First Reformed (2017) Paul Schrader
Everything Happens for a Reason: And Other Lies I've Loved
Kate Bowler (2018)
How are we healed in the face of overwhelming suffering in this world? Both Paul Schrader and Kate Bowler address this reality. The big question and answer is found in the opening scene of “First Reformed”:
The Heidelberg Catechism (1563) Question One: “What is your only comfort in life and in death?”
We get to see Paul Schrader’s response in the lives of the church and Kate Bowler’s reflections on the realities of her own mortality. Both challenge “easy” answers. Both confront modern religious responses of security and certainty.
So where is the healing? I think both authors would argue that healing is the primal mission of the church. I also think that both would agree that suffering is not the antonym of healing. Both see the larger story of faith and community. This is a stark reality for both authors. The good news is that both authors have generated public challenges to the church and the wider culture.
What if being people of “the gospel” meant that we are simply people with good news? God is here. We are loved. It is enough.
Kate Bowler
Thanks for the witness of both these authors,
Marvin
References
First Reformed (2017) written and directed by Paul Schrader
Bowler, Kate. Everything Happens for a Reason: And Other Lies I've Loved (p. 21). Random House Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.
Christian Reformed Church of North America
https://www.crcna.org/welcome/beliefs/confessions/heidelberg-catechism
Hage, ML (2016) Another Kind of Healing
Hage, ML (2016) Another Kind of Healing
