Jesus Camp

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Jesus Camp
Directed by Heidi Ewing
Rachel Grady
Produced by Heidi Ewing
Rachel Grady
Starring Becky Fischer
Mike Papantonio
Music by Force Theory
Cinematography Mira Chang
Jenna Rosher
Distributed by Magnolia Pictures
Release date(s) September 15, 2006
Language English
IMDb profile

Jesus Camp, a Magnolia Pictures release directed by Rachel Grady and Heidi Ewing, who previously made The Boys of Baraka together, is a 2006 documentary about a charismatic Christian summer camp for children who spend their summers learning and practicing their "prophetic gifts" and being taught that they can "take back America for Christ."[1] According to the distributor, it "doesn't come with any prepackaged point of view", and it tries to be "an honest and impartial depiction of one faction of the evangelical Christian community”. [2]

Contents

[edit] Overview

Jesus Camp debuted at the 2006 Tribeca Film Festival, and was sold by A&E Indie Films to Magnolia Pictures. As of September 2006, the film is playing at a limited number of theaters and film festivals. [1] Controversy surrounding the film was featured in a 7 October 2006 CNN report.

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

Jesus Camp is a documentary about the "Kids On Fire" summer camp, located just outside Devils Lake, North Dakota and run by Becky Fischer and her ministry, Kids in Ministry International. The film focuses on three children who attended the camp in the summer of 2005--Levi, Rachael, and Victoria (Tory). The film cuts between footage of the camp and a children's prayer conference held just prior to the camp at Christ Triumphant Church, a large charismatic church in Lee's Summit, Missouri; a suburb of Kansas City.

All three children, despite their youth, are very devout charismatic Christians. Levi, who has ambitions of being a pastor, has already preached several sermons at his suburban Kansas City church. Early in the film, he is watching a cartoon that preaches that Earth is 6,000 years old. He is homeschooled, and learns physical science from a book that attempts to reconcile the creationist account with scientific principles. He preaches a sermon at the camp in which he declares that his generation is a key to Jesus coming back. In the film Rachael is seen approaching a woman and offering her a Christian tract and telling her that God has a special plan for her. She is somewhat disdainful of non-charismatic churches, feeling that they aren't "churches that God likes to go to." Early in the film, she is seen praying over a bowling ball. Tory frequently dances to Christian heavy metal music, and feels somewhat uncomfortable about "dancing for the flesh."

At the camp, Fischer stresses the need for children to purify themselves in order to be used by God. She strongly believes that children need to be in the forefront of turning America back to conservative Christian values.

In one scene shot at Christ Triumphant Church, Lou Engle, the chief "prophet" for Harvest International Ministries (the "apostolic network" with which both the church and Fischer's ministry are affiliated--an affiliation not advertised in the film) preaches a message urging children to join the fight to end abortion. He prays for George W. Bush to have the strength to appoint "righteous judges" who will overturn Roe v. Wade. By the end of the sermon, the children are chanting, "Righteous judges! Righteous judges!" In another, a woman brings a cutout of Bush to the front of the church, and has the children stretch their hands toward him. This practice is a derivative of laying hands on someone, and is a very common practice in Pentecostal and charismatic churches.

There is also a scene at New Life Church in Colorado Springs, Colorado, where Levi and his family go on vacation to hear its renowned pastor, Ted Haggard (since removed from pastorship). Some months after the release of the film, Haggard later became embroiled in a high-profile scandal.

Additionally, there is a debate between Fischer and Mike Papantonio (an attorney and a radio talk-show host for Air America Radio's Ring of Fire).

[edit] Controversy

Jesus Camp was screened at Michael Moore's Traverse City Film Festival against the wishes of the distribution company, Magnolia Pictures.[3] Magnolia had pulled Jesus Camp from the festival earlier in the summer after it purchased rights to the film, in a decison apparently inspired by Moore's association with the film festival, with Magnolia president Eamonn Bowles saying "I don't want the perception out in the public that this is an agenda-laden film."[2]

Ted Haggard has disavowed the film and dislikes his depiction in it. Many viewers have come away with the impression that he appears vain and insincere when conversing with Levi. He spent numerous advertising dollars to drive people to his response before a relationship with a gay man caused his ousting. The directors posted a rebuttal in which they state that he was the only one who objected to his portrayal.

In November 2006, Fischer announced that she would be shutting down the camp indefinitely due to negative reaction to the film. [3] According to Fischer's website (KidsInMinistry.com), the owners of the property used for the camp shown in the film were concerned about vandalism to the premises following the film's release and thus will not allow it to be used for any future camps. Fischer has said that the camp will be indefinitely postponed until other suitable premises can be found, but it will be back. [4]

[edit] Reviews

Time magazine's film critic Richard Schickel finds Jesus Camp "well-made and very disturbing."[5]

Michael Smith of the Tulsa World, gave it three stars (out of four) describing it as "..impressive in its even-handed presentation..", "...straightforward..." and "...a revealing, unabashed look at the formation of tomorrow's Army of God".[6]

The Chicago Tribune reviewer Jessica Reaves gives the film three stars (out of four) and writes that Jesus Camp is "...an enlightening and frank look at what the force known as Evangelical America believes, preaches and teaches their children..." and concludes that what the filmmakers "...have accomplished here is remarkable--capturing the visceral humanity, desire and unflagging political will of a religious movement." [7]

David Edelstein of CBS Sunday Morning, New York Magazine, and NPR finds Jesus Camp, "a frightening, infuriating, yet profoundly compassionate documentary about the indoctrination of children by the Evangelical right."[8]

Conservative Michael Medved gave Jesus Camp one and a half stars (out of four) calling it "propagandistic" with "heavy-handed editing, menacing music and explicit comparisons to the Taliban and the Nazis" and "bitterly hostile to Evangelical Christianity".[9]

[edit] References

  1. ^ Watts, Tom. Real Detroit Weekly Ewing believes in Jesus Camp, 10/4/06. Retrieved on 12/11/06.
  2. ^ Christian NewsWire, Jesus Camp Distributors Adverse to Screening at Traverse: Michael Moore Ignores Request to Remove Documentary from Festival, 8/8/06. Retrieved on 12/11/06.
  3. ^ Kilday, Gregg. The Hollywood Reporter Moore fest defies distrib over "Jesus", August 4, 2006. Retrieved on 12/11/06.

[edit] External links

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  • CBN News - video report and discussion with Pastor Becky Fischer

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