A brief note/review from PARSE friend and pastor Mandy Smith on Rich Mullins' new Ragamuffin film. Mandy has good taste, so pay attention. -Paul
I just watched Ragamuffin, the movie based on the life of Rich Mullins and found it quite powerful. (As a personal aside, it was fun to watch it at Cincinnati Christian University, whose hilltop campus is one of the movie's settings.) There were a few "don't forget this is a Christian movie" moments for me, but my 15 year old didn't find it at all cheesy—so that's saying something!
I had not listened to a lot of Mullins' music when it was first popular. So I was able to hear much of it for the first time in the film and was surprised how well it still plays, even 30 years later.
Through some of the most moving scenes (involving Rich's father), it raised some important questions like: "What if we don't feel God's love?" and "How do the limitations of our human relationships affect our ability to receive God's love?" And, as expected, it presented the possibility that broken people can be used by God, in part through some great scenes with Brennan Manning, always an encouraging message for any pastor.
Ragamuffin also wrestled with works/faith issues and themes around Christian celebrity culture. While there were a few brief moments which were a little heavy-handed or awkward, in general the movie presented a raw, human expression of wrestling with faith and I found myself wanting to write down several poignant lines for further reflection—or thinking "I wish so-and-so from my congregation could see this."
I would recommend the film for teens and adults. If you plan to attend a screening or host one plan to have a discussion time afterwards. It will almost certainly prompt some great conversations.
(If you're interested in hosting the film you can email ragamuffinmovie@gmail.com for info.)
Mandy Smith serves as lead pastor at University Christian Church in Cincinnati, Ohio, and is the creator of The Collect, a citywide trash-to-art project.
