OFFBEAT: Film actor Gerard Butler at Munster Family Christian Center today for free event

http://www.nwitimes.com/entertainment/columnists/offbeat/article_c639b0f3-c86a-5583-a23f-90a06aa1f342.html


OFFBEAT: Film actor Gerard Butler at Munster Family Christian Center today for free event

Movie actor Gerard Butler, the popular star of films such as "Law Abiding Citizen," "Bounty Hunter" and "P.S. I Love You" is in Munster today as a guest of The Family Christian Center to promote his new movie "Machine Gun Preacher."

The public is invited to the free event and there are two opportunities to attend his presentations, which are at 5 and 7 p.m.

Butler, 41, first became a household name in 2004 after director Joel Schumacher cast him as the masked lead in the film version of the stage musical "The Phantom of the Opera." Though not usually thought of as a singer, his vocal talents even impressed Andrew Lloyd Webber.

More recently, it's been Butler's fit physique, especially his defined abs, that have earned him attention, especially after showcased in his guise of a gladiator in the 2006 film "300."

But this new project spreads a far more important message of awareness and faith, according to David Jordan Allen of the Family Christian Center, with Butler's soon-to-be-released new film offering a story and a role which even the actor describes as "moving."

The new movie, which he'll be discussing, is called "Machine Gun Preacher" because it is the inspirational true story of Sam Childers, who is played by Butler.

Childers, a former drug-dealing criminal, experienced a life transformation when he found an unexpected calling as the savior to hundreds of kidnapped and orphaned children in Sudan.

The former biker gang member, who is now 49, is the founder of the Angels of East Africa Rescue, an organization that rescues children from starvation, disease and enslavement in territories controlled by the brutal Lord's Resistance Army, a renegade militia that forces the youth generation of the country to become soldiers even before they reach their teens.

Directed by Marc Forster and distributed in the U.S. by Relativity Media, the film is rated R and opens nationwide in select theaters beginning Sept. 23.

Butler, who was born and raised in Scotland in a devout Roman Catholic family, is also a trained lawyer, but decided to explore acting in the mid-1990s after a small role in the James Bond film "Tomorrow Never Dies" in 1997.

For more information, call the Family Christian Center at (219) 922-6500.

http://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/lake/munster/article_68903d8b-1b03-55cc-8744-a19d656dfe81.html


Actor misses church discussion on faith film

MUNSTER | Movie actor Gerard Butler canceled an announced appearance Wednesday night at Family Christian Center in Munster, where he was supposed to discuss his new film.

Butler, 41, the popular star of films such as "Law Abiding Citizen," "300," "Bounty Hunter" and "P.S. I Love You," was promoted by the church as a draw and scheduled to speak at both the 5 and 7 p.m. weekly services.

However, event organizers said the actor was delayed in Chicago with media interviews while promoting his new $30 million film "Machine Gun Preacher."

The event alert sent to media Sunday invited the general public to the free event held the facility's 4,000 seat auditorium.

Rather than hearing Butler, the audience at both services heard from the "real" Sam Childers, the man known as "The Machine Gun Preacher" and who Butler portrays in the film. He was joined by the film's screenwriter Jason Keller, discussing the film and the impact faith has to change "a person's life mission."

Childers, a former drug-dealing criminal, experienced a life transformation when he found an unexpected calling as the savior to hundreds of kidnapped and orphaned children in Sudan.

The former biker gang member, who is now 49, is the founder of the Angels of East Africa Rescue, an organization that rescues children from starvation, disease and enslavement in territories controlled by the Lord's Resistance Army, a renegade militia that forces the youth generation of the country to become soldiers even before they reach their teens.

Directed by Marc Forster and distributed in the U.S. by Relativity Media, the film is rated R and opens nationwide in select theaters, beginning Sept. 23.

David Jordan Allen, director of media relations for the Family Christian Center, said Childers has spoken at the facility in the past and accepted donations for his projects in Africa.

A couple of comments on JJ questioning the absence:

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AND - I wonder how prepared Butler is to have his own spiritual beliefs put under a microscope in a situation like this.

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Maybe his team was worried about the potential for f-bombs or threesome comments in front the church members and decided it was best to avoid an awkward situation.

I agree, the real Sam was the better choice anyway. When I heard about this, it rubbed me the wrong way. It just seemed very inappropriate.

At least this way those who went to hear about the situation in Africa and gain knowledge of those children and Sam's work rather than to 'ooh' and 'aah' at Butler came back with something. Somehow a church doesn't seem an appropriate place to gawk at an actor...at least not in my opinion.

I guess you could take his absence in one or two ways. Certain folks who feel that he should "settle down" and stop partying may think visiting a Christian church would be a good thing for him. Fundamentalist Christians (not Catholic) love to evangalize people into their ways of living. I remember Jessica Beal saying in an interview that she was talking to a young fellow who was Christian at the time she was 1st in a relationship with Justin Timberlake and he boldly asked her if she was "fornicating." It was uncomfortable for her of course. Maybe Gerry is aware of this sort of thing and decided to keep away. Alot of serious Christians would LOVE to say they helped a famous actor get "saved." Sam apparently was smart enough not to approach Gerry that way or think of doing that, I'm assuming, because he didnt want to make Gerry uncomfortable while making the film.

On the other hand DonnaKat has a good point. I guess the church leaders would want their congregation to focus more on Sam and his story than on Gerry. they may feel he could be a distraction from the whole point of Sam's mission and this story of redemption (however controversial). either way maybe it was a good choice for both parties.

I feel like some discussions/comments are leaning to the assumption that Gerry is NOT religious already. We don't know his own personal religious beliefs. He was raised Catholic and could very well still be one. Even if he isn't practicing formally or in a specific denomination, he may be privately religious in his own way. A lot of times people equate being religious with not having a life. Which is way off. You can go to bars and nightclubs, not have a problem with cussing, be a little rough around the edges......while all at the same time still being a Christian (or whatever belief you hold).

Whether or not it was the appropriate decision to have Gerry speak or not speak at the church, I guess I just don't like the idea of his personal faith system being put under a microscope. He's under no obligation to explain or answer questions about his personal beliefs, unless the Spirit moves him to (pun intended, haha). He's an actor. He's portraying someone else and the faith of this other person. There may be some overlap between Sam's faith and Gerry's, but that's up to Gerry if he feels like sharing.

The intent of my post was not to question anyone's beliefs and/or spirituality, but rather the motivations behind having him speak at a church in the first place. I would have the same issue of a church using a service as an excuse to leech money from it's members at the expense of feeding their souls. I've been to services that turned into carnival like events, where people would stand up and boldly state what they were going to "offer". Then another member would stand up and "better" them. Some of these people...not all, but some of them...used their good deed as an excuse to gloat, and the fact it turned into an auction sickened my stomach. Not to mention the fact that those who could not afford to give or not give so much were embarassed and shamed, or even guilted into giving simply out of peer pressure. "Everyone needs to stand and give something!!" ... as if you were doomed for hell if you didn't. I don't like to be pressured. God isn't interested in gifts given and deeds performed with the wrong motivation.

That being said, Sam is the real person behind this story and in a spiritual sense I think he's the better person to speak, at least in my opinion. And I don't mean that in a "he's a better person than Gerry" sense, but rather he's better fitting for the speaking role since he lived the life, rather than portray someone else living the life. It's the difference between reading about something and experiencing it first hand. It's sort of like when they would always hire married people to minister at singles church conferences. Yes, the message might be good, but it was harder to swallow from someone who wasn't walking in my shoes.

Personally I think it's wrong to use church services to plug movies, however inspirational, unless that particular church invested in those movies, or rented or bought the movies to be shown to the congregation before or after the talks.

The next step after inviting speakers to plug movies would be putting up movie posters in the sanctuary. Then Bible readings, hymns, prayers, and sermons sponsored by commercial ventures.

"Our gathering hymn today is sponsored by Subway. Subway now serves breakfast right around the corner after Services. Let us stand."

Sermonizer: "For example. The other day I pulled up to the McDonald's drivethru on 3rd and Main and ordered me a Big Mac, large fries, and large Diet Coke. I couldn't decide if I wanted an apple pie or a chocolate chip cookie. Then the Lord showed me a sign..."

Such a slippery slope.

DonnaKat I think the motivation was problably to get more people to come to their center maybe see if they could get them to join their church besides the money. They problaby decided to keep the focus on Sam and his story, not Gerry which is smart. LadyNola, alot of fundamentalist churches feel that even Catholic or other traditional religions are wrong in their methods and feel that THEIR particular doctrine is the right way. Gerry seems strong enough not to be swayed, but after experiencing briefly some fundamentalist churches they really dont approve or nightclubs, cussing, bars among other things. From my own experience, I wouldnt be surprised if someone did try to address it. They pretty much frown on many things that the average social butterfly or person in a realtionship does today. Hence what the young Christian dude said to Jessica Biel.

I feel bad for the people who made an effort to attend just to see GB. Did they put up an announcement at the door that GB wasn't going to be there so those people could leave before entering the services?

Just to clarify: My comments about people questioning Gerry's religious beliefs weren't directed at you, Donna. Actually, they were not quite as much about some of the comments here on this forum as they were about the JJ comment.

And I think you all make a very good case for why maybe Gerry was not the appropriate person to address the church.

And luvthatgerryjuice, you are right that some of the more fundamentalist Christians tend to label anything fun a sin. I have had plenty of experience being around those types of folks. Their opinions are not very much in line with my particular Christian faith. I tend to steer clear of anyone who tries to lay a guilt trip on me or threaten me with Hell as a way to get me to be in line with their way of thinking.