Then I thought I could enjoy the film for the images, but, you know, the religious images on display in these Austrian churches are grotesque! Church architecture? The little bit shown is incredibly antiseptic.
In a way, the film slides the viewer into the position of a confessor1, albeit without any preparation, to evaluate where these people are in their faith journey.
Praying aloud, alone, can be a challenge for Catholics. When the subjects were silent, listening and not merely working out what to say next, those were the moments of possibility, when God could break through to them.
I tried to make sense of their prayers ... and soon, in revulsion, I found myself praying to God that
I don't sound this way! Luke 18:11
Yes, more than a few intentions caused me to cringe. Undoubtedly, Jesus weiß alles, but it still seems improper to remind Him of the private detective you hired to follow your unfaithful spouse or to threaten Him with your access to poison for the purpose of getting even.
One lady seemed to be reading her prayer from a cue card. It may still have been her personal prayer, composed and recorded beforehand, to facilitate shooting her scene. Nevertheless, her darting eyes were a distraction, whenever I managed to glance up from the subtitles.
Nary a prayer book or a Bible as an aid to prayer. Statues and the Sacrament of the Altar served. ( And rosaries 2 ) That's bold.
So, with the perspective of a spiritual director, I first struggled to decide whether the subjects' relationship to God was genuine or imagined. I took their interpersonal relationships as an indicator ... and none of those featured2 seemed supernaturally warm or loving. 1 John 4:7-8.
Non-Catholics could very easily think this film discredits Catholic prayer and spirituality in ways not unlike the film Jesus Camp discredits someone like Ted Haggard ... oh, wait ... well, you know what I mean. One reviewer remarked at the convenience of the huge, empty European churches, so conducive to filming.
Most of the film is forgettable but tiny bits are provocative.
1 No review I saw detected the possibility of such a classic point of view.
2 The Hail Mary in Various Languages - University of Dayton.
3 The circumstances of the Catholic married to a Muslim reminded me that my aunt married a doctor from Turkey. We called him "Yavuz" but I can't say whether this was his real name. She brought several Turkish souvenirs to us but the most memorable one from my childhood, long before I knew anything of its significance, was a photo album embossed in copper with an image of Hagia Sophia.
Film reviews:
Yes, more than a few intentions caused me to cringe. Undoubtedly, Jesus weiß alles, but it still seems improper to remind Him of the private detective you hired to follow your unfaithful spouse or to threaten Him with your access to poison for the purpose of getting even.
One lady seemed to be reading her prayer from a cue card. It may still have been her personal prayer, composed and recorded beforehand, to facilitate shooting her scene. Nevertheless, her darting eyes were a distraction, whenever I managed to glance up from the subtitles.
Nary a prayer book or a Bible as an aid to prayer. Statues and the Sacrament of the Altar served. ( And rosaries 2 ) That's bold.
So, with the perspective of a spiritual director, I first struggled to decide whether the subjects' relationship to God was genuine or imagined. I took their interpersonal relationships as an indicator ... and none of those featured2 seemed supernaturally warm or loving. 1 John 4:7-8.
Non-Catholics could very easily think this film discredits Catholic prayer and spirituality in ways not unlike the film Jesus Camp discredits someone like Ted Haggard ... oh, wait ... well, you know what I mean. One reviewer remarked at the convenience of the huge, empty European churches, so conducive to filming.
Most of the film is forgettable but tiny bits are provocative.
1 No review I saw detected the possibility of such a classic point of view.
2 The Hail Mary in Various Languages - University of Dayton.
3 The circumstances of the Catholic married to a Muslim reminded me that my aunt married a doctor from Turkey. We called him "Yavuz" but I can't say whether this was his real name. She brought several Turkish souvenirs to us but the most memorable one from my childhood, long before I knew anything of its significance, was a photo album embossed in copper with an image of Hagia Sophia.
Film reviews:
- Village Voice, Halter gets it:
Seidl has expressed the goal of depicting "the average believer," but such a creature today rarely steps within spitting distance of a Eucharist, ...
The uncommonly obsessed genuflectors showcased in Jesus, You Know come off as desperate for a more fulfilling human connection—something, perhaps, which better approximates their idealized relationship with God, that ever ready listener, who is as silently supportive as a divine lapdog, and cheaper than therapy. - "'Jesus, You Know': Faithful or fanciful?" - Boston Globe, 5/6/05
- TV Guide
- Movie Martyr.com
2 comments:
Are you watching the Pope in Austria this weekend? I am DVRing it to catch bits and pieces but in regards to the architecture...
Yesterday I saw an altar with weird spike looking things on it. Or at least it looked like spikes. Now he is in Mariazell Bascilica and it looks beautiful but the new altar there is just a big concrete rectangle. Its horrible! Can't they leave beauty alone?
I wasn't watching him but with your comment, I took a panoramic tour of Mariazell Basilika and I see what you mean about the high altar - it doesn't blend.
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