Posted: Fri Oct 13, 2006 11:30 pm
Even the Catholic Review site thought it was frightening:
Both fascinating and frightening, directors Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady's documentary "Jesus Camp" (Magnolia) is not about your typical Christian summer camp. Campfire songs and outdoor activities take a back seat to the camp's main mission: recruiting youngsters into "God's army" to "reclaim America for Christ."
Tucked away in the woods near (ironically) Devil's Lake, N.D., the "Kids on Fire" camp is run by children's minister Becky Fischer, an enthusiastic evangelical who almost envies the commitment of Islamic fundamentalists willing to kill themselves for their faith. It's something of that fervor she hopes to instill in the camp's young attendees, denouncing the evils of modern secular culture while stirring them into a spiritual frenzy and encouraging them to speak in tongues. Some writhe on the floor or tearfully confess sins while others perform strident dance routines with war paint on their faces.
Fischer says she wants them to know God's love, but the images bespeak fear.
Three children in particular come to the fore: Levi, a home-schooled 12-year-old, "saved" at age 5, who now wants to be a preacher; Rachael, a plucky 9-year-old who proselytizes strangers on the street; and 10-year-old Tory, who every morning pledges allegiance "to the Christian flag" with her siblings. At one point, Rachael explains how God prefers evangelical churches where the congregants are "jumping up and down, shouting his name" to the more sedate mainstream "dead churches."
Radio-show host Mike Papantonio, a Methodist, provides a counterpoint, criticizing Christians like Fischer for what he calls "indoctrinating" children into a militant Christianity having little to do with the Gospel. Is this harmful indoctrination? Or instilling passionately held values? The film leans toward the former.
Papantonio also suggests a political agenda, an assertion given some credence by the statement of the Rev. Ted Haggard, president of the National Association of Evangelicals, who boasts, "If the evangelicals vote, they determine the election."
Those who appear on screen are not necessarily representative of the evangelical community as a whole. But while it's understandable that many Christians earnestly feel alienated by the increasingly secular, materialistic and immoral culture -- and many of those same concerns (including opposition to abortion) may resonate with Catholics -- the picture painted is nevertheless sobering.
At one point, Fischer, swelling with pride and emotion over the children's intensity, acknowledges that many viewers will distressingly ask, "What are these kids going to be like when they grow up?" What, indeed?
The film contains some emotionally intense images and mature discussions. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-II -- adults and adolescents. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 -- parents strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.