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Of Pilgrims and Fire
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More About This Title Of Pilgrims and Fire

  • English

English

Every human being, Roy Anker points out, is a pilgrim searching for a destination that promises meaning and welcome. We seek a glimpse of light or fire pointing the way to a place that soothes the soul. This light often shines most clearly in the stories we love to see on film.
In Of Pilgrims and Fire Anker explores some of cinema’s most profound moments of pilgrims looking for light. His movie choices are rarely those we might consider “religious,” yet he argues that they may be truer depictions of God’s light because of their lack of overt Christianity. These select films depict the struggles of ordinary people trying to find some measure of light to make sense of the world and of themselves — sometimes running into surprising renditions of what God might look like.
Each section begins with a basic filmography of the pictures discussed, including awards and ratings. Anker also provides a preview of each film and suggests what the filmmaker seems to convey. Finally each chapter includes a series of questions to guide personal or group discussion. Like the movies he chooses, Anker avoids the preachy or didactic and strives to make viewing and reflecting both enjoyable and provocative.
  • English

English

Roy M. Anker teaches literature and film at Calvin College, Grand Rapids, Michigan. His other books include Catching Light: Looking for God in the Movies and the two-volume Self-Help and Popular Religion in American Culture.
  • English

English

“Roy Anker again illuminates film’s powerful ability to enliven religious life. His earlier work in Catching Light is continued here with more films and further reflections on many of the same films. With lucid writing, helpful questions, and suggestive strategies for religious film viewing, Of Pilgrims and Fire will be a welcome resource to those who seek light in the dark spaces of the theater.”
— S. Brent Plate
author of Religion and Film: Cinema and the Re-Creation of the World

“A perfect follow-up to Anker’s masterful Catching Light. It recognizes that some movies might dazzle, but only a few seek to show that Light which illumines the darkness of our own lives. In this book Anker introduces twenty such movies to his readers. Here is a book for you to use with a group of friends as you watch great movies together.”
— Robert K. Johnston
coauthor of Finding God in the Movies: 33 Films of Reel Faith

“Of Pilgrims and Fire is an ideal complement to Roy Anker’s earlier text, Catching Light — ideal for university classes and adult discussion groups and for general readers who want to sharpen their understanding and appreciation of the religious dimensions of film.”
— John R. May
author of Nourishing Faith through Fiction
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