Evan Almighty

Due in theaters on June 22, Evan Almighty is the latest in semi-religious hubbub. All the usual questions are flying: “Isn’t that blasphemous?” “Don’t religious movies have to be serious?” followed closely by all the usual hasty conclusions: “Let’s pretend it isn’t happening,” or “Let’s make tracts to hand out!” or “I’m going down to protest outside the theater.”

All that aside, there is one unique aspect of Evan Almighty that is worth considering: ArkAlmighty. It’s a program coupled with the movie that centers on fulfilling needs. When a church registers, it receives a media kit and a dedicated page on the ArkAlmighty website (e.g., Greenville Community Church). The church can then hand out the provided flyers, which direct their readers to the church’s page. Online, ArkAlmighty has a sort of garage-sale for needs. If a person has a need, he can go to the page and post it. The church then does what it can to meet that need.

The idea is that the publicity already generated by Evan can help churches be more available. The program is designed to be an outreach tool, to bridge gaps between churches and their communities. On the surface, it sounds good. Maybe it’s even good underneath.

Here are a few pros and cons to consider:

Pros (not exhaustive)

• Millions will be exposed to a religious message
• Needs are being met
• Ties to secular communities are being made
• Religious movies don’t have to be serious
• Excellent selection of teaching points

Cons (not exhaustive)

• Possible cheapening of the holy
• Possible misrepresentation of biblical ideas/concepts
• Does the church need a movie to accomplish God’s purposes?
• Association—would Steve Carell ever speak from your pulpit?
• Excellent selection of teaching points

Your decision should be made in prayer: whether to see the movie, whether to associate with ArkAlmighty, whether to jump onto the bandwagon or watch it roll by.

In addition, read all you can and be as informed as possible. It should be your goal to provide helpful, insightful advice and answers to your flock.

Here are some sites for further exploration:

General Sites

• Apple Trailers
• EvanAlmighty
• IMDB

For the Church

• ArkAlmighty
• SermonSpice

We’ve also complied a few reviews and responses:

Christian

• ChristianPost
• ChristianityToday
• OneNewsNow
• Tim Challies
• Justin Buzzard
• Mike King
• PluggedInOnline
• Catholic News Service

Secular

• FamilyEducationNetwork
• LATimes
• RottenTomatoes
• Wikipedia

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