‘The Grandfathers’ – DVD Review

One of the most famous examples of Christian love in the Twentieth Century was Operation Auca in the rainforest of Ecuador. That effort resulted in the martyrdom of all five of the American missionaries - Jim Elliot, Nate Saint, Ed McCully, Peter Fleming, and Roger Youderian. They were attacked and speared by a group of Huaorani warriors on January 8, 1956. You can read more about it here. Despite their losses, several of the surviving family members continued to minister to the Huaorani tribe, and the tribe was transformed by the love of Jesus Christ.

A new documentary entitled ‘The Grandfathers’ chronicles the life of the Nate Saint’s grandson, Jesse Saint.

Here is the synopsis of this film:

A young man, deep in the Amazon jungle, searches for his identity while living with the primitive tribe that murdered his grandfather. The Grandfathers is a motion-graphics documentary by writer/director Jim Hanon and producer Mart Green. It completes the inspiring trilogy that began with Beyond the Gates of Splendor and was followed by End of the Spear. Jesse Saint struggles to find his place in a world dominated by the memory of a famous grandfather he never knew and a heroic father he cannot understand. Years spent among the Waodani and his friendship with the three men who took part in his grandfather’s murder teach him the healing power of dignity, respect and forgiveness. In the heart of the jungle, Jesse must confront his family’s past as he determines his own future. This documentary is a moving tribute to a young man’s quest for significance and purpose – and his remarkable impact on the three tribal elders who, unwittingly, are on a quest of their own.

Here is the film trailer:

Here is some more information on this interesting and poignant documentary:

From Sacrifice to Reconciliation, a Young Man Discovers His Heritage in The Grandfathers.

The Grandfathers showcases both the burden and benefit of the Saint family’s legacy. Jesse Saint, Steve’s oldest son and Nate’s grandson, was not raised among the tribe like his father. He struggles to find his place under the weight of the memory of a famous grandfather he never knew and a heroic father he does not fully understand. This will all change after Jesse travels to the jungles of Ecuador with his family and gradually forms a special bond with Mincaye, one of the tribesmen who took part in his grandfather’s murder. Only then will he confront his family’s past and come to terms with his own destiny. And there he will find his place in this story.

The Grandfathers chronicles the personal quest for greater connectedness and significance. It is also a moving tribute to ordinary people living extraordinary lives in extreme situations. Jim Hanon, the film’s director, states, “Forgiveness is an awe-inspiring virtue that seems to have been passed on by the Saint family and is shared by many among the Waodani tribe—both demonstrate a profound capacity for forgiveness and healthy self-healing.”

Steve Saint consulted with Jim Hanon and Mart Green, EGM’s producer, to help bring the story of his father, Nate, to screen through the feature film End of the Spear and the companion documentary film Beyond the Gates of Splendor. These films trace events leading up to and including the deaths of these men. More than that, they show the impact these events played on the lives of both their survivors and their killers. When the widows and their children went to live among the Waodani—a tribe regarded as the most violent on earth—they became an integral part of an incredible redemptive journey.

The Grandfathers, completes a trilogy produced by EthnoGraphic Media (EGM) that includes End of the Spear and Beyond the Gates of Splendor. These first two films, also from award-winning director Jim Hanon and producer Mart Green, tell the unforgettable and inspiring story of the killing of five missionaries by a stone-age tribe deep in the Amazon jungle. The impact of this tragic event lives on today in families of these slain men as well as among those responsible for their deaths.

I really enjoyed this documentary. It was interesting to see the aftermath of the missionary death from the perspective of the third generation. It was also interesting to see the relationship between Jesse and ‘The Grandfathers.’ I was especially taken by the comment that Jesse made that he would not exchange the death of his grandfather if he had to forfeit his relationship with these gentlemen (the photo at right is of Jesse with Mincaye, the man who killed his grandfather).  I highly encourage anyone who has seen ‘End of the Spear’ and ‘Beyond the Gates of Splendor’ to see this last movie in the trilogy. It is not to be missed!

You can order this DVD here.

This DVD was produced by Ethnographic Media and provided by The B & B Media Group for review purposes. 

‘Little Town of Bethlehem’ DVD Review

For centuries, there has been conflict in the Middle East. A new movie, ‘Little Town of Bethlehem,’ addresses this issue.


Here is the press release for this important documentary:

There is no shortage of opinions, emotions, and actions regarding finding “peace in the Middle East.” While some are familiar with the issue and others are personally impacted by the conflict, many more are unaware, uninformed, and unconcerned about this critical global issue. Little Town of Bethlehem is a groundbreaking new documentary that shares the gripping story of three men—a Palestinian Muslim, a Palestinian Christian, and an Israeli Jew—born into violence and willing to risk everything to bring an end to violence in their lifetime.

Filmed on location in the West Bank, Tel Aviv, and Jerusalem, Little Town of Bethlehem brings awareness to a growing non-violent movement in the Middle East that rarely, if ever, makes international headlines.

Sami Awad is a Palestinian Christian whose grandfather was killed in Jerusalem in 1948. Today he is the executive director of Holy Land Trust, a non-profit organization that promotes Palestinian independence through peaceful means. Yonatan Shapira is an Israeli Jew whose grandparents were Zionist settlers who witnessed the birth of the Israeli nation. Today he is an outspoken advocate for the non-violent peace movement, both in his homeland and abroad. Ahmad Al' Azzah is a Palestinian Muslim who has lived his entire life in the Azzah refugee camp in Bethlehem. Today, Ahmad heads the non-violence program at Holy Land Trust, where he trains others in the methods of peaceful activism.

Little Town of Bethlehem honestly and respectfully shares Sami’s, Yonatan’s, and Ahmad’s stories. With all three men referencing both Martin Luther King, Jr. and Mahatma Gandhi during individual interviews, it is clear that their words, thoughts, and actions on nonviolence are still profoundly impacting today’s nonviolent movement. The images of these three men standing firm in the face of overwhelming opposition are inspirational, but Little Town of Bethlehem is not just about inspiring viewers. The filmmakers also raise the question, “Can the cycle of violence be broken?” 

Little Town of Bethlehem was produced by EthnoGraphic Media (EGM), an educational non-profit organization exploring the critical issues of our time. Other feature films and documentaries from EGM include The Grandfathers (2009), Miss HIV (2008), and the award-winning End of the Spear(2005) and Beyond the Gates of Splendor (2002).

Little Town of Bethlehem was created with a global youth audience in mind. But this film will connect with any viewer who desires a deeper understanding of conflict resolution. “The major themes in the film are universal and timeless. The desire to end violence through nonviolence is not a demographic phenomenon, though often it is youth that mobilize. The theme of this film is appropriate for anyone who deals with conflict. This hopeful message of equality is for all,” says Jim Hanon, chief creative officer at EGM and the film’s director. “Little Town of Bethlehem doesn’t focus on who’s right or who’s wrong. The focus is on three men from different places and with different backgrounds who struggle together toward this common goal through nonviolence. We feel that the nonviolent approach promoted by the film is a humanitarian message with the power to transcend religions, nations, politics, languages, and cultures.”  

Here is the trailer for this fascinating documentary:

I found this documentary to be really enlightening. I thought it was interesting how they compared the situation in the Middle East in the present day to the Civil Rights struggle in the United States in the 1950s and 1960s.  

It seems as though there will never be peace in that region. The Bible tells us that there will be conflict until Jesus returns. We can continue to pray that He comes soon, and that there is some understanding between all of the different religious beliefs until that time comes.

You can order this DVD here.

This DVD was produced by Ethnographic Media and provided by the B & B Media Group for review purposes.

‘A History of Christianity: The First Three Thousand Years’ with Diarmaid MacCulloch – Q & A and DVD Review

'The First Christianity' is episode one from the series 'A History of Christianity: The First Three Thousand Year,' which is based on the book with the same name as the series title.  This very informative DVD (the first in the series) is hosted by Diarmaid MacCulloch, a Professor of the History of the Church at the University of Oxford (since 1997) and Fellow (formerly Senior Tutor) of St Cross College, Oxford (since 1995).  

Here is the video trailer for this series:

Q: A History of Christianity corrects several misconceptions regarding Christianity’s past and traditions, beginning with the earliest days of the fledgling religion. How does the true history of Christianity’s origins differ from the version most of us know?


 A:  Today, Christianity is seen as a Western faith. Indeed, many in the Muslim world would see Western lifestyles as Christian lifestyles. But Christianity is not by origin a Western religion. Its beginnings are in the Middle East, where there still exist churches which have been Eastern since the earliest Christian era. For centuries, Christianity flourished in the East, and indeed, at one point, it was poised to triumph in Asia, maybe even in China. The headquarters of Christianity might well have been Baghdad rather than Rome, and if that had happened, Western Christianity would have been very different. The story of the first Christianity tells us the Christian faith is, in fact, hugely diverse with many identities. The history of Christianity has been the never-ending rebirth of a meeting with Jesus Christ, the resurrected son of God. For some, like the Oriental and Orthodox churches, the meeting has been through ritual and tradition, or the inner life of the mystic. For Western Catholics, through obedience to the Church. In Protestant churches, through the Bible. And it’s the variety that is so remarkable in Christianity’s journey. It’s reached into every continent and adapted to new cultures. That’s the hallmark of a world religion.


Q:  Why does Christian history fascinate you?


A:  When I was a small boy, my parents used to drive me around historic churches searching out whatever looked interesting, but soon, they realized they had created a monster. The history of the church became my life’s work. For me, no other subject can rival its scale and drama. For 2,000 years, Christianity has been one of the great players in world history, inspiring faith but also squalid politics. It is an epic story starring a cast of extraordinary people—from Jesus himself and the first apostles to empresses, kings, and popes, from reformers and champions of human conscience to crusaders and sadists. Religious belief can transform us for good or ill. It has brought human beings to acts of criminal folly as well as the highest achievements of goodness and creativity. I will tell the story of both extremes. Christianity has survived persecution, splits, wars of religion, mockery, hatred. Today there are two billion Christians, a third of humanity—Protestant, Catholic, Orthodox, Pentecostal, and many more. Deep down, the Christian faith boasts a shared core—but what is it? This is something I wanted to explore on a truly global scale.


Q:  Your search for Christianity’s true history begins with a visit to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem. Why does this location tell us about the Christianity’s global roots?

A:  The Church of the Holy Sepulcher is said to have been built where Jesus was crucified and buried. At its heart is what’s believed to be his tomb. The church built around the tomb of Jesus is the starting point for a forgotten story, a story that may overturn your preconceptions about early Christianity. Pride of place in this building goes to two churches—the Greek Orthodox church and the Roman Catholic church. It’s true that Orthodoxy and Catholicism dominated Christianity in Europe, in the West, for its first 1,500 years. But as you walk around the edges of the church, you can’t fail to notice other curious little chapels. They’re not Western or European. They’re Middle Eastern and African, and they tell a very different story about the origins of Christianity. Around the back of Jesus’ tomb is Egypt’s Coptic church. There are plenty of other churches at this location, but you need to know where to look: the Syriac Orthodox church, the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, to name a few. Many versions of Christian history would make these churches unorthodox, yet they are far older than better known versions of Christianity like Protestantism. It’s easy for tourists to dismiss these ancient churches as quaint or even irrelevant. But that would be a big mistake.


Q: What are some general differences between the expansion ofWestern and Eastern Christianity?


A:  In the West, Christianity became the religion of an entire empire. This meant the end of persecution. It brought power and wealth. It gave the Christian faith a chance at becoming a universal religion. In theory, it embraced Christians in the Eastern Empire as well as in the West.
But in the east, many Christians were unimpressed by the new alliance—even hostile. At stake were fundamental disagreements about the direction the faith should take. Jesus had told people to abandon wealth, not to ally with the rich and powerful. It was Eastern Christians in Syria who led the way, showing Western Christianity a pattern for spiritual life. We call this pattern monasticism, a way of life involving isolation from the world, austerity, and suffering. The expansion of expansion of Eastern Christianity has often taken place apart from any empire. It has often been a religion of dialogue, not conquest.


My Review 

I learned a lot from this DVD, and was intrigued by what Professor MacCulloch revealed about the history of Christianity.  My only concern is that he is a little too sympathetic to Islam, in my opinion.  I wasn’t necessarily surprised by that, considering that he does live in Great Britain, and there is a large population of Muslims there.  He seemed to consider them to be equal; in fact, he stated:

          “There is more in common than you think between Islam and Christianity.”  

That is certainly an opinion, and subject to interpretation, but I personally do not agree with that statement.

I also take issue with a comment he made on the DVD:

“Later leaders forced Christians to wear distinctive yellow clothing.  Much later, European Christians would do that to Jews.” 

Assuming that he is referring to the yellow Star of David that Jewish people were forced by the Nazis to wear during World War II, I certainly take issue with Professor MacCulloch referring to Adolf Hitler and the Nazis as ‘European Christians.’  They were not Christians if Christians are defined as followers of Jesus Christ.

I watched this DVD with the spirit of discernment with which we are to interpret all media, and came away finding it informative yet flawed.  Professor MacCulloch is a professor of history, not a professor of theology, so he is viewing Christianity and its history through his own worldview – just as in fact I am doing while viewing it.  Overall, I did find it to be valuable.  

You can order the DVD series here.  You can order the book here.

This DVD was produced by Ambrose DVD and provided by B&B Media Group for review purposes.