In this study in IVP Academic's STA series, theologian Richard Goodwin considers how the images that constitute film might be a conduit of God's revelation. By considering works by Stanley Kubrik, Martin Scorsese, Terrence Malick, and more, Goodwin argues that by inviting emotional responses, film images can be a medium of divine revelation.
One of the most theologically interesting aspects of cinema is its apparent capacity to mediate revelation. While the primary agent of revelation is God, without whom revelation cannot happen, certain films seem to elicit claims of revelation more consistently than do other films. This project seeks to elucidate the relationship between revelation and film form, examining the stylistic, especially visual, features of films that commonly occasion purported experiences of revelation. Moreover, this project aims to offer an account of how formal strategies might be said to be conducive to revelatory experience without compromising the essential primacy of God's agency in revelation.
Anker examines 19 popular films, showing how they convey a range of striking perspectives on the human encounter with God. Organized by genre, these selected films present different, surprising ways in which God shows up amid the messy circumstances of life.
Seeing through the Eyes of the Spirit is a Bible-based practical approach to the place of dreams, visions, and revelations in the lives of those who are believers in Christ Jesus. It is obvious that some, even among Christians, have problems believing in dreams and revelations as a critical component of spirituality in the times we now live. However, a close and a thorough examination of the Bible in general and the book of Acts provides the evidence that what God did in the past does happen in our time because God has not changed. Moreover, further evidence in the book of Hebrews notes, Jesus Christ the same yesterday today and forever (Hebrews 13:8). In other words, those who are believers in Christ do experience seeing through visions and receiving revelations from God. Regardless of the skepticism of the modern and postmodern worldview, God moves in supernatural ways to accomplish his plans on earth. Furthermore, everyone who has read Acts and the entire New Testament will also come to the conclusion that the ability to see through dreams and visions did not end with the apostles of the Lamb or the early church fathers. Rather, visions and revelations are a commonplace phenomenon for anyone in any age who has had a genuine encounter with the living Christ. Without a doubt, there are those who claim to have visions and who have made such claims when their experiences have not been proven to be biblically based or an authentic, divine experience from God. However, just because such people misrepresent the gospel does not negate the fact those with visions and revelations in this time truly had such encounters from God. Seeing through the Eyes of the Spirit is a signature of my own experiences in many years of the ministry. I trust that the testimony and the teachings from the holy scriptures in this book will inspire future Christian leaders to be more prepared for supernatural encounters from the Lord.
What are we to make of those occasional yet illuminating experiences of God's presence that occur outside both church and Scripture? We may encounter God's revelatory presence as we experience a beautiful sunset, the birth of a child, or a work of art, music, or literature. While theologians have tended to describe such experiences abstractly as mere traces or echoes, those involved often recognize such moments of transcendence as transformative. Here senior theologian Robert Johnston explores how Christians should think theologically about God's wider revelatory presence that is mediated outside the church through creation, conscience, and culture. The book offers a robust, constructive biblical theology of general revelation, rooting its insights in the broader Trinitarian work of the Spirit. Drawing in part from the author's theological engagement with film and the arts, the book helps Christians understand personal moments of experiencing God's transcendence and accounts for revelatory experiences of those outside the believing community. It also shows how God's revelatory presence can impact our interaction with nonbelievers and those of other faiths.
The Dardenne Brothers’ Cinematic Parables examines the work of Belgian filmmakers Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, who have been celebrated for their powerfully affecting social realist films. Though the Dardenne brothers’ films rarely mention religion or God, they have received wide recognition for their moral complexity and spiritual resonance. This book brings the Dardennes’ filmography into consideration with theological aesthetics, Christian ethics, phenomenological film theory, and continental philosophy. The author explores the brothers’ nine major films—beginning with The Promise (1996) and culminating in Young Ahmed (2019)—through the hermeneutics of philosopher Paul Ricoeur. By using Ricoeur’s description of "parable" as a "narrative-metaphor" which generates an existential limit-experience, Joel Mayward crafts an innovative Ricoeurian hermeneutic for making theological interpretations of cinema. Drawing upon resources from three disciplinary spheres—theology, philosophy, and film studies—in a dynamic interweaving approach, Mayward proposes that the Dardennes create postsecular cinematic parables which evoke theological and ethical responses in audiences’ imaginations through the brothers’ distinctive filmmaking style, what is termed "transcendent realism." The book ultimately demonstrates how the Dardenne brothers are truly doing, not merely depicting, theology and ethics through the cinematic form—it presents film as theology, what Mayward refers to as "theocinematics." This is valuable reading for scholars of theology, philosophy, and film studies, as well as film critics and cinephiles interested in the cinema of the Dardenne brothers.
Since the birth of cinema at the end of the nineteenth century religion and film have been entwined. The Jesus-story and other religious narratives were the subject matter of some of the earliest cinema productions and this relationship has continued into the present. A recent proliferation of texts, conferences and courses bear witness to burgeoning academic interest in the relation between religion and film. In this study, Jonathan Brant explores the possibility that even films lacking religious subject matter might have a religious impact upon their viewers, the possibility of revelation through film. The book begins with a reading of Paul Tillich's theology of revelation through culture and continues with a qualitative research project which grounds this theoretical account in the experiences of a group of filmgoers. The empirical research takes place in Latin America where the intellectual puzzle and central research questions that drive the thesis arose and developed. Brant combines theoretical and empirical research in order to provide fresh insights into the way in which film functions and impacts its viewers and also offers an unusual perspective on the strengths and weaknesses of Tillich's theology of revelation, which is seen to focus on the saving and healing power of revelation rather than its communicative content. The grounding of the theory by the empirical data results in an increased appreciation of the sensitivity of Tillich's theology to the uniqueness of each film-to-viewer encounter and the data also suggests a new construal of the revelatory potential of film that is related to the community rather than the individual and to sustained life-practice rather than momentary experience. Brant reasons that Tillich's account is sensitive and compelling precisely because of its phenomenological attentiveness to real life experience, notably Tillich's own experience, of the power of art. However, Brant also suggests that it might be helpful to identify a stronger link than Tillich allows between the subject matter of the artwork, the content of revelation and the effect of revelation.
Captures the multiple voices of Christian theology in a diverse and interconnected world through in-depth studies of representative figures and overviews of key movements Providing an unparalleled overview of the subject, The Modern Theologians provides an indispensable guide to the diverse approaches and perspectives within Christian theology from the early twentieth century to the present. Each chapter is written by a leading scholar and explores the development and trajectory of modern theology while presenting critical accounts of a broad range of relevant topics and representative thinkers. The fourth edition of The Modern Theologians is fully updated to provide readers with a clear picture of the broad spectrum and core concerns of modern Christian theology worldwide. It offers new perspectives on key twentieth-century figures and movements from different geographical and ecclesial contexts. There are expanded sections on theological dialogue with non-Christian traditions, and on Christian theology's engagement with the arts and sciences. A new section explores theological responses to urgent global challenges - such as nationalism, racism, and the environmental crisis. Providing the next generation of theologians with the tools needed to take theological conversations forward, The Modern Theologians: Explores Christian theology's engagement with multiple ways of knowing across diverse approaches and traditions Combines introductions to key modern theologians and coverage of the major movements within contemporary theology Identifies common dynamics found across theologies to enable cross-contextual comparisons Positions individual theologians in geographical regions, trans-local movements, and ecclesial contexts Features new and revised chapters written by experts in particular movements, topics, and individuals Providing in-depth critical evaluation and extensive references to further readings and research, Ford's The Modern Theologians: An Introduction to Christian Theology since 1918, Fourth Edition, remains an ideal textbook for undergraduate and graduate courses in Theology and Religious Studies, such as Introduction to Christian Theology, Systematic Theology, Modern Theology, and Modern Theologians. It is also an invaluable resource for researchers, those involved in various forms of Christian ministry, teachers of religious studies, and general readers engaged in independent study.