Keeping the Faith- the Movie

I have a treadmill.  I use it.  It's the excuse I use to watch lots of television.  I can watch as much as I want as long as I am doing my walking.

This week I started watching the movie "Keeping the Faith."  It's billed as a love story about a priest, a rabbi, and their childhood friend.  The love story is there.  It's sweet and not too far-fetched.  But what I really love about the movie is the portrayal of the clergy.  All too often, in movies and shows, clergy are  portrayed in one extreme or another.  They are bumbling or way too holy.  In reality, clergy are just human. This is clear in "Keeping the Faith."  I especially like the supporting cast of the senior rabbi and priest.  They haven't always been perfect, but they've gained wisdom with their years.

It's also about communication, communication with friends, with family, and within our communities, and how it's effected by our roles and what we think we know.

There are so many wonderful tidbits in this movie.  I couldn't possibly name them all.  Here are a few:

A bar mitzvah student, Alan, whose voice is cracking horribly in his lesson says, "I suck! They're gonna take away my Yamulka!"  As expected, Rabbi Jake replies, "No you don't. You don't suck."  
Alan says, "I suck."  Rabbi Jake pauses, thinks, and tells Alan, "Okay.  Yes, you do.  You suck, but that's okay.  You're supposed to suck.  This isn't a talent contest.  This is a rite of passage...  God knew your voice was going to change when you were 13.  There's a reason why you have to do your haftarah at this age.  It's a challenge..."  Alan learns to embrace the suckiness.  Every bar/bat mitzvah student should watch this scene.

There's also a scene between Father Brian (the lead priest) and his senior in the church:
     Father Brian: "I keep thinking about what you said in seminary, that the life of a priest is hard and if you can see yourself being happy doing anything else you should do that."
     Father Havel: That was my recruitment pitch, which is not bad when you're starting out because it makes you feel like a marine. The truth is you can never tell yourself there is only one thing you could be. If you are a priest or if you marry a woman it's the same challenge. You cannot make a real commitment unless you accept that it's a choice that you keep making again and again and again."  
     Father Havel also says, "I've been a priest over 40 years, and I fell in love at least once a decade"  It shows it's not about suppressing feelings.  Following a calling is about making a choice, just like other life choices.  

Anyway, I just really love and appreciate this movie.