Between Two Worlds

This month (June 2007) PBS will air a documentary by Brian Godawa on the topic of the separation of church and state. (Godawa is the Calvinistic screenwriter who wrote one of my favorite movies, To End All Wars, and is also the author of the insightful book, Hollywood Worldviews: Watching Films with Wisdom and Discernment [IVP, 2002].)

Here's a description of the documentary:

America is a nation forged in the furnace of controversy over religion in politics. The events of 9/11 brought that conflict into sharper relief, and the 2004 presidential election provoked a closer examination of the role of religion in American government.

The “wall of separation” is a metaphor deeply embedded in the American consciousness. Most of us assume that the First Amendment prevents the mixing of politics and religion. The freedom of religion clauses have protected us from the entanglement of religion with government and secured the right to freely exercise religious faith. America is a religiously pluralistic culture guided by a secular government.

But what would surprise most Americans is the discovery that this is not what the Founding Fathers of our country intended when they established the nation and wrote the Constitution and Bill of Rights. In fact, they had a radically different interpretation of the role of religion in state and federal governments. Just what was their view? Why was it different? Where did the “wall of separation” metaphor come from? And how did its meaning evolve into what we consider it today?

These are all questions that WALL OF SEPARATION explores, with historical storytelling and scholarly interviews on both sides of the issue. Actor Liev Schreiber narrates.

The DVD can be purchased here.