Alternative Parables: #1 - The Excuse

22/08/10 | Posted by MattPage | Permalink | (0) Comments

His legs were gone, his lungs burned, but Bernbaum somehow summoned the energy to reached out for the top of the chain link fence. But it was too late. He felt his pursuer grab him by his leg and yank him down onto the floor. More ...

Rev works a sitcom miracle

03/08/10 | Posted by Simon Jenkins | Permalink | (2) Comments

Some of the best moments of watching BBC Two's Rev the past few weeks have been the kitchen sink prayers, where we’ve eavesdropped on Rev Adam Smallbone’s calm, interior conversation with God. Walking down the high street, washing the dishes, sitting on the loo, Adam asks God for a bigger congregation, for more energy in bed with his wife Alex, for protection for Colin who’s in danger of getting a kicking, for strength to visit a lap-dancing club he’s opposing, and a hundred other everyday concerns. More ...

TV Review: Rev.

28/07/10 | Posted by MattPage | Permalink | (1) Comments

The BBC's latest sit-com, Rev., has been pulling in praise from religious and non-religious critics alike. With only one episode to go, now seemed like a good time to review the series as a whole before it disappears for the summer*. More ...

Film Review: Inception

17/07/10 | Posted by MattPage | Permalink | (0) Comments

British director Christopher Nolan seems to have combined the best of his talents for making big blockbusters (Batman Begins, The Dark Knight) and quirky, thought provoking films (Memento) in making his latest film Inception. It’s the cleverest summer movie for quite some time: a fast paced thriller that leaves its audience trying to work everything out long after the credits have rolled. More ...

Film Review: Shrek Forever After

30/06/10 | Posted by MattPage | Permalink | (0) Comments

Putting Shrek and Jesus in the same article gets some people nervous. After all, Jesus' story is hardly fairy tale and he certainly wasn't an ogre. But there are one or two moments in this latest instalment of the Shrek series that reminded me of the life of Jesus. The latest film actually starts somewhere in the middle of the original film and in many ways Shrek Forever After is an attempt to put aside two forgettable sequels and get back to the heart of what made the first film work so well. More ...

Earliest Images of Jesus’ Apostles Found

26/06/10 | Posted by MattPage | Permalink | (0) Comments

Archaeologists in Rome have uncovered the earliest known images of Jesus’ apostles Andrew and John. It’s the latest discovery in the Saint Tecla/Thekla catacomb deep below the streets of Vatican City where last year an image of the apostle Paul was also discovered. All three images have been dated to the second half of the 4th century AD.
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Fishers of None

31/05/10 | Posted by MattPage | Permalink | (2) Comments

I read recently that the numbers of fish in the Sea of Galilee have become so low that the Israeli authorities have been forced to ban fishing there for the next two years. Some blame overfishing, whilst others point the finger at illegal fishermen. Still others blame changes in the environment which have disrupted the food chain. But it’s interesting that the fish that is worst-affected is the St. Peter’s fish, named after Jesus’ right-hand-man, Simon Peter. More ...

Jesus, Origins Movies and Robin Hood

15/05/10 | Posted by MattPage | Permalink | (2) Comments

Ridley Scott’s Robin Hood hit cinema screens this week, hitting the middle of the target at the box office as well as opening the Cannes film festival (where it’s portrayal of the French as scheming, bad-fighting cowards must have gone down really well). More ...

The Good Man Philip or the Scoundrel Pullman?

30/04/10 | Posted by MattPage | Permalink | (0) Comments

Back in February we published a list of significant books about Jesus ranging from the pope’s own “Jesus of Nazareth” to the highly controversial novel “Last Temptation of Christ”. Yet if we’d published the list a couple of months later, I suspect we may have added the latest novel from Philip Pullman, “The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ”.

Pullman is well known for expressing his anti-religious views through his work. His “His Dark Materials” trilogy was frequently interpreted as an attack on both the Church and God himself. Interestingly, that series dealt with the Old Testament and the history of the Church but skipped over the gospels, but now Pullman has returned to fill that particular gap. More ...

How Would Jesus Vote?

12/04/10 | Posted by MattPage | Permalink | (0) Comments

So the election has been called for May 6th and the next few weeks will see the airwaves thick with clichéd slogans, billboards festooned with glossy posters and armies of canvassers interrupting peaceful evenings. But is there anything worth voting for, and how would a certain preacher from Galilee have acted if he found himself (somewhat bizarrely) in our shoes today? More ...

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