I can't stand your intolerance!

The church has not often been praised for its loving acceptance and tolerance of different ways of thinking, especially the institutionalized Catholic church in Europe. A while back, some movie makers decided to do a bit of commentary on that issue, and Chocolat was the result.

SPOILER ALERT

In the French town this movie portrays, the church is the mayor's most powerful tool in keeping the people in line. The town looks and acts as it should because the mayor carefully tweaks the priest's sermons to address whatever "issues" he sees stirring up trouble from week to week. When a rule-breaking woman comes to town with her daughter to set up a chocolate shop during Lent, the mayor finds a new bit of trouble to stamp out. Unfortunately for him, this confectionary artist is far more adept at dealing with people's real hurts than anyone else in the town. Naturally, she wins the battle and proves the state's intolerant grip on the church to be virulently harmful, provoking an inspiring sermon on tolerance and acceptance from the town priest.

Touching, I'm sure.

I grant that many so-called Christians are so blinded by their religion that they will have nothing to do with any trace of impropriety. One who doesn't conform to their standards of rightness must repent and be cleansed before enjoying any sort of fellowship. Against such graceless legalism Chocolat rightly preaches, and Christians would do well to listen.

The trouble is that a person who is already bitter against the church will likely watch this movie and scream "That's right! Stupid Christians, why don't they get this??" Ergo, this movie is most likely to turn people off to Christianity. I don't mean to imply that the movie would win countless souls for Christ if it had been made differently, but God uses tools like movies all the time.

Bear in mind that Satan also uses tools like movies all the time. If a church-goer watches Chocolat and becomes bitter against the church for its narrow-mindedness, the movie has been used of Satan. If he instead watches the movie and becomes burdened to better equip the church to minister to hurting people (ministering like the chocolate-maker, but with the gospel), the movie has been used of God.

May we Christians be ever-mindful of the ministerial implications of movies.