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Christians, Guns, and Putting on the Armor of Light: An Interview with Abigail E. Disney

October 05, 2015 by Deborah Arca

Continued from Page 2

I was raised in a very conservative Catholic family and ran from that. You know, there's falling away, and then there's running away! But I was the little girl in church who was really listening. I took it very seriously and I had a statue of Mary next to my bedside table. So I heard it and it carved itself very deeply into who I am, and has shaped me very much in my life. So whether I'm observant or not, I'm faithful. Whether I'm a believer or not, I have faith. So that's wired in me.

I loved making Pray the Devil Back to Hell and seeing the role that faith played in the women's lives and how deeply wired it was in the main character. People of faith really turned out for that film, we realized, because we were positing faith as part of the answer, not part of the problem. That really resonated for people of faith.

So though I wasn't looking for a faith topic, I think my unconscious was. I lost both of my parents in the last couple of years, so I know I was trying to make it right with them politically, but I also think I was reaching back into my childhood a bit too, to make it right with the faith I didn't accept when I was young.

I've really enjoyed being in these communities of faith and talking to people about their faith. In New York City, man, we're such hipsters, liberals, and there's just nothing more embarrassing than talking about your faith. So it feels like settling into a very cozy comfy chair to sit around the table with really brilliant, well-intended, decent, spiritual people and talk about Jesus. I'm really enjoying it. You could knock me over with a feather, I'm really surprised.

What's been the early response to the film from Christians, especially the Evangelical audience?

At one of the earliest screenings, one guy seemed very agitated and angry, and got up and talked about his Second Amendment rights and it really rankled him. When he got to the end of his thing, I thanked him for his input and then said that I was curious what his wife thought. It was just an impulse, I don't really know why I said it. Her eyes got really wide, and she was so surprised I was interested in what she thought. And she burst into tears and started sobbing uncontrollably. When she pulled herself together, she said, "You know this whole thing is out of control. Something needs to happen." So that was two opinions in one household.

What we're finding is that young audiences embrace this film 100 percent. We haven't heard a single negative response from age 35 and younger. Most of them react by saying thank you for making this film. On the older end of the spectrum, women are much more positive than men, but not universally so. There are a ton of pastors, so many more pastors than you can possibly imagine, who are absolutely with us and begging us to bring the film to their churches.

Learn more about The Armor of Light and the Faith Over Fear tour at the film website here.

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About Deborah Arca

Deborah Arca is the former Director of Content at Patheos. Prior to joining Patheos, Deborah managed the Programs in Christian Spirituality at the San Francisco Theological Seminary, including the Program's renowned spiritual direction program and the nationally-renowned Lilly-funded Youth Ministry & Spirituality Project. Deborah has also been a youth minister, a director of music and theatre programs for children and teens, and a music minister. Deborah belongs to a progressive United Church of Christ church in Englewood, CO.

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