Jesus Camp

[laurathistle]

Did any of you Brits out there just watch the TV show Jesus Camp that was on Chanel 4 tonight at 11pm?

[Smudge]

Oh my gosh!!!!!!!!! I was just talking about this on ACA - how scary was that!

[laurathistle]

Did you see it? What did you think?

[Smudge]

yeah i saw about half of it - and having worked at a christian camp I found it really scarey! We gave our camps about 1 hour of fun christian ed a day plus a 15 -30 min devotional every morning! We certainly never showed the kids feutuse (sp?) or had them declaring war!

[Smudge]

what did you think laura?

[laurathistle]

I was pretty horrified to be honest. I am a christian and regularly attend church but I think that what they were doing to those kids was akin to brain washing. I don't think scaring kids as young as 5 or 6 is a god way of preaching.

The bit that really disturbed me was when this one guy was talking about abortion. He was like "There could be 30% more of you here today if evil mothers hadn't aborted. Your best friend could be dead already because they never go the chance to live." The kids that even knew what the word abortion meant looked terrified and the ones that didn't looked confused.

Did you read the small print at the end Smudge?

[Smudge]

It was too small for me too read! All i could see what a white blur - what did it say?

Laura I totally agree with you - I am at church nearly every sunday and regularly go out the missionaires and would never, ever teach my installing fear. When I taugh primary sunday school the emphasis was on encouraging them to develope faith no scaring them into faith - sure faith proclaimed in such situations isnt real faith!

I watched the cup smashing bit and I was just like "what the heck" and as for the abortion part there are just such better ways of teaching such principles.

[Jen]

I stumbled on the Jesus Camp thing on youtube and was equally perturbed. The camp I work at is a christian (methodist) based camp; we have bible studies and sing christian songs, and relate our activities to christian principals of faith, mercy, humbleness...etc. I thought that this "jesus camp" that they showed was really, well, creepy! I didnt watch the whole thing, just bits and pieces, but I don't think that that that "brainwashing children" method is right at all. And I worry about the people who base their opinion of christianity and religion-based camps solely on the image that that movie portrays.

[CampCherith]

The obvious intent of the film was the portray Christians and Christian camps as a place to be feared. A place where children are warped, twisted and brainwashed into hate mongering robots.

The people featured in that film were taken advantage of by the film crew and the material was cut/spliced to make it look worse than it really was. That is classic documentary distortion just like the lies created by a Michael Moore film.

[laurathistle]

I agree with you Cherith about it being edited to make better TV but some parts of it could not have been edited, such as the long 'speeches' given by the ministers.

Smashing the cups with hammers was odd and I am not even sure what that was meant to achieve.

[laurathistle]

Here is the bit where the guy talks about abortion:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mefXbLXlRpw&feature=related

This is the bit where they condemn Harry Potter to hell

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOIYsGVyg8M&feature=related


There are loads of clips on you tube if anyone is interested. You can actually watch the whole thing.

[Smudge]

I think they will put it on 4 on demand soon too!

[laurathistle]

Yes, loads of people were talking about it in the staff room at my school today and the ones who missed it were mad!

[Smudge]

I havent really talked about it to many people - but is cos i havent really seen many today!

I am just really glad the year i worked at a christian camp they werent like that! If they had been i would have been on the phone to the CA office for them to find me a new camp!

[laurathistle]

Lol, me too. "Hello? Camp Leaders? I don't want to participate in the brainwashing of children. Get me OUT of here!"

I am sure that only a very very small percentage of christian (or other religion based camp) go to such lenghts.

[Smudge]

I am sure you are right laura!

Here's a point I made on CA - if that had been filmed at an islamic summer camp (I dont even know if such things exist) it would have been shut down and the leaders arrested for insighting terror - it wouldn't have been nominated for an oscar and wouldnt be televised! Yet cos it is "Christian" it has - but to me you acheive nothing by scaring people into your cause - whatever that cause may be!

[Trees]

I think maybe you're misunderstanding the point of the movie and why it was Oscar-nominated--the filmmakers were not Christians (or at least not evangelical Christians, I don't know what their personal beliefs are). The movie didn't get all the attention and publicity because it's Christian and Americans love Christians, but because people were shocked by it (and because it was entertaining). If it HAD been filmed at an Islamic summer camp, it would have received as much or more attention, and no one would have been arrested unless they were inciting actual violence, not a spiritual battle.

I thought the movie was really sad (I especially felt sad for the sweet little girl who had been made to feel like dancing was sinful if she wasn't "dancing for the Lord"), but I actually wasn't so shocked by it... I think these beliefs are more common than many people realize.

[annknee]

I just finished watching this on 4od and dont really know what to make of it - definately eye opening!

The thing that really made me mad was, Right at the beginning when they were doing a prayer workshop there was a parent with a couple of children, and when the pastor (? I may have got that word wrong - not the greatest at the differences between pastors, vicars, priest etc.!) asked who here beleives in the almighty power of God, this mother forced the hands of her children up one of whom was only 2 or 3.

[Jen]

the filmmakers were not Christians (or at least not evangelical Christians, I don't know what their personal beliefs are).

I watched an interview w/ the directors. One is Jewish and one is, or was raised, catholic. The Jewish woman said she was treated very well by the subjects of the film because of her link to Israel.

They also said that the way they created the film was to make the least amount of commentary on it as possible. To the majority of people, it seems extreme and unnerving. To the people who are used to that kind of religious activity and lifestyle, it is just a documentary on things they understand.

[Angel_Jenny]

I too am a Christian!! Missed the programme/film though sounds awful! Will have to watch it I guess and see for myself but yes sounds awful! x