Faith in Film 3, Doubt

Tonight we tackle a fascinating and challenging film in "Doubt." I love this film. I love the dialogue and the performances. I love the way John Patrick Shanley puts this film together. And I love the challenging ideas presented in this film.

"Doubt, a Parable" was a stage play that Shanley wrote in the early 2000s. The play had 525 showings, opening in 2004 and closing in 2006. In 2005, the play won the Pulitzer Prize for drama and the Tony Award for Best Play. In 2008, Shanley adapted his own play into a film, directing it himself. The film earned five Academy Award nominations, including Best Actress for Meryl Streep, Best Supporting Actor for Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Best Supporting Actresses Amy Adams and Viola Davis, and Best Adapted Screenplay for Shanley. It didn't win any awards, but I think it should have been a Best Picture nominee and, three years later, I feel like "Doubt" is a film that stands up and endures more than other films that were popular that year.

The reason for this are the ideas presented in the film. The story is set in 1964, and features a myriad of themes, including racial integration, the changing face of the church, and the sex scandals that have rocked the Catholic Church. I want to speak to that last one for a moment. Obviously it’s impossible not to be saddened and disgusted by some of what has happened with the Catholic Church and other churches in terms of sexual abuse. That was one of the things that gained notoriety for this film, but I find that ironic because the film isn’t really about that. An allegation is the basis for drama, but is part of a much larger idea which is the conflicting ideology of these two people. That is what the author focuses on, that is what the film focuses on, and that is what I am focusing on. So I don’t want you to think I’m trying to avoid an uncomfortable subject — though that is a bonus — I just don’t think that’s the primary purpose of this film. In fact, Shanley never attempts to answer the question of whether or not Father Flynn is guilty of the things he’s accused of doing. Personally, I don’t believe that he is, but Shanley leaves it open to interpretation. So for those of you that have never seen this movie but worried about what we were going to be getting into tonight, have no fears.

What I really find fascinating is what the film says about the idea of doubt. In the opening sequence, Hoffman's Father Flynn says, "Doubt can be a bond as sustaining as certainty. When you're feeling lost, you are not alone." For most people, the idea of doubt is scary. It seems like something we have to avoid at all costs, something that can prevent us from being a Christian.

So I think this comes back to the question of what is the Biblical response to the concept of doubt. Is doubt OK? I think there are many examples in the Bible of people that, at one time or another, felt lost and had their doubts. Consider the book of Job. Job had a lot go against him, and at times in the book of Job, you can sense that he feels lost, that he feels doubt. Job 30:20 says, “I cry out to you, O God, but you do not answer. I stat up, but you merely look at me.” In his anguish and sorrow, he feels that he’s been abandoned. But, later, his faith is strengthened by all that he’s gone through. Job 42:2 says, “I know that you can do all things; no plan of yours can be thwarted.” That is a big change of attitude.

Job is hardly the only example of this principle. Consider the disciples — the 12 men that spent the most time with Jesus on Earth, the men that were by His side and witnesses to his ministry. Even they had doubt, in fact on more than one occasion Jesus castigates them for their lack of faith. Consider Thomas, sometimes referred to as doubting Thomas. The first trait that comes to mind when thinking about Thomas was his doubt. He received tactile evidence that confirmed his faith.

But despite the fact the disciples sometimes had doubts and fears, they were able to over come that, grow their faith, and accomplish incredible things for God. We wouldn't have a church today if it weren't for the faithful work of the disciples, and that includes Thomas. Thomas is buried in India because he had the courage of his convictions to step out and advance the faith in a foreign land. He embraced his doubt, worked through it, and his faith was strengthened as a result.

The same can be true of us. If we embrace our doubt and work through it in prayer and consideration of the Scriptures, we strengthen our core beliefs and our response to the world.

The other aspect of this film I love is the conflicting ideology when it comes to what the purpose of the church is. For Sister Aloysius, the church gives structure, discipline, and order to the chaos of her life. You get the sense that she didn't join the church because of an abiding love of Jesus Christ or the people of God, but rather to escape the hopelessness of a life situation. And that outlook infects the way she executes her duties.

In Father Flynn, you see something else entirely. My favorite scene in the whole film is when Father Flynn is talking about faith and his view of the church with Sister James. He offers a beautiful quote, saying, "There are people who go after your humanity, Sister, that tell you the light in your heart is a weakness. Don't believe it. It's an old tactic of cruel people to kill kindness in the name of virtue." Sadly, that is the history of our church. Not just in 1964 — when this film is set — but today.

Often, much to my disappointment, the public response from those claiming to represent Jesus Christ on Earth is anger, judgement, and condemnation. Jesus is very clear about what we should not do, the standard we must live up to, and the consequences for not choosing that path. But he never presented the message that way.

When Jesus was asked what the greatest commandment is, He responded, "The most important one is this: 'Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is not commandment greater than these." We are to love God and love others in equal measure. Christians seem to forget this. I am glad this film doesn't.