???Tucked into the back of Rust Belt Books on Allen Street last Friday, church-members and students watched Lord Save Us From Our Followers, a documentary that sets out to address how some Christians in America have given their religion a bad reputation.
???It was a second screening presented by Pastor Drew Ludwig of Lafayette Presbyterian Church, who said he hopes the film will spur discussion between Christians and non-Christians.
???"I'm hopeful it will generate more conversation and it will allow [us] to enter the conversation a little more humbly, and a little more willing to listen," Ludwig said.
???Dan Merchant, the film's director and producer, wrote both the film and the book it is based on. Merchant is an evangelical Christian who spent two years collecting interviews from around the country to show the good, the bad and ugly actions of Christians across America.
???In one scene, Merchant hits the street donned in a white jumpsuit covered in bumper stickers to conduct street interviews. He also interviews familiar faces from the media, such as Al Franken, a comedian and senatorial candidate, Rick Santorum, a Fox News contributor and former senator, Michael Reagan, a conservative radio host and Tony Campolo, a liberal pastor.
???The movie even features "Culture Wars," a Family Feud-styled faux-game show where the non-religious and religious are tested on their understanding of each other.
???Viewers at the bookstore said that Merchant's words of humility, love and unity were easier to consider than his message, that all Christians must take a critical look at their own actions.
???"Talking about the dividing issues means we recognize that they exist [as well as] a potential resolution," said Patty Banning, an Elmwood Village resident and member of the Lafayette Presbyterian Church. "If you don't see it, you can't fix it, so I still have faith that this can be undone and that there can be healing and peace."
???Seth Wagner, a sophomore anthropology major, and his older sister Bethany, a student at Buffalo State College, attended the film because they wanted to get a better understanding of problems facing Christians and what they could do to change them.
???"It was so powerful [for] me to hear the church is failing and we're failing in our mission," Bethany said. "I've always kind of felt it, and I need a clear picture as to why and how to fix it."
???Both said Christians have engaged in antagonizing behavior that has portrayed their faith in an unfavorable light.
???"Over time, we have earned that reputation," Bethany said. "There's something behind that, they've had experience where somebody got in their face, or they had an experience where they were asked to leave a church."
???Ludwig said that the so-called "wedge issues," such as the mention of God on money and in the Pledge of Allegiance, school prayer and homosexual marriage, are dividing Americans.
???"The truth is we've allowed ourselves to be manipulated by fear," Ludwig said. "Before we worry about everyone else, we need to worry about ourselves."
???According to Ludwig, his purpose as a pastor has been to help Christians act more like Jesus, a topic he said the film addresses well.
???"Hopefully, it will communicate to non-Christians that we're sorry for the ways we've screwed up before, and that the way we communicated the faith isn't what it's supposed to be," Ludwig said.
