Nearly two years in the making, local nonprofit Joshuacord, in collaboration with In Altum Productions, will release its documentary film Christians in the Mirror this August. The film is a call to action for Christians to look in the mirror and ask, “What am I doing to support my persecuted brothers and sisters in Christ?”
The 50-minute expository documentary compares and contrasts the persecuted Church with the affluent western Church in the United States. While westernized Christians enjoy worshipping in freedom, their brethren in other parts of the world often endure marginalization or in many cases—murder. In 2016, more than 90,000 Christians were killed for their faith.
Joshuacord, founded in 2011 by Patrick Carberry, is a grassroots effort dedicated to raising awareness and financial support for persecuted Christians. Carberry teamed up with film director Jordan Allott, the founder of In Altum Productions, in late 2016.
The filming for the project began in May 2017 with Allott journeying to Egypt, Iraq, Syria, South Sudan and India. The film encapsulates the suffering of the persecuted Church as depicted through five separate vignettes. It also integrates brief but impressionable scripted scenes portraying an ‘American Christian family.’
FishHawk Fellowship, a longtime supporter of Joshuacord, particularly with the annual Joshua 1:9 Freedom Run, lent its location for some of the filming. On July 14, the Tampa actors portraying the American family and local residents playing extras in the film flocked to the FishHawk church.
The visual depiction creates a disparity between the persecuted Church and the western Church. Further, it prompts Christians who are accustomed to religious freedom to ask tough, introspective questions.
Allott said, “What film or anything visual does—is it makes you feel a personal connection with the subjects, the problem and the community.” He continued, “People often want to give to those people, or that school or hospital seen in film. We are going to make that information available on our website as well as specific organizations helping in those areas.”
With 350,000 churches throughout the United States, Carberry explained their purpose for the documentary, “The goal and vision is to get the film to them [the 350,000 churches], so they will show it to their church, their youth groups and organizations.”
He continued, “By educating our churches in America, we hope they will step up to do more, and also match churches here with persecuted churches and organizations overseas.”
For more information or to see how you can help, visit www.christiansinthemirror.com. To host a screening, email screenings@christiansinthemirror.com. The film’s trailer and a listing of premieres are also available online.
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