As I mentioned yesterday, I am currently healing from an L1 burst fracture, aka broken back. I was only in the hospital for four days, yet the amount of time that I was awake and coherent enough to watch this movie was very short indeed. Caitlin actually brought eight or nine movies for me to watch, but with all the drugs I was on, and the physiotherapy I was working through to get home when I did, I barely had enough time to finish watching Jesus Camp. It was a very interesting documentary to watch in the hospital, and I really hope that I didn't disturb my roommates too much. Mind one guy never said a word to me, another guy barely spoke at all, and the third guy was watching his television with his headphones in most of the time. If anyone was annoyed with the "Hallelujah!" and "Praise Jesus!" that was coming from Toshi, they never told me.
I like to consider myself a religious person. I have a strong belief and testimony in Jesus Christ and his sacrifice for us all. But I also believe in personal agency. We all have the power within us to chose what we believe, and to chose whether that belief is right or wrong. For that reason, I strongly believe in a division between church and state, and I don't believe that people should be forced to believe what I do.
At the beginning of the film, a children's Pastor Becky Fisher is interviewed, and she states that she wants to prepare today's children to be Christian soliders, just like Muslims are training their children for Jihad. That sent a very cold chill through me. Some of these children were eight or nine years old, some as old as twelve, but there were all very vocal and firm in their faith.
I've met religious people all over the spectrum. Baptists, Orthodox, Catholic, Muslim, Jehovah's Witness, the list goes on. Living in various cities across the country will do that. The fact is there are good people wherever you go, and there is also insanely passionate people wherever you go. What was presented in Jesus Camp was the closest thing I could categorize to Christian Extremism, and it was a scary thing to see. What was further frightening is that these kids are going to grow up and be a part of the adult community one day. Teaching people to love one another and bear one another's burdens that they may be light, that's a good thing to teach children. Winding children up in a flurry of passionate faith to the point that they'll believe anything makes me wonder how wars will be fought twenty years from now.
Being a father and a patriarch to my family are responsibilities that I still struggle with. Sometimes I can't believe that I'm a daddy, but it's not a matter of belief. I know I'm a father, and my girls are growing up faster than I want them to. The best I can do is adhere to Proverbs 22:6 - Train up a child the way he should go: and when he is old, he shall not depart from it.
Teaching children at a young age is the best thing you can do, but more than that, you need to show them that you care for them. Seems I'm making things up as I go along when it comes to parenting, but I do try to instill important ideas in my daughter's mind. Saying prayers and brushing teeth are still a bit of a battle, and I'm sure she won't remember the exact words to a certain prayer fifteen years from now, but I hope she'll remember saying prayer with her family, and will continue to do so on her own.
Would I watch Jesus Camp with Erini? I'm not even sure if I could watch it again with Caitlin. Perhaps my memories of the movies are tainted from all the morphine I was taking in the hospital. Stupid drugs.
Tomorrow: Movie Project continues with facing a nightmare. And winning!
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