Zmirak is a cool Name

I thought I’d talk a little about the guest speaker we had recently John Zmirak whose latest work is the Graphic Novel The Grand Inquisitor. The church and theater/film have always been at odds almost since its inception. It was only through passion plays that the two began to intermingle after a long hiatus. Film is a form of art that is used to press the boundaries and the church has never been exempt from that. Most of the time the catholic faith instead of Protestantism is portrayed in movies due to its more visual nature.
In the Godfather Part I Catholicism is used to provide a moral counterpoint to the acts of violence that take place during the film. It is also interest to note that the film begins with wedding and ends with a baptism, two of the sacraments. Catholicism is also used for scenes of deathbed penitence and absolution of the soul in many films. Christianity in film can be used to mark the spiritual progress of character and their moral growth throughout the course of the movie.
Film has been especially hard on religion since the late 70s and is portrayed a weakness and a precursor to narrow minded bigotry in a character. In the 2006 film Borat showed Christians as a kind and willing to help albeit mindless gathering of people. Public opinion has turned away from Christianity and as such film has taken the popular course of action.