Movie Review: Religulous

***Editor's Note: POF took a field trip last night to see Religulous at our local theatre with the intent to blog about our thoughts. I am the first, but stay tuned for reactions of the other Porkers. ***

The only thing I had seen about Religulous prior to seeing the actual film last night was the movie poster, which had a picture of Bill Maher on a piece of toast, a la the many sightings of Jesus and Mary on various everyday items. (Click here to see a story about the Virgin Mary under a Chicago overpass.) I like Bill Maher, and he mostly pleased with this candid and hilarious film that was mostly about asking questions.

As you might be able to tell by now, this blog is exactly about this sort of thing - challenging the ridiculous parts of religion that usually tend to cloud the real stuff. The "real stuff" being a connection with the universe and each other. Maher is unabashed about his questions, and even more so about calling people out when their answers are laughably absurd (like believing in a "talking snake".)

Maher is very well researched to provide quick comebacks to some of the typical answers that people give to justify these beliefs. In particular, it was interesting to me to hear about the striking parallels between the characteristics of Jesus and those of the Egyptian god Horus. I think very few people could doubt the contradictions that Maher points out about religion, including a senior Vatican priest.

What Maher doesn't focus on is the benefit to faith. I think this is OK, since his movie is likely intended to shock people out of their heretical belief systems. Early in the movie, he points out that people intend for religion to do such good things, but it always ends up with people doing really bad things for their religion or in the name of their religion or because of their religion. This point comes to fruition in then ending, which blames religion for war, global warming, and every other imaginable evil in the world. Although a bit sudden and underdeveloped, this ending does cause the viewer to think about what the unintended consequences of their beliefs might be.

What was particularly unsettling for me was Maher's contention that even conscious, moderate religious followers are contributing to a system which ultimately is causing fundamentalism and thus the bad consequences described above. My instant reaction was to disagree. Why should it matter that I take communion on Sunday and pray to a God that is clearly made up from thousands of years of mythology, if I'm not hating others for their religious beliefs, or lack thereof? But, the reason this is so unsettling is that I see he has a point.

No matter how offended you get by the movie (I thought it was offensive in a hilariously irreverent way, but that's just my opinion), you have to appreciate it for the questions that it asks, and the ultimate theory that it concludes. Maher is just a guy who is trying to understand this whole religious thing and ultimately I think he is trying to make the world a better place by doing so. (Tell THAT to the people he interviewed...something tells me they won't believe it!)