From the perspective of people who do not believe in God, this film seems to have the value of exploring spirituality and faith-in the context of the battle between two so-called God-believing theocracy and political entities, how does a knight who has lost his traditional belief defend himself? Personal values and beliefs? Or in the real world, such themes are the easiest to please the audience and cater to the values of most audiences: in fact, most audiences don’t really care about religion and history in their hearts, they are more concerned with a proposition of modernity, which is On the premise of avoiding religion, a modern exploration of the personal spiritual world. This is the main theme of the world in the age of "humanism".
Since the Age of Enlightenment, humanists have raised their belief in reason and called for a discussion of human dignity and worth on the basis of leaving religion. A few days ago, I saw an article in "Sanlian Life Weekly", reflecting on the Enlightenment movement, or never really "finished", the end of the article roughly said: It is impossible for reason to make effective judgments on the time after tomorrow , if rationality goes beyond such a category, it will discount its own feasibility. In other words, the values truly realized by enlightenment are the understanding and grasp of the present life, the present life and life.
And "Kingdom of Heaven" is just like this, after first delineating a boundary of values, and then interpreting and expressing it. It is probably this false premise, which makes the film have a certain aesthetic taste of modern thinking. Therefore, the little blacksmith in the film who bravely controls his personal destiny has become the prophet of the modern spirit a thousand years ago. As the movie wants to express, this world does not have only one belief, but everyone has their own beliefs. (Any value can be established depends on its presupposition, so any value can be said to be a "belief"), Muslims have their beliefs, Christians have their beliefs. What this film wants to portray and show is that people who do not believe in God can also have morality, conscience, love and courage, and they are attached to the individual, which is more reliable and true than the "consolation" obtained in religion.
However, the root of the problem is that in the film, is the category that humanism thinks can "solve problems" really, as it appears, that religion is powerless to get involved in and solve? On the contrary, the film easily turns belief in God into spiritual comfort and shackles, but never attempts to explore what is truly rooted in Christianity from the very beginning.
The fictional story of the little blacksmith in the film reminds me of King David in the Bible (in essence, in the relationship of cultural inheritance, the story of King David is actually one of the cultural mothers of this film). King David came from a humble background and was a shepherd boy. He was not valued in his own family, but because Jehovah God sent the prophet Samuel to choose him, after many years of experience, he became a sage king of Israel. King David feared God so much (that he was mocked by his own wife). He was not only a famous king of Israel in ancient times, but also a poet who was familiar with rhythm. He left many poems about prayer in the "Psalms". King David always received God’s help and guidance through prayer and petition all his life, until he rebelled against God for committing adultery and murder, and was angered by God, causing his son Absalom to rebel and hunt him down.
King David was not a perfect man. But in the "Bible", his whole-hearted trust in God was affirmed by God, and he was called a person who was pleasing to God. The reason is that he himself has never given up his faith and hope in God under any circumstances.
In essence, Christians today are often faced with the kind of "confused" faith, unsure of God's will, and believing that such "faith" is the essence of faith in God. This problem is reflected in the little blacksmith in the film-Christians' letters contain hesitation and doubt, which is the "epidemic" among many Christians in this era. The way of the little blacksmith is very modern, and its expression is that when injustice happens, I will pick up the sword and kill the bad guy, and the judgment and justice will be my own. And about everything that is taught in faith, faith, obedience, love, are thrown aside. How can a man really know God if his heart is only for himself, whether for comfort or for personal justice (and all these other matters of "self").
Suffering does not crush the faith of the fearful. A person who does not forsake God will never be forsaken by God. And King David's life is a denial of such a so-called belief attitude. According to the values stance of the film, the little blacksmith played by Orlando Bloom is a perfect idol hero and is admired by people. The same humble background, the same hero, David is not a perfect person. He was once admired by the people for his military exploits, but he went through exile discipline and repentance when he committed crimes and rebellion. He is not perfect, let alone an idol, but he is a true and Plump figure. The little blacksmith in the film does not see God's guidance for him. But the true belief in God has never been just a spiritual consolation that humanists think, nor does it obliterate personal existence. On the contrary, it is a comprehensive, thorough and living dialogue and response to the real existence of the individual. Because the God that Christians believe in lives forever.
The unseen God gives Christians wisdom and confidence through the words of the Bible. Finally, it is about some bridges in the film:
Regarding the defeat of Christians in the Crusades, it is often used to ridicule Christians for their ignorance of Christianity, or the sins hidden in Christianity. Is Christianity stupid? In the Bible, we can see that Israel, the nation chosen by God, can overcome the mighty enemies in the world when they obey and call on God; but when they repeatedly sin against God's will, they will also be handed over by God. in the hands of the Gentiles. Secondly, it is about the release of 100,000 Christians in Jerusalem by the Muslim leader Saladin, which is a popular story in the history books. In the film, Saladin is portrayed as a positive monarch with Islamic beliefs. And in the records of the Bible, God moved Israel's enemies, the pagan kings and leaders more than once, to release the chosen people who were in captivity and in peril. For example, the release of Israel by the king of Babylon was nothing more than to use Israel as the front line of defense against Egypt.
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