I realise I am coming a bit late with this but it arrived quite randomly into my home this weekend and so I gave it a go.
Bill Maher, who is well known (at least in the US) for being an atheist makes a very interesting documentary about religion in it’s various shapes and forms around the world. He doesn’t treat the subject with kid gloves and pretty much refutes the beliefs of the people he interviews and pokes holes in anything and everything for your viewing pleasure.
This subject is particularly interesting to me as I come from a lapsed Catholic family (well, my parents are lapsed, my sibling and I never practised) and have many devout Catholic friends who I regularly have run- ins with about the subject. I was nodding and smiling all the way through this movie, because it echoes every hole I have poked myself in not just the Catholic religion but religion in general.
The highlights for me were a Vatican priest laughing and agreeing with Maher on a variety of subjects, a group of evangelists in a truckers chapel praying for Mahers soul, and a visit to a holy ‘theme park’ in Orlando, Florida. It also gave me new insight into how MENTAL religions such as Mormonism and Scientology really are. I mean, I always knew they were nutters but holy shit.
I’m pretty sure any atheist worth their salt will probably have already since this movie but I think whatever your beliefs are, it is well worth a look.
I will make efforts to see this. Religion is one of those topics I tend to avoid talking about, simply because it annoys me so much. Perhaps a discussion on the relevance of religion in todays pop culchur world, might make a good article?
Religion is one of those topics I tend to talk about because it annoys me so much!
I’ve downloaded this but have yet to watch it. Hopefully get to it this week.