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If you've seen many movie previews at the theater recently, you've probably heard these words spoken over Civil War imagery: "They carried the same Bible, they believed in the same God. One side fought for God's glory, the other for his kingdom on earth."

Ron Maxwell is writer, director, producer of the new film Gods and Generals, which is part of what he calls his "civil war trilogy." This second film, set before Maxwell's 1993 Gettysburg, explores issues of faith, patriotism, and war at a time when our nation is again asking many of the same questions.

Were you raised in a spiritual home?

Yes, I was born at Wheelus Air Force Base in Tripoli, Libya, after World War II. My dad taught Sunday school, and he took us as kids to church every week. So church and singing hymns have been part of life from an early age.

How has that affected your sense of calling about the work that you do?

If it has, it's in a very internalized, subconscious way. I'm not on an overt mission of any sort. It has shaped my values and perhaps, the choices I make as a filmmaker.

If I didn't know that I was holding on to the Lord's hand the whole way, I wouldn't have the strength to take the rejection and the doors slamming in my face. I wouldn't have enough patience, and I wouldn't have the peace of mind required to do this kind of work.

What draws you to the Civil War era?

I feel that I'm in the company of a lot of great historians, novelists, and filmmakers who have, grappled with it, tried to understand it, and tried to cope with it in artistic ways. Hopefully we each are adding to the illumination and understanding of that epic, tragic moment in American history where we were forged in a fiery manner into the nation we are today.

What is Christianity's role in the movie and in the Civil War?

Every character in this film, save for one, are believers. This is typical of the mid-19th century. The one man who doesn't believe is Maxcy Gregg, a Confederate general who has been mortally wounded. He knows he's going to die. Stonewall Jackson visits him in the confederate camp. Jackson says, "You must put your mind at ease and concentrate on the world to which you are going."

Gregg answers, "But General Jackson, you know I'm not a believer." There's a pause and Jackson says, "Well then, I will believe for the both of us."

What I like about that moment from history is that even though Jackson himself was a man of faith, he did not judge someone who wasn't. Even though he was a hard man and a tough soldier, he was filled with compassion and Christian forgiveness all the time.

What other themes are stressed in Gods and Generals?

Patriotism, in this film, moves from abstract notion to concrete reality because every character we meet in this film has to ask, "Where do I live? What am I prepared to defend?"

For every character, this is not a simple answer. Lee and Jackson, for instance, swore an oath to the United States. Suddenly they were in a situation where their states were seceding, and they had to make the hardest decision of their life: Do I stay with the United States of America or do I stay with the State of Virginia? It's hard for us to understand, but that generation had conflicting loyalties.

African American characters were also conflicted. Oftentimes in the popular culture we have dehumanized African Americans into a kind of caricature of how they were supposed to behave during the American Civil War. But when you study the diaries and the letters and the newspapers of the time, you find African Americans as conflicted as whites were.

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February (Web-only) 2003, Vol. 47