The film Of Gods and Men begins with a quotation from the Bible "I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High. But ye shall die like men, and fall like one of the princes." This neatly sums the theme of the film – everyone is a child of God - and also offers an ominous foreshadowing of the ending. Set in an Algerian monastery, nine Catholic monks live in a Muslim area, where they are accepted by the peaceful and friendly community. However, as the true story develops the safety of the monastery is threatened by radical fundamentalists, the faith and philosophy of the monks are revealed and larger socio-economic themes, like governmental decay, religious intolerance, the Christian doctrine of non-violence and terrorism are explored.
At the beginning of the film, Algeria is in a very politically unstable situation. The governmental elections have been stopped, and Islamic groups have been suppressed, the leaders have been jailed and armed groups were being formed in retaliation, Twelve Croatian catholics have been murdered right down the road from the monastery, so the monks are nervous but continue pursuing the quiet life of religious contemplation.
A few days later, on Christmas Eve, after the evening meal, a group of six armed radical Islamists enter the monastery. The leader of the group, Emir, is a terrorist responsible for the death of the Croatians, and the deaths of over a hundred people. He talks with Father Christian,
the head monk, who quotes the Koran, and emphasizes that the monastery is a place of prayer, does not permit weapons. He asks to speak with Emir outside. Among other demands, the terrorists want access to the monastery doctor and the monks refuse. Christian emphasizes the paramount importance of religion in the monastery by telling Emir that it was Christian, a holy time. Emir says he was not aware and apologizes. Surprising, no throats are cut and the situation is left open.
As a strategy, calm, logical and civil discourse seems to have worked. This religious conversation seems to have worked in deescalating the situation. Emir and his men do not return, which is surprising considering their reputation as brutal killers. Interestingly, a few months later Emir is wounded in battle and does not call for the doctor from the monastery. He suffers in the mountains nearby before dying. The monks made no concessions to the terrorists, but appealed to them on a religious and human level. Later in the film they refer to these men as “brothers of the mountain”, indicating they considered them to be religious brothers of faith. This is significant. They see a common bond between themselves and their “enemy”.
The Algerian government offers armed military protection for the monastery, but the monks refuss by using the same argument they had given the terrorists - weapons do not belong in a place of God. However, the monks are worried at this point. Brother Christian is used to making decisions for the group, however, with all their lives at stake, the decision must be made collectively. Some want to leave, but they decide to spend some time praying and contemplating on the subject. This is when their personalities come out and we learn about their attitudes about religious worldviews. Brother Christian is very nervous, feeling responsible for everyone. Brother Luc, however, is much less serious and you can see that his religion sustains and calms
him, making him a humorous character. Ultimately, they stay, following their religious vocational, calling and faith
The story ends tragically. The next two years are increasingly violent in Algeria. The monks continue to question if they should stay, but their faith seems to be a very strong glue. The group always use intense discussions followed by periods of prayer and contemplation. Eventually, most of them kidnapped. Despite a beautiful ending scene that depicts “The Last Supper”, the ending is dismal. Even though the ending is a negative one, there are valuable lessons that can be gleaned from the story.
The films illustrates excellent examples of Christian-Muslim relations, cooperation and friendship, which seems absolutely necessary in the current political climate. Although the monastery was a place of solitude and prayer, the monks were respectful of the local community, culture and religion. Muslims visited the monastery and through these connections with the local population they had opened up healthy Christian-Muslim discourse, which is what is required when two sides have problems, but are unable to understand each other’s positions.
One of the reasons this monastery was so well connected to the local Muslim community was because of Father Christian. He had chosen Algeria for the site of the monastery because of his respect and appreciation of the Islamic religious tradition. He speaks Arabic fluently and has read the Koran. This kind of inter-cultural awareness and respect is essential to improving Christian-Muslim relations. Understanding comes from spending the time to learn about customs and culture and using that knowledge for effective discourse.
Overall, Muslim characters are portrayed positively in the film. They respect and get along with the monks and some are good friends, even eating Christmas dinner with them.
However, the fanatical terrorists are not normal Muslims. They are using their religion to fuel their violence. Brother Christian recognizes that this is not strictly a Muslim problem, when he states "men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from a religious convictions.” This is a radical statement coming for a Catholic Monk. These monks are obviously non-violent men of extreme faith, however, many atrocities and act of “terrorism” have historically been committed by Catholics. Religion can be used to fuel evil.
Immediately after 9/11, John Esposito, an expert on Islamic politics, wrote a book Jihad: Holy or Unholy War, where he discusses the way politically motivated people have used the Muslim faith to justify attacking their enemies. “Jihad is a concept with multiple meanings, used and abused throughout Islamic history.” Quranic verses emphasize that peace, not violence and
warfare, must be the norm. If you must fight, for defense, you must know when to quit: “If your enemy inclines toward peace, then you too should seek peace and put your trust in God”(8:61)
Most importantly, and relevant to this story, is that the rules that govern warfare. It is forbidden in Islam to kill noncombatants as well as women and children and monks and rabbis, who were “given the promise of immunity” (Esposito).
The terrorists that killed the monks may be interpreting their religion incorrectly, however, they believed they are doing something religious, justified and righteous. Esposito concludes his book by suggesting that instead of continuing to wage war with an enemy that wants to die fighting, there must be discourse and an “ideological victory” that encourages mutual tolerance and understanding.
The monks in Of Gods and Men, offer an extreme example of Christian nonviolence in the face of violent anti-Christian fanaticism. The “War on Terror” has been an example of extreme anti-terrorist violence. Both sides are extremists. The overwhelming majority of Muslims are not terrorists, and even some who are terrorists, like Emir from the “brothers of the mountain” are reasonable enough if you approach them non-violently and appeal to their sense of decency and faith. The mutual respect, tolerance and Christian and Mulsim understanding between Brother Christian and Emir is an example of the way forward to finding a solution to radical extremism.
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Works Cited
Bradshaw, P. (2010, January 1). Of Gods and Men. Retrieved November 1, 2014, from http://www.theguardian.com/film/2010/dec/02/of-gods-and-men-review
Esposito, J. (2002). Unholy war: Terror in the name of Islam. New York: Oxford University Press.
Esposito, J. (n.d.). “Jihad: Holy or Unholy War?” Retrieved November 1, 2014, from http://www.unaoc.org/repository/8412J Jihad, Holy or Unholy War, J. Esposito.pdf
Hart, M. (n.d.). “Jihad and the Struggle for Islam.” Rutgers University Press. Retrieved November 2, 2014.
Of gods and men [Motion picture]. (2011). Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.
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