'Jesus Camp' explores pastor's vision of culture war in America
Jesus Camp | B | (PG-13, 1:27): There's a culture war in America, pastor Becky Fischer says, and she's training the next generation of troops. She runs a Christian summer camp in North Dakota called Youth on Fire. The name is only a slight exaggeration. The children who attend are so inflamed with the Holy Spirit that when Fischer asks whether they're willing to die for their faith, they shout a resounding, "Yes!"
Jesus Camp
1 Hr 27 Mins 44 Secs
Avoiding the temptation to editorialize, this eye-opening documentary goes to the camp with three preteens from Missouri: Levi, a ponytailed preacher boy from St. Robert; his freckle-faced pal Rachel, who shyly offers Christian testimony to strangers outside Busch Stadium; and clotheshorse Tory, an aspiring dancer from an affluent suburb of Kansas City.
The kids are so trusting that they are clay in the hands of the cheerful, chubby Fischer, who uses rap music, props and PowerPoint graphics to reinforce a message that's both religious and political. She makes the children pray toward a cardboard cutout of President George W. Bush, and she passes out plastic fetuses while the kids chant for "righteous judges" who will end abortion.
Some Christians may consider this excessive, but Fischer, who approves of the film, says a soldier never compromises. Co-directors Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady shoehorn in some commentary from Mike Papantonio, a liberal Christian radio host on the Air America network, to counterbalance the conservative spin. But Fischer and her allies understand what many liberals do not: If you'd rather prevail than simply preach to the converted, you aim for the children.
(653 mb)
Jesus Camp
1 Hr 27 Mins 44 Secs
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