Bill Maher on Jesus Camp
Maher is surprised and off they go on the subject of religion, extremism, human nature, etc. Standard stuff, loosely related to the film. But Maher’s comfort at hearing Rios, a conservative Christian, decry the subjects of the film is far more sinister than he appreciates. Rios is far more of an activist, and far more powerful, than anyone depicted in Jesus Camp.
Read the whole article: Bill Maher on Jesus Camp by Evan Derkacz ~ September 27, 2006 ~ AlterNet
Note: Bradley Whitford (the actor who played Josh Lyman on “The West Wing” among other things) was a panelist on this Bill Mayer show. Listen for what he said at the end of the clip above! 🙂 ~ Gabi
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Fundamentalist Camp Trains God’s Little Army
The directors of the new documentary ‘Jesus Camp’ discuss the good, the bad, and the disharmony in the evangelical community.
They have billions in media holdings, the ear of the president, and the ability to make or break a Republican candidacy. To Becky Fischer, however, former manager of a custom sign business and current children’s minister, evangelicals are in danger of losing the next generation. Unimpressed by the fact that 43 percent of America’s 100 million evangelicals accepted Christ before the age of 13, Fischer set out to ensure that a new generation of Americans are instilled with a “Christian worldview.” “If we wait until they are teens,” she remarks, “we have waited too late!”
Read the whole article: Fundamentalist Camp Trains God’s Little Army by Evan Derkacz ~ September 28, 2006 ~ AlterNet
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
They Cry, Pray to Bush and Wash out the Devil – Welcome to Jesus Camp
Some critics say that the often raw approach used by the camp’s founder, Pastor Becky Fischer, as she prepares the children for “war”, is too “scary”. Others accuse the documentary makers of distorting Pastor Fischer’s message.
Jesus Camp is “a sarcastic documentary that paints evangelical, fundamentalist, charismatic, and politically concerned Christians as very shrill, warlike and dangerous,” a critic wrote on the Christian website MovieGuide.org.
At one point Pastor Fischer equates the preparation she is giving children with the training of terrorists in the Middle East. “I want to see young people who are as committed to the cause of Jesus Christ as the young people are to the cause of Islam,” she tells the camera. “I want to see them radically laying down their lives for the gospel, as they are over in Pakistan and Israel and Palestine.”
Read the whole article: They Cry, Pray to Bush and Wash out the Devil – Welcome to Jesus Camp by Dan Glaister ~ September 29, 2006 ~ Guardian / UK