Christian Themes


Saw this movie today with the family. I took it for what it was going to be and I enjoyed it. It was also good to see Henry Winkler. What took me by surprise was the overtly Christian appearances throughout the movie. It was not saturated with them, but lightly sprinkled throughout none-the-less. What particularly blatantly stood out were the verse from Genesis quoted at the dinner table; the songs played by P.O.D., Neil Diamond (Henry's character associates it with a type of Christian genre I am unfamiliar with and Kevin's character said it sounded like a revival), and Steve Azar; and the prayer before the fight. I've never seen any of Kevin James' movies/shows associated with Christianity so I found it interesting.

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More fighters that you realize pray before fighting, it is not just a Christian thing. Martial Arts DOES have a spiritual component to them.

As for the quote at the dinner table, the trainer was Italian (many of whom are Catholic).

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I was going to say something similar. I have known a lot of fighters over the years and they all prayed before their fights. So while there was some "Christian overtones" they were all really believable in the context it was shown in in the movie. It wasn't hitting you over the head with it.

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I am a deist, and I wasn't bothered at all with the "Christian" aspects of the movie. It's not like they were beating people over the head with Bibles. They're in America...lots of Christians here, so it's not that big of a stretch to see or hear people praying or wearing crosses.
I think you're confusing Christianity with just plain positivity. These teachers are reaching out to their students, trying to inspire them. They end up trying to help a fellow teacher save his job. What's wrong with that??
As for praying before the fight, when I was in high school, our football players ALWAYS prayed before a game, not just for victory, but for a safe game for BOTH teams. Hubby was a wrestler, and he says they always prayed before matches. It's a very common practice.
By the way, teaching evolution does not mean that one does not believe that God had a part in the whole process. And even though I'm a deist, I don't see Christianity, or movies that contain Christian elements, as a bad thing. This world could use a lot more of the values this movie tries to illustrate.
Just curious...Did you see the pregnancy of HW's wife as a pro-life prod? Or just as a part of a movie? It's a shame people can't just enjoy a movie without griping about something...racism, sexism, whatever. They're just movies. I wish our school system had more teachers with the passion of HW character. I wish there were more people who would go out on a limb for the benefit of someone else. I wish more women would act like SH's character, and expect some respect from men before just jumping into bed with them.
I liked the movie. It definitely has a positive message, Christian or not. Better that than seeing drug dealers and addicts shooting each other for an hour and a half.

I will not be beaten; you have yet to see me shining!

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I'm not a Christian or anything else for that matter, but I am absolutely stunned by this thread. FFS it's just a feel good movie and I liked it. I wear a cross because my father (deceased) gave it to me. So what?

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