Jesus Is in Hollywood, but Does Anyone Recognize Him?

Greg Wright, who is the managing editor of Hollywood Jesus explores Christians who work in the movie industry. He talks about the didactic model, where a film is “intended to convey instruction and information as well as pleasure and entertainment.”

The truth is that most films made by Christians rely too heavily on one side of the model or the other.

“Many of these films hope to lead people to Christ, but for the most part come off as preaching to the choir,” he writes. “And the choir, of course, needs to hear a good sermon as much as anyone.”

On the other hand, there are Christians who forget about message, and just search for entertainment.

“Their films often look a lot like pure entertainment devoid of explicit or obvious Christian messages,” said Wright. “So they’re missing that ‘instruction and information’ aspect of the didactic.”

Seeking a middle ground, some Christian filmmakers see their calling to create “films of beauty and artistic excellence that provoke the public to engage with the providential mystery of grace.”

Join the conversation and read the rest of the piece over at Hollywood Jesus.