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Movies / On DVD / For the Bible Tells Me So
For the Bible Tells Me So

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For the Bible Tells Me So (2007)

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Reviews Counted:45

Fresh:44

Rotten:1

Average Rating:7.5/10

Consensus: A timely and poignant documentary.

Runtime: 1 hr 38 mins

Genre: Education/General Interest

Synopsis: Can the love between two people ever be an abomination? Is the chasm separating gays and lesbians and Christianity too wide to cross? Is the Bible an excuse to hate? Winner of the Audience Award... Can the love between two people ever be an abomination? Is the chasm separating gays and lesbians and Christianity too wide to cross? Is the Bible an excuse to hate? Winner of the Audience Award for Best Documentary at the Seattle International Film Festival, Dan Karslake's provocative, entertaining documentary brilliantly reconciles homosexuality and Biblical scripture, and in the process reveals that Church-sanctioned anti-gay bias is based almost solely upon a significant (and often malicious) misinterpretation of the Bible. As the film notes, most Christians live their lives today without feeling obliged to kill anyone who works on the Sabbath or eats shrimp (as a literal reading of scripture dictates). Through the experiences of five very normal, very Christian, very American families -- including those of former House Majority Leader Richard Gephardt and Episcopalian Bishop Gene Robinson -- we discover how insightful people of faith handle the realization of having a gay child. Informed by such respected voices as Bishop Desmond Tutu, Harvard's Peter Gomes, Orthodox Rabbi Steve Greenberg and Reverend Jimmy Creech, FOR THE BIBLE TELLS ME SO offers healing, clarity and understanding to anyone caught in the crosshairs of scripture and sexual identity. --© First Run Features [More]

Starring: Desmond Tutu, Steve Greenberg, Dick Gephardt

Starring: Desmond Tutu, Steve Greenberg, Dick Gephardt

Director: Daniel Karslake

Director: Daniel Karslake
Screenwriter: Daniel Karslake
Producer: Daniel Karslake
Studio: First Run Features

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Reviews for For the Bible Tells Me So

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

Karslake reveals ways Scripture has been used to discriminate against homoexuality, and shows how inaccurate interpretations of the Bible cause widespread despair and the destruction of lives.

Full Review Source: About.com | comment Comment
06/09/09
Jennifer Merin
Jennifer Merin
About.com
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
04/23/09
Gerald Peary
Gerald Peary
Boston Phoenix
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Toronto Star | comment Comment
10/18/08
Philip Marchand
Philip Marchand
Toronto Star

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Baltimore Sun | comment Comment
07/16/08
Michael Sragow
Michael Sragow
Baltimore Sun
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
04/03/08
Boxoffice Magazine

Excessivamente convencional em sua estrutura e contendo sua parcela de graves tropeços (a seqüência em animação), este filme ainda assim merece aplausos pela eloqüência de seus entrevistados, pelo teor de sua mensagem e pela paixão com que a defende.

comment Comment
03/19/08
Pablo Villaca
Pablo Villaca
Cinema em Cena

Daniel Karslake’s doc on the extent to which Christian families have embraced their gay children does an admirably thorough job of assembling smart talking heads and personal archives.

Full Review Source: Time Out New York | comment Comment
01/24/08
Melissa Anderson
Melissa Anderson
Time Out New York

One message rings clear throughout the occasionally muddled but always emotionally sweeping film: A true abomination is twisting the words of Scripture to match bigotry.

Full Review Source: Arizona Daily Star | comment Comment
01/17/08
Phil Villarreal
Phil Villarreal
Arizona Daily Star

A thoughtful look at the complicated relationship between Christianity and homosexuality.

Full Review Source: Jam! Movies | comment Comment
01/11/08
Jim Slotek
Jim Slotek
Jam! Movies

Progressive clergy provide enough historical context to neutralize the handful of Bible verses prohibiting homosexual acts, but Karslake never confronts the broader issues of sexuality and procreation that bedevil even moderate Christians.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment 1 Comment
01/11/08
J. R. Jones
J. R. Jones
Chicago Reader

The film offers proof that religion and homosexuality need not be mutually exclusive: Good Christians can love and accept their gay brothers and sisters, and gay people can still be religious.

Full Review Source: EricDSnider.com | comment Comment
12/12/07
Eric D. Snider
Eric D. Snider
EricDSnider.com

A gut-wrenching depiction of what truly defines Family Values.

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
12/04/07
KJ Doughton
KJ Doughton
Film Threat

The movie's serious, wide-ranging look at a divisive subject is not guaranteed to settle disputes, only to prompt discussion.

Full Review Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | comment Comment
11/29/07
Michele Kenner
Michele Kenner
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

This is a compelling, thought-provoking portrait of a quiet challenge rising within America's churches.

Full Review Source: Chicago Tribune | comment Comment
11/29/07
Jessica Reaves
Jessica Reaves
Chicago Tribune

An informative, heartbreaking documentary about intolerance and manipulation, sadly and assuredly never to be seen by the people who need this info the most.

Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment Comment
11/01/07
Brian Orndorf
Brian Orndorf
eFilmCritic.com

The Bible Tells Me So

Full Review Source: culturevulture.net | comment 2 Comments
10/30/07
Les Wright
Les Wright
culturevulture.net

If imperfect, the film is also necessary.

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
10/27/07
Marrit Ingman
Marrit Ingman
Austin Chronicle

Daniel Karslake's remarkable documentary boldly takes on a loaded topic -- Christianity and homosexuality -- and examines it both intellectually and emotionally; the result may well leave you blinking away a few tears.

Full Review Source: Seattle Times | comment 1 Comment
10/26/07
Moira MacDonald
Moira MacDonald
Seattle Times

A brisk, entertaining and even moving exploration of the sometimes frayed intersection where Christianity meets homosexuality.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
10/25/07
Stephen Hunter
Stephen Hunter
Washington Post

Could hardly be called even-handed, and it's certainly repetitive, but despite its failings it's still worth seeing--as so often, especially by those who probably won't.

Full Review Source: One Guy's Opinion | comment Comment
10/20/07
Frank Swietek
Frank Swietek
One Guy's Opinion
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 >> >|
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