Say what you like about Andrew Denton—just don’t accuse his documentary, God On My Side, of being anti-Christian.
"I think that’s a misstatement," retorts the television veteran and interviewer extraordinaire. "It’s a film about some of the beliefs of Christianity, but it’s far too broad to say it’s an anti-Christian film."
To be fair, God On My Side deliberately takes a very specific demographic as its focus group—one that’s not intended to be representative of Christianity in general.
"Evangelical Christians make up 40 per cent of US President George W. Bush’s vote—they have the ear of the most powerful administration in the world," says Denton. "They’re part of the jigsaw puzzle of the clash of civilisations."
"I would never suggest, and nor does the film attempt to, that they’re running US foreign policy, but it would also be disingenuous to suggest they don’t have a voice at the table. That’s why it’s relevant to look at them."
With that in mind, Denton and his production crew headed to the 63rd National Religious Broadcasters Convention in Dallas, Texas, where the delegates comprised some 6,000 Christian communicators. It was a predominantly evangelical, fundamentalist gathering, whom Denton queried not only about their personal faith stories, but also about how faith affects their perception of their world, their country—and their president.
The responses, as seen in God On My Side, are alternately moving, baffling and infuriating. It’s difficult not to be affected, for example, by one man’s story of finding faith amid the carnage following the 1947 explosion of the SS Grandcamp, which claimed 576 lives. On the other hand, it’s hard to sympathise with viewpoints that blithely hitch faith to George Dubya’s warmongering bandwagon.
"The thing that most surprised me was that everyone I spoke to believed George Bush is ‘God’s man’," says Denton. "It’s one thing to support him politically, or to like him, but to suggest he’s been put there with God’s approval is a pretty frightening concept. I have deep respect for people’s individual faith, but when faith gets connected to the machinery of state, or the machinery of hate, I find it very confronting."
Equally confronting is the segment of the film dedicated to the “End Times” (i.e. the end of the world), which many of the talking heads believe is imminent.
"A poll earlier this year showed that 42 per cent of Americans believe we’re in the End Times,"