City of Angles involves an angel (Cage) who is spotted by a doctor in an operating room. Franz plays Cage’s buddy who somehow knows a lot about angels. The film is a very loose remake of Wim Wenders’ 1987 German film Wings of Desire (Der Himmel über Berlin), which was set in Berlin.
Exploring religion in film, the spirituality of television shows, and meaning found within popular culture.
Disclaimer: Images and videos of movies, television shows, books, album covers, actors and/or singers are the sole property of the media’s respective production company, distribution company or artist. SSOL-POP and SSOL makes no claim of ownership of these images or videos and encourages users of SSOL to purchase these items from legitimate retailers.
Religious and Spiritual Themes in Television Shows: Game of Thrones (2011-)
Game of Thrones is an American fantasy drama television series created for HBO. It is an adaptation of A Song of Ice and Fire, George R. R. Martin’s series of fantasy novels, the first of which is titled A Game of Thrones.
The series, set on the fictional continents of Westeros and Essos at the end of a decade-long summer, interweaves several plot lines with a broad ensemble cast. The first narrative arc follows a civil war among several noble houses for the Iron Throne of the Seven Kingdoms; the second covers the attempts of the exiled last scion of the realm’s deposed ruling dynasty to reclaim the throne; the third chronicles the rising threat of the impending winter and the legendary creatures and fierce peoples of the North.
Exploring religion in film, the spirituality of television shows, and meaning found within popular culture.
Disclaimer: Images and videos of movies, television shows, books, album covers, actors and/or singers are the sole property of the media’s respective production company, distribution company or artist. SSOL-POP and SSOL makes no claim of ownership of these images or videos and encourages users of SSOL to purchase these items from legitimate retailers.
Religious and Spiritual Themes in Film: The Matrix Trilogy (1999-2003)
Matrix (1999)
A computer hacker learns from mysterious rebels about the true nature of his reality and his role in the war against its controllers.
The Matrix Reloaded (2003)
Neo and the rebel leaders estimate that they have 72 hours until 250,000 probes discover Zion and destroy it and its inhabitants. During this, Neo must decide how he can save Trinity from a dark fate in his dreams.
The Matrix Revolutions (2003)
The human city of Zion defends itself against the massive invasion of the machines as Neo fights to end the war at another front while also opposing the rogue Agent Smith.
Watch the Matrix Movies on Amazon Instant Video
Exploring religion in film, the spirituality of television shows, and meaning found within popular culture.
Disclaimer: Images and videos of movies, television shows, books, album covers, actors and/or singers are the sole property of the media’s respective production company, distribution company or artist. SSOL-POP and SSOL makes no claim of ownership of these images or videos and encourages users of SSOL to purchase these items from legitimate retailers.
Religious and Spiritual Themes in the Film: Babette’s Feast (1987)
In a remote 19th Danish century village two sisters lead a rigid life centered around their father, the local minister, and their church. Both had opportunities to leave the village: one could have married a young army officer and the other, a French opera singer. Their father objected in each case and they spent their lives caring for him. Many years later – their father is now deceased – they take in French refugee, Babette Hersant, who agrees to work as their servant. After winning the lottery, Babette wants to repay the sisters for their kindness and offers to cook a French meal for them and their friends on the 100th anniversary of their father’s birth. It proves to be an eye-opening experience for everyone.
Exploring religion in film, the spirituality of television shows, and meaning found within popular culture.
Disclaimer: Images and videos of movies, television shows, books, album covers, actors and/or singers are the sole property of the media’s respective production company, distribution company or artist. SSOL-POP and SSOL makes no claim of ownership of these images or videos and encourages users of SSOL to purchase these items from legitimate retailers.
Religious and Spiritual Themes in the Film: Chappie (2015)
In the near future, crime is patrolled by a mechanized police force. When one police droid, Chappie, is stolen and given new programming, he becomes the first robot with the ability to think and feel for himself.
Want Chappie on Amazon Instant Video
Exploring religion in film, the spirituality of television shows, and meaning found within popular culture.
Disclaimer: Images and videos of movies, television shows, books, album covers, actors and/or singers are the sole property of the media’s respective production company, distribution company or artist. SSOL-POP and SSOL makes no claim of ownership of these images or videos and encourages users of SSOL to purchase these items from legitimate retailers.
The Gospel According to the Grateful Dead
The Gospel and the Grateful Dead
This book examines the linkages between the music and message of the Grateful Dead and the Christian gospel. The Grateful Dead emerged from the San Francisco “hippie” scene in the late 1960s, and offered a message of community and divine encounter. While the Dead drew on the teachings of many spiritual traditions, the band’s ethos echoed quite powerfully the wisdom of Christian Scripture. This reflection examines the ways in which the Grateful Dead embodied Christian teachings in areas of community, praise, and service. The Grateful Dead left an enduring legacy, whose power and longevity stem in significant part from the confluence of values between the Gospel and Grateful Dead.
Exploring religion in film, the spirituality of television shows, and meaning found within popular culture.
Disclaimer: Images and videos of movies, television shows, books, album covers, actors and/or singers are the sole property of the media’s respective production company, distribution company or artist. SSOL-POP and SSOL makes no claim of ownership of these images or videos and encourages users of SSOL to purchase these items from legitimate retailers.
The Gospel According to U2
We Get to Carry Each Other: The Gospel according to U2
Who among us has not experienced hearing a song that moved us deeply, that spoke to us in a truly spiritual way? Millions of fans around the world have found that inspiration in the music of U2, arguably the biggest band in the world today. This engaging and informative book examines the spirituality that drives U2, a band whose influence has spread far beyond music and whose songs encourage listeners to put their faith into action for the sake of the poor and marginalized.
Exploring religion in film, the spirituality of television shows, and meaning found within popular culture.
Disclaimer: Images and videos of movies, television shows, books, album covers, actors and/or singers are the sole property of the media’s respective production company, distribution company or artist. SSOL-POP and SSOL makes no claim of ownership of these images or videos and encourages users of SSOL to purchase these items from legitimate retailers.
The Gospel According to the Beatles
The Gospel According to the Beatles
Renowned British music journalist and author Steve Turner surveys the religious and spiritual influence of the Beatles, the band that changed the history of music forever. With new interviews, never-before-published material, and fresh insights, Turner helps the reader understand the religious and spiritual ideas and ideals that influenced the music and lives of the Beatles and helps us see how the Fab Four influenced our own lives and culture.
Topics discussed include the religious upbringing of John, Paul, George, and Ringo; the backlash in the United States after John Lennon’s “The Beatles are more popular than Jesus” comment; the dabbling in Eastern religion; the use of drugs to attempt to enter a higher level of consciousness; and the overall legacy that the Beatles and their music have left. While there is no religious system that permanently anchored the Beatles or their music, they did leave a gospel, Turner concludes: one of love, peace, personal freedom, and the search for transcendence.
Exploring religion in film, the spirituality of television shows, and meaning found within popular culture.
Disclaimer: Images and videos of movies, television shows, books, album covers, actors and/or singers are the sole property of the media’s respective production company, distribution company or artist. SSOL-POP and SSOL makes no claim of ownership of these images or videos and encourages users of SSOL to purchase these items from legitimate retailers.
The Gospel According to Bruce Springsteen
The Gospel according to Bruce Springsteen: Rock and Redemption, from Asbury Park to Magic
In this engaging book, Jeffrey Symynkywicz, a minister and dedicated Springsteen fan, shows us that Bruce Spingsteen’s enduring importance stems largely from the rich spiritual themes that run throughout his albums. With a lively and engaging style, Symynkywicz probes each of Springsteen’s albums and shows how his music helps make sense of the many threads of our lives, including experiences of sin and redemption, fear and courage, and–above all–faith, hope, and love.
Exploring religion in film, the spirituality of television shows, and meaning found within popular culture.
Disclaimer: Images and videos of movies, television shows, books, album covers, actors and/or singers are the sole property of the media’s respective production company, distribution company or artist. SSOL-POP and SSOL makes no claim of ownership of these images or videos and encourages users of SSOL to purchase these items from legitimate retailers.
The Gospel According to Sherlock Holmes
Holy Clues: The Gospel According to Sherlock Holmes
If God is the greatest mystery of them all, then why not, in pursuit of God, consult the greatest detective of them all? In this imaginative and surprisingly profound book, Stephen Kendrick reveals Sherlock Holmes as spiritual guide.
Drawing on the teachings of Christianity, Buddhism, and Judaism–as well as a host of thinkers as varied as Albert Einstein, Gandhi, and Vincent van Gogh–Kendrick explores the stories of Sherlock Holmes and finds remarkably prescient religious insights. He shows us the link between careful observation of clues and the Buddhist concept of “Bare Attention.” He illuminates the parallel between the great sleuth’s pursuit of justice and God’s actions on the scene of the first murder, when Cain slew Abel. And in the detective’s open, engaged mind, Kendrick finds a model for uniting the principles of science with a sincere spiritual quest. The result is a book of inspiration for the modern, skeptical searcher–and an entertaining work that sheds new light on the methods of the world’s greatest detective.
A Sherlock Holmes Devotional: Uncovering the Mysteries of God
After a century, Sherlock Holmes mysteries still fascinate us—and this devotional will delight you with spiritual truths drawn from the pages of the classic detective stories. A Sherlock Holmes Devotional contains 60 entries drawn from the characters, stories, and events of the Holmes canon. From 221b Baker Street to Reichenbach Falls, from Irene Adler to the evil Dr. Moriarty, from the pipe to the violin, this book investigates the spiritual truths we can discern from this enigmatic fictional character—a brusque, stubborn, and arrogant man who also shows honor, trust, and self-sacrificing friendship. It’s a fascinating read for fans of the series—or those yet to meet the great detective!
The Transcendent Holmes
In a series of sparkling and intelligently presented essays, Dr. Montgomery takes a fresh look at the world “where it is always eighteen ninety-five” — the world of Baker Street and Sherlock Holmes. Besides examining long debated problems, such as the true location of 221B, which was Holmes’s University, how many times Watson was married, and where Watson was wounded, Dr. Montgomery also considers Holmes’s activities in Tibet, his writings, his brother Mycroft, and his liking for fine wines. In a stunning climax to the volume, the reader is presented with a discussion between Holmes and Watson which will almost certainly cause him/her to pause, think, and deeply consider the depth of the message conveyed. Dr. Montgomery is a Sherlockian of long-standing. These essays prove that his time devoted to his subject has been very well spent indeed.
The Sherlock Holmes Tarot: Wisdom from the First Consulting Detective
Love troubles? Job difficulties? Health problems? If you’re seeking answers, who better to find them than history’s greatest detective, Sherlock Holmes? His keen powers of perception and extraordinary exploits have inspired this dazzling new divination deck, which draws its imagery from Victorian London’s shadowy buildings and fog-bound streets. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s stories figure throughout, and original characters make up the Major Arcana.
Exploring religion in film, the spirituality of television shows, and meaning found within popular culture.
Disclaimer: Images and videos of movies, television shows, books, album covers, actors and/or singers are the sole property of the media’s respective production company, distribution company or artist. SSOL-POP and SSOL makes no claim of ownership of these images or videos and encourages users of SSOL to purchase these items from legitimate retailers.
