This time of year is not just about the gifts‚ the songs‚ the food‚ and the decorations. It’s a season of remembrance; it’s a season of giving and serving those around us.

This time of year is not just about the gifts‚ the songs‚ the food‚ and the decorations. It’s a season of remembrance; it’s a season of giving and serving those around us.

The Prince of Egypt released 25 years ago this year. A quarter century later‚ it remains one of the greatest biblical epics created on film. With careful discernment and conversation with children‚ this film can offer a powerful visual of God’s incredible power. This animated adaptation of the story of Moses and the exodus gets a lot right. It also gets a few things wrong. This is pretty much what could be said of any Hollywood adaptation of the Bible. Films like this prompt us to consider an important question: What sort of creative license should we be willing to accept when it comes to biblical adaptations? Truth That Sparks Imagination Part of what makes The Prince of Egypt powerful is that it employs show-stopping music and compelling visuals to help guide its story. Sunday school flannelgraphs can only go so far in helping us imagine the breadth of God’s power on display in the exodus story. The use of these combined elements serves not as a pen to rewrite the story but as a lens by which to view it in a creative way. Films like this prompt us to consider an important question: What sort of creative license should we be willing to accept when it comes to biblical adaptations? The film opens with a sequence that feels ripped out of the opening of Les Misérables. Slaves are worked and whipped to the sound of a full orchestra playing “Deliver Us‚” an epic song of Israel crying out to God. We learn time and time again in Exodus that God’s chosen people are quick to complain when things are difficult. Yet this opening song displays a powerful balance of faith and uncertainty. We can still trust God to deliver us even as our agonizing yearning for help is real and expressed. Later highlights include the hair-raising music cue that introduces the burning bush and the jaw-dropping majesty of the parted Red Sea. As a kid‚ watching The Prince of Egypt helped inspire my imagination and encouraged me to embrace the reality that my brain could never begin to scratch the surface of comprehending God’s full power. The film does an excellent job of exploring the character of Moses (voiced by Val Kilmer). In Exodus 3‚ it’s clear Moses is only an echo of the true Deliverer who would one day come. He’s flawed and obviously not thrilled with what God is calling him to do. When God appears in the burning bush‚ Moses denies the wisdom of God’s choice three different times‚ ultimately leading to Aaron’s involvement to speak on his behalf. While the film doesn’t include the call of Aaron‚ it does make clear that Moses is more concerned with his own strength than with the strength of God on display through him. It’s an important reminder of our own temptation to doubt God’s ability to use us. Scripture Must Come First‬‬‬ When adapting an existing story to film‚ it’s important to stay true to the source material. However‚ even when a film gets a number of things right‚ it can be tough to look past glaring inaccuracies. Take another film about the exodus story‚ for example. In Cecil B. DeMille’s The Ten Commandments (1956)‚ Moses isn’t the hesitant and unsure servant who comes to find courage in the power of God. He’s a courageous and wise hero played by the strong-jawed Charlton Heston. While it may seem like a small change‚ it can make a substantial difference in how audiences view this biblical story. It quickly becomes less about God working in those who are weak and broken and more about how God chooses those who are already strong and capable of leading by themselves. So where does The Prince of Egypt miss the mark? Some story additions are questionable at best. Every film needs a dramatic inciting incident. In this film‚ that moment is Moses discovering who he really is‚ a Hebrew who was sentenced to die by Pharaoh. While we don’t know for sure‚ most scholars believe Moses would have been aware of his heritage‚ having been nursed and cared for by his Hebrew mother for the early part of his life (Ex. 2:6–10). Another of the film’s questionable storylines is the close relationship between Moses and the new Pharaoh (voiced by Ralph Fiennes)—something never referenced in Scripture. This confusing choice turns Pharaoh into a character who demands a certain level of empathy from Moses and the audience. Finally‚ the catchy main song‚ “When You Believe” (a version of which was released by Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey)‚ has a big issue at its core. The chorus of the song declares‚ “There can be miracles when you believe. . . . Who knows what miracles‚ you can achieve / When you believe.” This may sound nice and inspiring‚ but in reality‚ God is going to do what God is going to do. God doesn’t depend on our belief to perform his wonders‚ and we aren’t the ones who catalyze those wonders (Ps. 50:10–12; Acts 17:24–25). As you watch the film with your children‚ especially if they start singing this catchy song‚ it may be worth discussing the important theological nuance. Creative License in Biblical Storytelling If you’re a fan of books like The Lord of the Rings or Harry Potter‚ you’ve experienced firsthand the impossibility of full accuracy when translating a story into a film. People will read books in small chunks over days or months but will only sit to watch a movie for a two- to three-hour stretch. This means writers adapting from page to screen must selectively convey the most important character elements and story beats that stay true to the source narrative‚ even as they find ways to keep an audience engaged for an uninterrupted few hours. The same principle applies to adapting biblical stories. Do we expect biblical adaptations will only use dialogue explicitly taken from the pages of the Bible? Is there no leeway to fill in the details of what a Bible character’s personality might have been like‚ as long as the creative liberties taken don’t contradict anything asserted in Scripture? Consider any recent Bible adaptation on screen: Darren Aronofsky’s Noah‚ Ridley Scott’s Exodus: Gods and Kings‚ or Dallas Jenkins’s The Chosen. Each of these works has inspired much conversation and critique‚ often focused on the notable additions or unique interpretations of Bible characters or scenes. This sort of critique is fair—especially when an instance of creative liberty with the biblical text has problematic theological implications. But we can sometimes be so concerned with word-for-word‚ beat-for-beat accuracy that we miss the value in these works to bring the pages of Scripture to new audiences and ultimately point people back to the Bible. We can be so concerned with word-for-word‚ beat-for-beat accuracy that we miss the value in these works to bring the pages of Scripture to new audiences and ultimately point people back to the Bible. If you’ve ever watched a film that says “based on a true story‚” you’ll likely wonder at different moments in the movie‚ Did it really happen that way? One of the best things about biblical stories on screen is that they often prompt us to ask‚ “Is that really in the Bible?” or pique our interest about what exactly Scripture does say about this character or that scene. When Noah was released in 2014‚ it drew plenty of ire from Christians for Aronofsky’s wild take on the Genesis narrative. But it also sent audiences to Scripture‚ with YouVersion reporting a 300 percent increase in people opening Genesis 6 in the days after Noah released. This is the power of God’s story. No matter who tells it and no matter how wrong an adaptation may be‚ audiences intuitively know the source material is worth checking out for itself. In this way‚ bringing the stories of Scripture to the screen can serve as powerful conversation starters with believers and unbelievers alike: What does the Bible actually say about this‚ and how does this movie or TV rendering interpret it? Does the story on screen evoke a sense of wonder or curiosity about God? Does it lead me to think about things I’ve never considered about the story when I’ve read it in my Bible? Does it prompt me to ask better questions and trust God more deeply? Is my heart stirred to worship God? These are some of the questions you might ask as you watch The Prince of Egypt or any other biblically inspired movie or TV series. As Christians‚ we shouldn’t expect to love or agree with everything Hollywood produces that takes the Bible as its source material. But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t celebrate what we can about these works and invite others—our kids‚ our nonbelieving friends or loved ones—to watch and discuss with us. So while it may not be perfect‚ The Prince of Egypt offers more than a heart-pumping soundtrack and masterful visuals; it presents a signpost that points back to Scripture for anyone whose heart is moved by the power of God’s story.

A historian discovers an arrowhead in the ground. Where‚ when‚ and how was it likely used? Was the archer viciously attacking the innocent‚ nobly defeating evildoers‚ or responsibly feeding his family? Perhaps he might have been a she‚ and the untold history of female archers needs to see the light of day. Whatever view is taken‚ some evidence will be highlighted as primary while other facts will be backgrounded. The historian’s perspective about what should “really count” will determine the story that gets told. Christendom: The Triumph of a Religion‚ AD 300–1300 is a prime example of how historians put their personal stamp on the evidence to construct an overarching narrative. The author‚ Peter Heather‚ is professor of medieval history at King’s College London. He’s a seasoned scholar whose breadth and depth of research are brought to bear on his interpretation of history. Heather’s reading can be supported by the evidence. Furthermore‚ his complex retelling of the church’s story is more compelling than some simplistic versions that present a monolithic and ever-triumphant Christianity. And yet the materials of ecclesiastical history might support less suspicious retellings that also make sense of the available evidence. Readers must remember Heather has a point to make‚ which encourages a critical reading of his argument. Heather is presenting a more skeptical view of Christian history‚ which‚ in his view‚ helps explain the religious trends in recent decades. He writes that the book is “a response to . . . the pressing intellectual challenge of reassessing Christianity’s rise to pre-eminence in the light of its modern eclipse” (xx). Not-So-New Ideas Heather’s goals in writing Christendom are clearly stated. He’s presenting a history that rejects the inevitability of Christianity in the West. He argues Christianity has been variegated throughout its existence so there’s sometimes little connection between the Christianity of different eras. Heather also presents it as one among several religious options of the West‚ arguing that something besides its inherent excellence is the cause of its historical popularity. Heather sets out to undermine the triumphalistic Christian Grand Narrative that existed among Christians “around 1900” or “a century ago” (xviii). According to that narrative‚ Christianity had a straightforward‚ linear expansion based on its divine destiny and innate superiority over all other faiths. Heather rejects those Gilded Age pretensions. Oddly‚ Heather presents his position as something new. Yet almost all scholars and professors in the past half century (even faithful Christian ones‚ which Heather acknowledges he isn’t) have already rejected that simplistic way of unfolding church history. For example‚ Richard A. Fletcher’s The Barbarian Conversion (1998) has long since undermined the earlier glib account of Christianity’s trajectory of inevitable success. The book too often tilts at creaky‚ rusted windmills whose sails haven’t spun for years. Instead‚ the book’s strength is the masterful and detailed way it tells an already widely accepted story. Constantinian Christianity Heather’s historical work begins by questioning Christianity’s rise to prominence in the West. He addresses the role of Constantine and the Romanization of Christianity. “Romanization” for Heather refers to the intertwining of the church with the official state apparatus of the Roman Empire. He suggests it was Constantine’s genuine conversion that led to such widespread adoption of this faith‚ especially among the landowning elites. It wasn’t something inherent in the juggernaut of Christianity. The book’s strength is the masterful and detailed way it tells an already widely accepted story. To support this conclusion‚ Heather downplays statistical models that might indicate massive numbers of Christians across the realm. The truth is‚ the old gods hung around for a lot longer than we often think. And when the gods like Jupiter and Mars were ultimately vanquished‚ it happened more by Christian deceit‚ coercion‚ and violence—for example‚ the destruction of Alexandria’s Serapeum—than by eloquent evangelistic speeches and winsome gospel presentations. Imperial Christianity Falls No sooner did Christianity establish a strong foothold in the Roman Empire than it reached its natural end—in other words‚ it “fell.” By this common term‚ Heather doesn’t mean the empire toppled all at once like Goliath struck by slingstone. Instead‚ it unraveled over the course of the fifth century as a newly arrived warrior society from northern Europe worked with the existing landed elite to create a patchwork of successor states. Heather undermines narratives that powerful popes with Nicaean theology quickly transitioned Europe into an orthodox‚ Trinitarian unity after the fall of Rome. Instead‚ he argues the so-called Arian Christianity of the northern newcomers posed a serious threat to orthodoxy that must be taken into account as a legitimate alternative. Here again‚ Heather continues to present this material as news‚ when professional historians (and many interested laypeople) have known for decades that neither the fall of Rome nor the rise of medieval Christendom was an easy‚ overnight process. Peter Brown made this clear as early as 1971 when he popularized the concept of Late Antiquity. Rejecting the ‘Dark Ages’ Label Heather’s description of the West’s fall to the Germanic tribes is followed by a turn to the medieval situation. He argues that while there wasn’t yet a centralized papacy pulling the strings of statecraft‚ the sixth and seventh centuries don’t deserve the ugly label of “the Dark Ages.” Early medieval intellectual life continued to thrive‚ even if we don’t have as many manuscripts as we might wish to prove it. Literacy was widespread; poetry and the arts flourished; the great classics were still being enjoyed. While educational structures surely had declined‚ people were still engaging the written word. The gloomy shadows cast over this era by 19th-century medievalists—though not by professional historians in more recent decades—reflect an unfair and biased reading of the evidence. Heather argues that far from lapsing into darkness‚ the early medieval church managed to survive the fall of Rome nicely. But it did so only by reimagining from top to bottom what it meant to be a Christian. Tightening Rome’s Hold The last two chapters of the book describe two vastly different ways Rome tightened its grip on Europe’s religious imagination in the High Middle Ages. On the positive side‚ the popes of that era proved remarkably flexible and tolerant in embracing revivalist preaching and popular religious movements‚ especially the Franciscans and Dominicans but even the Waldensians to a certain degree. Lay spirituality‚ including female piety‚ began to have a greater influence on the church. Bottom-up religious enthusiasm now complemented the church’s previous emphasis on top-down methods for expanding Christian devotion. But on a much darker side‚ religious coercion reared its head in hideous new ways during the 13th century. “At the same time as the new Franciscan and Dominican preaching orders were winning hearts and minds in the parishes of Catholic Europe‚” Heather writes‚ “the ecclesiastical establishment also began to exercise much tighter corrective discipline against identified heretics” (560). The tools of coercion ranged from excommunication from the church’s saving sacraments to military crusades against internal enemies like the Cathars to secret regimes of anonymous denunciations and investigations by torture with few legal safeguards for the accused. “Inquisitio‚ then‚ was specifically developed as a practical tool for enforcing compliance with the required set of religious beliefs and practices” (565). In time‚ the Inquisition’s demand for proper beliefs brought not just heretics but even Jews and everyday fornicators into the brutally coercive hands of the medieval church. Heather ends Christendom on a sad‚ though surely not unintended‚ note. The high medieval Western church is characterized more or less like Communist Russia or contemporary North Korea as a dictatorship whose “universalizing‚ monolithic ideology was used to generate a clear profile of model behavior” (583). One Interpretation Among Others What can be said about Christendom? In one sense‚ it’s hard to argue with the premises of so erudite a book as this one. The author lays out a whole lot of evidence. He clearly has mastery of his sources‚ both primary and secondary. Readers can only marvel at the wide-ranging scope of topics Heather covers and the detailed attention he devotes to each. The narrative of this book spans 587 pages‚ and not one of them is wasted. The dense text takes the reader into many fascinating aspects of the church’s rise in the empire and its displacement of traditional pagan religion‚ both Greco-Roman and Germanic. Readers can only marvel at the wide-ranging scope of topics Heather covers and the detailed attention he devotes to each. Yet one can still wonder about other possible explanations of the evidence‚ approaches that might give a more generous read to the sources‚ such as that found in Tom Holland’s Dominion (2019). Without denying the reality of forced conversions‚ other religious alternatives on the medieval landscape‚ the drastic adaptations of Christianity over time‚ and the church’s close brushes with extinction‚ readers of Christendom must still assess the degree to which they’ll accept the arguments Heather lays out. Facts are one thing; interpretations are another. This is definitely a good book‚ certainly a learned one. But it’s also one that must be read with a critic’s—or even a skeptic’s—eye.

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