Hey, everyone. ”Moriarty” here. I’m going to be writing about this one and DELIVER US FROM EVIL together this weekend, but I’m excited to hear what Capone has to say about one of the more intense things I’ve seen in a theater all year:
Jesus Camp Hey, my lambs. Pastor Capone in Chicago here, with the most terrifying horror movie I’ve seen all year, in many years. It's not a film with otherworldly monsters or teens getting hacked to death or special effects or the walking undead. Oh, no. The movie that scared the pellets out of my anus and stole the breath out from my lungs the most in 2006 is a little documentary called Jesus Camp, an unexpected sucker-punch to the heart and soul of everything you believe about faith, children, and those we put our faith in to teach our children. I know and expect I’ll get a lot of talkback and e-mails on this film, and I’m not going to hide from it. You cannot keep emotions out of discussion of a film like this; it’s just not humanly possible. I pride myself on not being a “faith hater,” as some refer to those who will bash something with religious under- or overtones. There are simply too many people I know and who are close to me to take these things very serious, and I would not disrespect their beliefs. But the practices Jesus Camp reveals are deplorable and unforgivable. I won’t even knock the intentions of Evangelical ministries in general and Pastor Becky Fischer in particular. But her methods in training and fortifying young children (mostly preteens) in the ways and teachings of God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and George W. Bush is tantamount to child abuse and brainwashing. And you get to watch it unfold right before your horrified eyes. Co-directors Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady (who made the excellent The Boys of Baraka last year) were granted unlimited access to the practices of Pastor Becky both in her day-to-day work in the Midwest and as head of the (I’m not making this up) “Kids on Fire” summer camp in Devil’s Lake, North Dakota. Her clearly stated objective is to take back America for Christ by creating Christian soldiers in God’s Army out of young children. Her argument is that “our enemies’” children are being taught at a young age to shoot guns, build bombs, and commit acts of terror in the name of Allah. According to her, we as Americans need to combat this however we can by bringing God back to America and its government (the founding fathers be damned, I guess). The camp features confessions, speaking in tongues, writhing on the floor, as well as daylong lessons on abortion and how to combat the doctors that perform them, creationism, and missionary work. And that’s just the beginning. Nearly every lesson/performance ends with dozens of kids crying their eyes out, simply feeling the spirit of God in them. I’m not talking a tear or two here and there; I’m talking about outright bawling. But the lessons don’t stop at the camp. Jesus Camp also shows examples of some of the kids’ lives before going to camp. Pastor Becky even attacks Harry Potter with as much ferocity as she does when teaching the kids about the evils of Satan. According to the film, 75 percent of home-schooled kids are Evangelical Christians, and it shouldn’t surprise you that they are all being taught to dismiss evolution. What you may not be aware of is that they are also being taught that global warming doesn’t exist because scientists can’t prove it (these would be the same scientists who believe in evolution, I assume). If you think some of these teachings are politically motivated, you’d be one sharp tack. Perhaps the most soul-crushing moment in Jesus Camp occurs at the camp when the organizers bring out a life-size cardboard cutout of the George W. Bush. The kids don’t just look at it; they are told to worship it; they cower up next to it and lay hands on it. It is at this moment that you realize that many of these people don’t look at Bush as simply a political leader; he is there absolute religious leader, ordained from above to lead Americans into the Promised Land. The sole voice of dissention in the film belongs to Christian talk show host Mike Papantonio, who is deeply disturbed at the direction the country is going toward a more faith-based government. His exhausting interview with Pastor Becky must be heard to be believed. The other central figure in the film is a boy named Levi, who wears his hair in a rattail style and happens to deliver a mean sermon when asked. He’s a good kid whose beliefs are strong and uncompromised, and his mind and thoughts are still being formed, and he is being force fed doctrine day and night without any chance at making up his mind for himself about his path in life. It will break your heart to watch him. What struck me as odd about Jesus Camp is the use of ultra-spooky music couple with insert shots of tilted scarecrows poised ominously in the barren fields of North Dakota. Clearly the filmmakers are attempting (none to subtly) to demonize some of what we’re seeing, as if we need the extra encouragement to think that. So much of what is being taught in the camp and being preached by Pastor Becky and those like her boils down to “Us vs. Them,” whether the “Them” be Muslims or just those who don’t buy what they’re selling. In attempting to sell their brand of love and joy, they encourage hatred, prejudice, paranoia, and outright fear. Filmmakers Ewing and Grady have a ball of fire in their hands, or maybe it’s a ticking time bomb (choose your metaphor). Either way, this is dangerous filmmaking, and we need to see more of it. A double feature of this film and the 2005 documentary With God on Our Side should put the fear of God in you, folks. If they don’t, nothing will. Jesus save us. Amen. Capone
