What's he on about now?

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   Sunday, July 27, 2003

KILLING THE MESSENGER

Scottish director Peter Mullan's film-fest winner The Magdalene Sisters is finally hitting mainstream theatres this week and the film's depiction of abuses in Catholic Church-run institutions has ignited the usual fuss from the Vatican (check out Jessica Winter's excellent overview in the Village Voice or this piece in The Guardian). Even as the church spokesman on BBC was decrying the film, he admitted that the cruelties it depicts "probably did happen." Nevertheless, my roommate turns to me and expresses disdain for this "trendy" ganging-up on the church.

Excuse me?

This is something that's bugged me for years: as a Catholic, a film-lover and a person who thinks, I've long hated how films that attempt to deal honestly with religious themes get tagged as "anti-church" or "anti-religious" by people who refuse to watch them. I found The Last Temptation of Christ to be the most affecting film I'd seen regarding my own spirituality but it was denounced as blasphemous. Priest was an attempt to provoke discussion around the church's view of homosexuality but it too was condemned. Silliest of all was attempting to block Kevin Smith's satirical Dogma, which aimed to bring his own views on the Catholic faith to a younger audience, the same ones the church is driving away in droves.

If the church deserves its dwindling status, however, it's not because banning movies is its biggest problem: they have no choice but to publicly denounce anyone who asks honest questions about their record on social concerns because they've been so busy privately covering up actual crimes under its rooftops, crimes that films like "The Magdalene Sisters" want to discuss. It's the kind of shell-game we don't tolerate in political circles but get all ambivalent about when it comes to religious leaders.

It's not that I think the Catholic Church is evil -- I applaud the caring work done daily by millions of ordained priests and nuns world-wide -- but, dammit, those corrupt few who verbally, physically or sexually abuse children and teens should be brought to justice, not quietly transferred or hidden away. If, as the church says, "The Magdalene Sisters" is merely overblown propaganda (as a couple of film critics have agreed), then the public will just have to see the movie and make up their minds for themselves. God forbid.