Adolf Hitler, Abortion and the Gospel: Ray Comfort and the "180" Movie

“I give my unflinching, joyful, trembling Yes to ‘180’.” - John Piper, Bethlehem Baptist Church

     Earlier today, I happened to see a post by my good friend Chris on Facebook, a link to a video of what appeared to be a documentary titled "180". He had written some earnest words of appeal below them, pleading with those who saw his link to watch it, even if they didn't know him. On first sight, I had assumed it to be quite probable that it was another slightly sensationalist but mildly interesting video clip, like the thousands of others posted by Facebook users everyday, whether friend, foe, acquaintance or complete stranger. However, I also know Chris to be a quiet and level-headed young man, with a recently-awakened and burning love in his heart for God and the message of the Gospel. So I made a mental note of the video, and after coming home from work and a hot shower, settled down to watch it on the side while doing other things on my computer. As it turned out, I was unable to - watch it on the side, that is. It succeeded in riveting my attention from the very first frame - "Do you know about Adolf Hitler?" - to the last. And in doing so, reminded me of the inferno that God has lit in my heart as well.

A still from the "180" Movie

     "180" is a short, 33-minute documentary of a series of conversations had with people on the street by Ray Comfort, the interviewer and narrator of the documentary. Describing himself as "Jewish, and deeply concerned that a generation is forgetting one of the greatest tragedies in the history of the human race." Proceeding to interview people on the street about what they knew about Hitler and the Holocaust, Ray documents some astounding conversations with all manner of people, from Neo-Nazis and a survivor of the German assault on Russia during World War II to the indifferent and apathetic, and everyone in between. In the course of the conversation, he both incisively examines and challenges their perspective of abortion, good, evil, sin, God, heaven, hell, judgement, salvation, Jesus, the Cross and the Gospel. As shocking as it was to watch some of the conversations and worldviews expressed in them, the conclusions at the end were equally powerful in their impact. I've embedded the online documentary for viewing below:

     Ray Comfort and the 180 movie reminded me of why I go out, either alone or with friends every Sunday afternoon to converse with the people of downtown Vancouver. I want to engage them about what they believe, and why they believe what they believe. I want to stop them in their mental tracks and make them think carefully about all these issues that are so important in life, and that we sometimes make ad-hoc decisions about, believing whatever is told us. I want them to see. The burning passion of "180" is the same as that which God has placed in my heart - to make known in this city the name of Christ, the wisdom and power of God, echoing the thoughts of the Apostle Paul in his first letter to the Corinthian church:

    "For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.” Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach1 to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men." (1 Corinthians 1:18-25, ESV)

    As "180" began running through its final few frames and Ray Comfort delivered his concluding lines, I was reminded of the verse from Paul's second letter to the Corinthians:

    "For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ..." (2 Corinthians 10:3-5, ESV)

    Thank you, God for pouring oil on the flame in Chris' heart and mine. May it only burn brighter.

- The Wisdom Seeker

REFERENCES:
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[1] The 180 Movie

[2] The Way of The Master (YouTube Channel)
[3] 180 Movie Facebook Page
[4] Project Heart Changer
[5] Atheist Central: Ray Comfort's Blog

Engaging The Marketplace: Sharing @ Blim's Farmer's Market

Blim's Farmer's Market along Granville Street

    This post is coming almost two weeks late! Life's been quite hectic, mostly with work both on-site and at the office, so it's taken longer to write this post than I wanted. Two Sundays ago, I had decided to visit the Blenz coffee shop at West Georgia and Dunsmuir street in downtown Vancouver. It was among the most extensively vandalised stores during the riot that followed the final game of the Stanley Cup last June. During the course of the night, all it's windows were smashed, the interior destroyed and systematically pillaged over two hours, while the manager and an employee locked themselves in a room in the back. The store collectively incurred in excess of $50,000 of damage and stolen equipment. It has taken more than two months to renovate and restore this coffee shop to a point where it can open for business once more.

    I was happy to see the boarding gone from their store, and wanted to say so. So as I did before with The Bay, London Drugs and Chapters, I wrote a card for the management and staff, and visited them in the afternoon, hoping to listen to their experience during the riot and their reflections about what had happened to them. However, the manager and employee who had been in the store during the riot were not there, so I left the card with the barista on shift, ordered myself a hot chocolate and looked around the shop. Everything in the shop, I was told, was brand new. There were lots of flowers from well-wishing customers, and a comment board that had been written on. Here are some photos:

The Blenz Coffee at W Georgia and Richards

The entrance to Blenz

The comment board

The newly-renovated interior

     I wandered out onto the street sometime later, wondering if I could engage someone in conversation about life and faith, as I had done before. It was while wandering up Granville Street that I came across a section that had been closed to traffic, and housing a small summer market with a number of stalls. Out of curiosity, I began wandering through them, and suddenly came upon one that caught my eye, titled "The Studio", with the words "Downtown Eastside Studio Society" below it. It turned out to be a non-profit arts workshop and publishing house, exhibiting the works of emerging writers from the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver, who had/were "facing facing social barriers such as mental illness, addiction, and homelessness to undertake creative writing projects and publish their work into  books." Two such writers were at the table, Chantelle and Melanie, with their facilitator Aaron, who I had the privilege of taking a photo with and have posted below:

With Chantelle, Aaron and Melanie at The Studio

     In the process of conversing with Melanie and Chantelle and looking through a book on sale that contained the works of writers from The Studio, I had the privilege of listening to Chantelle's story, as she recounted how she had emerged from a life involving drug usage through the help of an Anglican church located downtown. As we talked, we shared our thoughts on life, evil, faith, sin and the need for a God to rescue us from the evil that resides in us. I came away both humbled and happy, but also saddened, as I pondered the brief details of her story that I had had the privilege to listen to. Over and over again, it seems to me that those who profoundly understand the power of the Cross and the Gospel seem not to be those who have lived comfortable and "safe" lives, but those who have encountered the power of God in the most wretched circumstances and experienced firsthand both the depth of evil that lies in the human heart, and their redemption from it. I hope I have another chance to speak with Chantelle and other writers facilitated by The Studio, and listen to their stories and perspectives on life.

     Wandering up the market, I stopped by another stall that said "Trudy Ann's Bombay Masala Chai". Interesting, I thought - an Indian tea enterprise in the middle of a farmer's market? I was in for a surprise. One of the ladies behind the table, serving samples of tea to curious visitors turned out to be the namesake of this little enterprise, the "Trudy Ann Tellis" of the business. As always happens when two Indians meet, we inquired as to each other's backgrounds, and I was stunned to discover that she was from Mumbai, the same city that my mother had grown up in. As also always happens when two Indians meet and find commonalities, this led to lots of storytelling and reminiscing, all done while she poured me consecutive samples of the different types of chai tea being sold. "Auntie Trudy" (who inquired if I was Christian, and subsequently informed me that she was Catholic) and her friend Mital, the other lady at the stall, were most kind and conversational, and I ended up buying a packet of Fennel Chai Tea, and signing up for both their music and tea mailing lists, as Trudy Ann's sons happen to be professionally performing jazz musicians. I visited her businesses' website, which turned out to be wonderfully designed in a manner that evoked fond memories of India, and a biography of Trudy Ann. It can be found here. I look forward to meeting them again, and buying more tea!

Mital and Trudy Ann at Trudy Ann's Bombay Masala Chai

Trudy Ann Tellis' biography, from the website

 

     In all, it turned out to be a most interesting and thought-provoking Sunday afternoon. I came away feeling that as much as I had set out with the intent to share my faith with the people of downtown Vancouver, it seemed that I had been the one who had been shared with, and loved. See you in the next post!

REFERENCES: 

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[1] The Studio
[2] Trudy Ann's Bombay Masala Chai

Post-Riot: Sharing @ Chapters

     Yesterday, I had once again taken a trip downtown after church to share my faith with people once again. This time I was accompanied by my friend Sam, to visit the Chapters store at Robson and Howe streets that had been vandalized during the riots. This was an interesting case in particular, because there were patrons of the store that had formed a barricade in front of the store against rioters and fought them off as they attempted time and again to break in. They had prevented firebombs from being thrown into the store as well. In spite of their best efforts, the rioters had still managed to break a good number of windows by throwing horseshoes that were on display outside the store through them. I had the privilege of hearing these details of that night from two of the store managers who were kind enough to meet us and talk to us for a bit.

     Although the apology boards had been taken down from outside The Bay since I had visited it two weeks ago, the boards outside Chapters were still there. Some of the inscriptions on them were interesting to note, and I've attached photos that I'd taken on Canada Day in the area around London Drugs and Chapters.

Painted fabric apology and sympathy messages outside London Drugs

Apology Board at the front of Chapters

Apology Boards at the side of Chapters Bookstore

Close-up of a section of one of the Apology Boards

     After we had finished at Chapters, we went back to London Drugs where I had visited last week. I was trying to find the salesperson I had met and shared with last week. However, things took quite a surprising and interesting turn as God led us to a different salesperson, whom we had a most interested and lengthy conversation with. He had been in the store during the night of the riots, and described how the staff had been taken to a secure room and waited there while the rioters broke in and systematically looted the cosmetics, photography and computer departments. There was still an iPad and other devices missing and waiting to be replaced. We talked for an extended conversation about his opinion on whether what had been done was evil, and what he thought justice exercised on the perpetrators would look like.

     From London Drugs, we crossed the street and went back to The Bay where I had first started my foray into street evangelism two weeks ago. I was looking for the salesperson that I had first met when I visited there. I wanted to try reconnecting with him, and talk about his ideas on evil, justice and forgiveness, just as I had at London Drugs. I was really happy to see him once again at the same section where I had first encountered him. Although we had to wait for a bit while he finished serving other customers, I was really happy that God allowed us to have a wonderful conversation with him about his thoughts on evil, justice and whether it would be possible for the store management and staff to forgive the people who had vandalized their store.

     I found it really interesting that on both cases (at London Drugs and The Bay), the salespeople in question did not think that what had been done was "evil"; they preferred to describe it as merely "stupid" and "reckless", because of the fallout that the perpetrators were currently experiencing as they had been caught on camera and were being sought by the police. When I asked one of them what the difference between "stupid" and "evil" looked like on that night and where one stopped and the other began, his opinion was that the evil began when the rioters started burning cars and other items of property. However, it was equally interesting that when I raised the question of justice and forgiveness with both people, they were strongly opinionated in favour of teaching those who would be caught the seriousness of what they had done. Both men were firm in their belief that sending the offenders to prison was not the solution; they wanted them to make restitution by returning to the store what they had taken, or compensating it monetarily or through community service. They also felt that they would forgive the offenders only if they made restitution in that kind of form.

     As we walked away, I had much to think about what they had said. There were some thoughts that made sense in what they said, but many other aspects of their worldview and response that I felt were at times self-contradictory. I need to do some more thinking before I post my own thoughts on the matter.

    This last week of July is a very significant and will be a very interesting week for me. I will be writing more about this in the next few days. See you when the next one gets uploaded.

- The Wisdom Seeker