How to watch this powerful documentary
COVER STORY: No part of the U.S. has been shaken by gun violence more deeply than the Kansas City area, where several deadly shootings have rocked the world over the past decade—including a mass shooting as recently as February. As a result, Kansas City’s PBS station sponsored filmmaker Solomon Shields’ documentary, Healing Hate, which debuts this week. The film is so powerful because it features the stories of two women who have transformed their grief over losing family members, killed in earlier shootings, into major nonprofit efforts to promote compassion, healing and inclusion.
Please read our story, which starts with all the information you need to find and see this film about Mindy Corporon and her friend Sunayana Dumala. After you read our Cover Story, please help in this national effort to spread this important news: Use the social-media sharing buttons on our Cover Story to send this news to friends. That simple act may spread this inspiring story to someone who really needs to see this documentary.
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And more news this week—
George A. Mason’s ‘Word Made Fresh’ wins a major award
The prophetic preacher, pastor, interfaith peacemaker and author George A. Mason has been honored by the most venerable of interfaith professional organizations—the century-old Religion Communicators Council (RCC)—this week. We’ve got the story about that award—plus a short video from George as he talks about the very timely public interest in his new book, The Word Made Fresh.
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Jeffrey Munroe meets—
‘The Beached White Male’
THAT’S ACTUALLY THE NAME of Ken Kemp’s popular podcast that focuses on politics and religion, which Ken describes as “two topics we avoid in polite society—but not here.” Ken was intrigued by Jeffrey Munroe’s new book Telling Stories in the Dark: Finding healing and hope in sharing our sadness, grief, trauma, and pain, which is available now from Amazon in hardcover, paperback and Kindle.
As this podcast in Ken’s Beached White Male series opens, Ken tells his audience: “When I sat down and read the first 20 or 25 pages of his book, I thought: OK, I’ve got to interview this guy. My people are going to want to hear from him!”
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Understanding MENA—
Joe Grimm’s MSU Bias Busters can help
NEWS HEADLINES, this week, are describing the major change in U.S. Census categories to include “MENA.” Joe Grimm—the founder of the Michigan State University School of Journalism Bias Busters project—has pulled together the basics about this important region of the world, summarized in a single column.
THANKS TO THE BIAS BUSTERS for all of their hard work in researching and producing more than 20 books to help combat bias with “100 Questions & Answers” about a wide range of minorities in our communities. They like to say, “We’re answering the questions everybody’s asking but nobody’s answering.” You can see the entire MSU series of books here.
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Holidays & Festivals
Eid al-Fitr
2 billion Muslims celebrate the end of Ramadan
ACROSS THE U.S., most Muslims expect the Eid to start this year on the morning of Wednesday April 10—but global observances vary each year, due to regional sightings of the moon. Holidays columnist Stephanie Fenton has the story for us.
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WANT TO SEE ALL OF THE UPCOMING HOLIDAYS & FESTIVALS?—It’s easy to find our annual calendar of global observances. Just remember the web address: InterfaithHolidays.com
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Click on this image to learn more about the April 2024 issue of Ed McNulty’s Visual Parables Journal, including films such as One Life, Irena’s Vow, Cabrini and Asphalt City.
Faith & Film
ED McNULTY, for decades, has published reviews, magazine articles and books exploring connections between faith and film. Most of his work is freely published. Ed supports his work by selling the Visual Parables Journal, a monthly magazine packed with film reviews and discussion guides. This resource is used nationwide by individuals who love the movies and by educators, clergy and small-group leaders.
Here are some of Ed’s most recent free reviews and columns:
- ASPHALT CITY—Ed writes, “French-born director Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire has gifted us with the most harrowing parable about an ambulance medic since Martin Scorsese’ 1999 film Bringing Out the Dead.”
- IMMACULATE—”Director Michael Mohel combines horror with religion in this tale of twisted religious fanaticism joined with male chauvinism.”
- DUNE, PART 2—Ed urges us to continue with this remarkable series. “The incredible production values are matched by the A-list actors.”
- IRENA’S VOW—“Director Louise Archambault drew on a script by Dan Gordon, based on his Broadway play focusing on the young Polish nurse Irena Gut Opdyke.”
- ONE LIFE—”Director James Hawes’s, film straddling two time periods, focuses upon a part of the Kindertransport during World War II and the man mainly responsible for its success.”
- CABRINI—This film “is probably the best defense of immigrants that you will see in this or any year.”
- BOB MARLEY: ONE LOVE—“Director Reinaldo Marcus Green’s film focuses upon a couple of years of the singer/composer’s life, with flashbacks to his teenage years.”
- ORDINARY ANGELS—Ed recommends this faith-based drama.
- PERFECT DAYS—Ed urges us not to miss Wim Wender’s Oscar-nominated film.
- THE TASTE OF THINGS—Ed writes, “You do not have to be a Foodie to enjoy director Tran Anh Hung’s fabulous film about a French epicure and his female chef.”
- DRIVING MADELEINE—Ed writes, “For me it is a delightful visual parable on the rewards of kindness.“
- THE ZONE OF INTEREST—Ed gives 5 stars to this unusual and haunting Holocaust drama.
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