just against the Church, but against all men, as Holy Scripture and the Church fathers relate that the Jews are the common enemies of the world.

Perhaps you should do some reading on this subject, beginning with historian Bat Ye'or's book The Decline of Eastern Christianity Under Islam (Farleigh Dickinson Press.)

Please forgive me, but I think I'll pass on another one of your recommendations to read some Jewish nonsense. I think I will stick with the holy fathers as my guide, and not some enemy of the Church.

Since you seem to exhibit a propensity for recommending Jewish authors on this forum, and not Orthodox writers, allow me, if you please, to offer you a recommendation in return. If you really feel the need to spend your time immersed in works of Jewish authorship, may I suggest you read a Jewish work called the Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion. You can jump to Protocol no. 12 if you'd like, where it states:

"3. We shall deal with the press in the following way: what is the part played by the press to-day? It serves to excite and inflame those passions which are needed for our purpose or else it serves selfish ends of parties."

That is precisely what is taking place in our Zionist controlled-media today. The Zionists seek to excite and inflame passions in the West against Islamic and Arabic peoples in order to instigate a holy war or neo-crusade.

If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men. (Romans 12:18)

Post Reply