Last night, Heidi and I watched Bill Maher’s scathing documentary on religion, Religulous. Maher travels around the globe interviewing mostly religious extremists and bombarding them with questions meant to poke fun at the ridiculousness of their beliefs. The documentary is irreverent, foul, sacrilegious and blasphemous. And here are some reasons Christians should watch it.
1. Maher asks some good questions that many deep-thinking seekers are asking. Like, “Why is faith good?” “Why doesn’t an all-powerful God speak to us directly?” “How can otherwise rational people believe that a snake talked and a man got swallowed by a whale?” “Why is a literal 6-day/young earth understanding important?” “Why is homosexuality such a huge issue for Christians when Jesus never said anything about it?” Many of his questions are sarcastic baiting used to get a good chuckle, but some are thought-provoking inquiries that deserve discussion.
2. The Bible tells us that we should be ready with an answer when skeptics ask (1 Peter 3:15-16). Imagine yourself sitting with Maher. How would you answer his questions? Remember, this is not to be done in a combative argumentative manner, but with gentleness and respect.
3. Granted, the footage is shot and edited to produce the desired effect, but some things even I have to admit are just plain ridiculous. It is good to be able to turn the looking glass on ourselves and see from an outside perspective and be able to either laugh or cry at our own behavior.
4. Our friends, neighbors, family and co-workers may watch and be influenced by it. They will have questions or comments that could lead to a great opportunity to dialogue about your faith.
5. Pray for Bill Maher and Larry Charles (the director from “Seinfeld” fame) and your skeptical friends. The Bible tells us that Satan has blinded the minds of unbelievers (2 Corinthians 4:4). From my believing perspective, this is readily apparent in the documentary. No amount of reasonable debate will ever persuade an unbelieving skeptic as long as they have blinders on. Prayer is the most important element in any one’s conversion.
6. It is good to ask questions of ourselves. We shouldn’t shy away from asking ourselves difficult questions and settling for trite Sunday School answers. A healthy dose of doubt is necessary for belief or it wouldn’t be faith.
Even though there is coarse language, a brief scene of nudity and lots of irreverent stuff that will probably make you angry, I suggest getting together with Christian friends and watching this documentary and then asking one another, “How would you answer that question?” “What is the truth in this documentary?” “How do we need to grow in our own knowledge and understanding of our beliefs?”
The next step would then be to watch it with some non-believing friends with the intent of having a gentle and respectful discussion afterwards. In one night, you may get years of insight into your friend’s worldview and how you can more effectively dialogue in the future.
We live in an irreverent, foul world that must be engaged faithfully and thoughtfully.
So… when’s the party?
Later this month hopefully.