Catholic Thought discussion

We went to see a new film “Risen” (2016). It’s a fictitious story based around the period from Christ’s Crucifixion to His Ascension. The main events seem true to the Bible and are told in a rather unforced pace though it’s obvious that most of the story is fabricated including the main character, a Roman tribune Clavius. Pilate appoints him first to carry out the execution of Christ, and then to find Christ’s body that is missing from the tomb. He finds Mary Magdalene, and the eleven Apostles. He joins them later on the road from Jerusalem to Galilee, meets resurrected Jesus. I have not read the many reviews that already showed up though the film was only released in the US yesterday.

But the question remains, "did you enjoy it?"

Andy wrote: "But the question remains, "did you enjoy it?""

Andy I wouldn’t use the word “enjoy” in describing our reaction to the film. There was nothing to enjoy in the crucifixion scene. I was impressed by several scenes and by some roles, including the main character. The joy I saw in the Apostles after Christ’s resurrection was fitting and something we do not get from the Bible descriptions of the same. This film genre probably had many bad films. The good ones we saw from “The Passion of Joan of Arc” (1928) to “The Passion” (2004) were remarkable and inspiring but it’s a different experience than getting a pleasure from the films.

It is the season for religious films Galicius. My favorites where always: The Passion Of The Christ, The Robe and Jesus Of Nazareth,

I had the privileged to see a great new documentary at my parish at the end of last week called "The Original Image of the Divine Mercy: A Documentary." It was about how the original image came to be through St. Faustina Kowalska and the convoluted history.

If you want, I posted on my blog the trailer for the documentary, the original image, and my art analysis of it, especially why it is so superior to all the subsequent versions. You might find this interesting. Here is the link:
http://ashesfromburntroses.blogspot.c...

Happy Divine Mercy Sunday.

Manny wrote: "I had the privileged to see a great new documentary at my parish at the end of last week called "The Original Image of the Divine Mercy: A Documentary." It was about how the original image came to ..."

Thank you Manny for your nice and extensive write-up on St. Faustyna and the story of the painting from her vision. Our two local churches have copies of this painting displayed prominently by the altars, Church of the Holy Spirit and St. Columbanus. Pastor of the latter devoted a homily to Saint Faustyna.

Several years ago we saw another film, a biographical drama “Faustyna” (1994) by Jerzy Lukaszewicz. It may have been on Netflix. It covers the story about the painting also. Here is a link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0122486/r...

Galicius wrote: "Manny wrote: "I had the privileged to see a great new documentary at my parish at the end of last week called "The Original Image of the Divine Mercy: A Documentary." It was about how the original ..."

You're welcome, and I would love to see that movie. Actually I found it on youtube. However unfortunately it doesn't have the English subtitles.

This is not about a film but a EWTN TV show to be broadcast Sunday night, 4/24. If you've perused my personal blog you would know that I consider St. Catherine of Siena to be my personal patron saint, and I try to promote her whenever I can. She's truly a great saint. EWTN is putting on a docu-drama of her life. I have not seen any previews, so i don't know if it's any good, but if you have an interest in her life and works try to watch it. First broadcast is Sunday night at 10 PM. You can read more details at my blog post I've put up:
http://ashesfromburntroses.blogspot.c...

Manny wrote: "This is not about a film but a EWTN TV show to be broadcast Sunday night, 4/24. If you've perused my personal blog you would know that I consider St. Catherine of Siena to be my personal patron sai..."

Thanks for that info Manny. I am going to set my dvr to record the show.

I saw St. Catherine of Siena special. It was OK, but one hour was not nearly enough to present a full picture of her life and work. In fact I wonder if people who had never read her bio got anything out of it. I understood all the references, but I bet it went over most people's heads. And the dramatized monologues were confusing even to me. There was no context provided. I did enjoy seeing the images of Siena. I've never been there.

Anyway, I was thrilled that my dear St. C was honored on TV, but they could have done a better job.

Did anyone else see it? What did you think?

Manny wrote: "I saw St. Catherine of Siena special. It was OK, but one hour was not nearly enough to present a full picture of her life and work. In fact I wonder if people who had never read her bio got anythin..."

Manny, I watched the special. I was a little bored with it. I think I fell asleep during one of the monologues you mentioned. I agree the sites of Siena were enjoyable.

Speaking of movies, I can't wait for the Scorsese's adaptation of the great Catholic novel, Silence. According to these critics talking about it, it sounds like it will come out in November and be an Academy Award contender:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jd62q...

I've read the novel, but I would love to re-read it as part of our group before the movie comes out. Do we do novels here? For those that have never heard of the novel, it was written by the Japanese Catholic author, Shusaku Endo. Some consider it one of the greatest of Japanese novels, and Graham Greene said it was the greatest Catholic novel ever written. You can read about the novel here:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silence...

Manny wrote: "Speaking of movies, I can't wait for the Scorsese's adaptation of the great Catholic novel, Silence. According to these critics talking about it, it sounds like it will come out in November and be ..."

That book sounds fascinating Manny, and I see that Dhanaraj rated it 5 stars as well! I added it to my to-read list.

The movie version of Silence will definitely be in the movie theaters by Christmas:
http://aleteia.org/blogs/deacon-greg-...

This is going to be great. If you haven't read the novel, you should. It's one of the great Catholic novels of all time. The author Shūsaku Endō was a rare Japanese Catholic and the novel is set at the time (17th century) of persecution of Christians in Japan. Some of those Christians survived underground for centuries, and I believe that Endo was a descendant. It's a novel of faith and struggle. Great novel.

I would love to have it as a group read before the movie. It looks like it will be selected for Nov read in the All About Books group.

I just bought it yesterday and would love to read and discuss it with this group as well.

Kristen wrote: "I just bought it yesterday and would love to read and discuss it with this group as well."

Maybe we can have two group reads at the same time. The Building of Christendom book will take a few months to read. If enough people are interested and commited to participating in the "Silence" discussion we can start a new topic for this book. Let me know for sure if you would like to do this.

It is on my TBR list. I would love to read it with this group. Since I did not read the first volume in the Christiandom series because I joined the group after it was well underway, I won't be sharing in that thread. I don't like picking up a series at a mid-point. So, an alternative discussion would be perfect for me.

Manny, Kristen, and Irene, Let me know when you would like to start a discussion on this book. If someone would like to help moderate this book read, that would be great. I will post a new folder for this book once you have decided on a start date. Thanks.

Susan Margaret wrote: "Manny, Kristen, and Irene, Let me know when you would like to start a discussion on this book. If someone would like to help moderate this book read, that would be great. I will post a new folder f..."
Oh fantastic. How about we give everyone time to get a copy. Should we start in a couple of weeks or towards the end of the month? I can try to moderate but I don't know what a moderator does. Do you want me to lay out a weekly plan? It's not a long read but it can be confusing at the beginning. It's a historical novel, so we need to understand the history.

I'm going down to the basement to try to find my copy.

Thank you Manny for volunteering! Moderating is easy. I am outside right now doing some yard work before the daylight slips away. I will send you a message via goodreads in about an hour.

I'm flexible on start time. Thanks everyone for setting this up!!

Kristen wrote: "I'm flexible on start time. Thanks everyone for setting this up!!"

The start date for the book is tentatively set for two weeks from today. Manny will be moderating.

That works for me.

Great. Just give me to the weekend and I'll set up a reading schedule. Looking forward to this.

For those reading the Shusaku Endo novel, Silence, here is a lengthy NY Times article in conversation with Martin Scorsese on the film.

http://mobile.nytimes.com/2016/11/27/...

I guess three interesting notes that came out of the article that caught my eye: (1) Scorsese and the major actors who are catholic worked for basic pay, which means they worked for nearly nothing. They did it out of love. (2) Scorsese had entertained the priesthood as a young man and I think it said he went to a seminary. (3) The movie will be shown at the Vatican prior to being released.

I can't wait for it to come out.

The trailer for Silence came out!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZAc4X...

Happy Thanksgiving all.

Manny wrote: "The trailer for Silence came out!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZAc4X...

Happy Thanksgiving all."

Thank you Manny. Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family and to all in Catholic Thought!

Manny wrote: "The trailer for Silence came out!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZAc4X...

Happy Thanksgiving all."

Thanks for the link Manny. It looks like it will be a good movie. I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving!

Here's the first review of the Silence movie and movie critic Roger Friedman thinks it's heading for Oscars!

http://www.showbiz411.com/2016/12/08/...

Hey, a member (his name is Guy) of the All About Books club here on Goodreads has gotten an early viewing of the Silence movie, and here's what he wrote over in the other club:

"I did screen the film and it is a whopping 2 hour 40 minutes. My fear was that it would be horrible. Too much of an inwardly looking novel to place on screen, not to mention the harshness of it.

Did I mention 2 hours 40? It did not seem like it to me. Scorsese has done a fantastic job with the material.

Andrew Garfield as a missionary priest wrestling with his faith, is done very well. I loved him In Hacksaw Ridge as well. He is proving to be a bit more than Spider-Man.

I really enjoyed it and it is worth the dollars to go and see it. I will tell you they did soften the extreme physical torments and psychological suffering that Endo’s priests endured - as well as the faithful's hard suffering described in the book. It is there yet less brutal, unlike Unbroken that spent all its torturous time on the first half of the book and leaving utterly exhausted by its brutality leaving out the redeeming nature of the back half of the book, Silence gives us the whole story.

Enjoy -"

Oh my gosh, the Gosnell movie is finally here. Tomorrow is opening day in the movie theaters for "Gosnell: The Trial of America's Biggest Serial Killer." It took almost five years to make the movie. It was done with complete hostility from Hollywood and the mainstream media. It was funded by small donations from almost 30,000 people. I'm proud to say I was one of those 30,000. That's why I've been getting email updates every step of the way. For the longest time it didn't look like it would get completed. Tomorrow it's out there!

You can look up the nearest movie theater where it's playing, here:
http://www.gosnellmovie.com/theaters/...

Show the secular world that this movie with its pro-life message has broad appeal by attending.

Manny wrote: "Oh my gosh, the Gosnell movie is finally here. Tomorrow is opening day in the movie theaters for "Gosnell: The Trial of America's Biggest Serial Killer." It took almost five years to make the movie..." Thanks for posting Manny.

I saw the movie today. I thought it was very well done.

I just got back from seeing the movie. It had me in tears for a good deal of the movie. I'm speechless. The acting was good, but really it was the story that was powerful. The actor who played Gosnell was outstanding.

Since I was one of the contributors, I get emails from the producers. Here's what today's said:

"Last night we received a phenomenal report about the whole audience spontaneously starting to pray after a screening in Kansas City, Kansas. People have told us of spending 10 minutes in their car, thinking, after they left the theater."

I was stunned at the end of the movie. I sat in my seat for like five minutes watching the credits go by. Actually I was trying to get my eyes dry to be presentable when I left.

I thought they were all really good. I thought the main woman was very, very good and just how the whole movie was produced...very powerful.....I was sad to see a tweet that Dean Cain was on Fox and Friends and stated he was pro-choice...it was confirmed by other tweets, so it seems to be true...

Yes, I gave a tiny bit too. I am glad they were able to finally get it out...they deserve much credit for their hard work and perseverance...

Susan wrote: "I thought they were all really good. I thought the main woman was very, very good and just how the whole movie was produced...very powerful.....I was sad to see a tweet that Dean Cain was on Fox an..."

He may be trying to salvage his career. There is a movement in Hollywood to black list him.

The movie is rated PG, but I don’t think I would take kids to it. But they did a nice job of limiting the graphic and disgusting parts while getting you a sense of it. Even the photo that was critical at the trial to persuading the jury was not shown, the one of Baby Boy A. At the end during the credits they provided a link where you could see it. I went. I won’t provide the link but the child looked almost several months old. Gosnell actually quipped just before he snipped his neck, “this boy is so big he could walk me to the bus stop.” What absolute evil.

Susan did you go to the link to look at the photo?

Yes. That picture seemed crucial in getting the conviction.

Great news from LifeNews:

“Gosnell” Movie Profiling Serial-Killer Abortionist Breaks Top 10 Nationally Despite Media Blackout”

Despite a media blackout and virtually no coverage outside conservative media circles, the new movie “Gosnell” made the list of top 10 movies across the United States over the weekend. Coming in at the #10 spot, Gosnell came in ahead of other movies with much wider releases — as the film is appearing in just 673 theaters nationwide.

Despite the more limited release, Gosnell outperformed A Simple Favor, The Nun, and the blockbuster film Crazy Rich Asians. Every other movie except for one that appeared higher in the weekend top 10 list was shown to Americans in thousands of theaters. It was also the only movie to gain in audience on Sunday, with over $1.23 million in ticket sales though the weekend. Every other movie saw a Sunday dropoff.

Had Gosnell opened in 2,800 theaters like other movies in the top 10 list it would have finished in 7th place for the weekend — making it more popular per theater than The House With a Clock in Its Walls and Bad Times at the El Royale.

You can read the rest here. https://www.lifenews.com/2018/10/15/g...

I guess I should post this under religious films. Bishop Barron has a new documentary of a pivotal player, Bartolomé de Las Casas. It's free for viewing until March 31st. I just watched it. It's very good.

https://videos.wordonfire.org/lascasa...

I will have to make time for it!

I saw that. It is on my list of things to do by Wednesday.

Saw that in our email. Fighting hubby for computer time these days! But should get it soon.

Thanks for posting this !

Bishop Barron is having another free viewing of another The Pivotal Players: St. Ignatius of Loyola. I think it says only for this weekend. Here:

https://videos.wordonfire.org/stignat...

Manny wrote: "Bishop Barron is having another free viewing of another The Pivotal Players: St. Ignatius of Loyola. I think it says only for this weekend. Here:

https://videos.wordonfire.org/stignat..."

I just watched the Pivotal Player video on St. Ignatius. I was very moved by it. For some reason I never cared the the Jesuits and I always thought the Spiritual Exercises were kind of psychotherapy than devotional, but I think I've got a greater appreciation of Ignatius and his exercises. The life of St. Ignatius was quite moving.

I’m reading “The Ignatian Adventure” and praying the Spiritual Exercises every day. It has been a bridge to Christ in my everyday life, and it has definitely blessed my spiritual life. A lot more than just “psychotherapy”!

I got this notice in my emails this morning.

"This Friday, May 7, the movie "Fatima" will be rereleased in AMC theaters. It is based on the true story of the Blessed Virgin's appearances before three children in Fatima, Portugal in 1917."

I'll have to check my local movie theaters. I guess it's safe to go to movies again.