Our Academy Awards As Contemporary Religious Art

ALPHA OMEGA ARTS
By Tahlib

"Argo" winner of "Best Picture"

Last night, while "Argo" walked away with the "Best Picture" Oscar, the real winner was those who believe that movies are an artform that can help us to understand faith.  "Les Miserables," "Lincoln," and "Django Unchained" are all reflections on Christianity; "Life of Pi" is a window into Hinduism; "Beasts of the Southern Wild" explores the power of myth-making; "The Master" invites a closer look at Scientology; and obviously both "Argo" and "Zero Dark Thirty" are ways of looking at Islam. Even "Silver Linings Playbook" which I did see and "Amour," which I did not see offer new ways of seeing the quest for truth and love, which at its essence is religion. During an evening without any stand-out references to God or organized religion, the movies of 2013 introduced American audiences to an interfaith experience they'd never enjoyed before, and that's why believers are the real winners.