Harold Abraham, the son of a Jewish financier, a top student of Cambridge University, and a talented sprinter. In Britain in the 1920s, this gentle and sensitive young man used his appearance of arrogance and toughness to fight against the discrimination and injustice around him, and used his windy feet to leave behind the sprint records of Cambridge and even the British Isles over and over again. Determined to conquer one after another indifferent hearts full of prejudice-until he met Eric Lindel.
Eric, who came from a missionary family, is the best rugby player in Scotland. He felt in his heart that God had given him good running legs, just to use them to win the glory of God. He gave up rugby and concentrated on practicing running. His goal is to win glory for God in the Olympics.
After watching Eric's game, Harold, who has always regarded running as a battle, was in fear. He had never seen such a person running and winning entirely by instinct and incredible willpower. Sure enough, he was defeated in their hands, but he could cheer up, train hard, and determine to defeat this gentle Scot in the Olympics.
In 1924, the Paris Olympics. Because the 100-meter preliminaries were scheduled on Sunday, Eric was resolutely reluctant to run on the main Sabbath, so he switched events with his team members to participate in the 400-meter race. As a result, Abraham defeated the powerful Americans and finally proved himself in front of the world; and Eric won the championship in the 400 meters incredible and won an unexpected gold medal for the British.
Film
taken in 1981 British film "Chariots of Fire" (Chariots Of Fire), Department true story, won four Academy Awards including Best Picture, including, has been considered a classic inspirational sports movie. The film uses flashbacks to start from Harold's funeral in 1978, and traces the exciting running of these two great sprinters in British history. Rather than saying that this is an inspirational film about personal struggle, it is better to say that it shows the courage of a person's inner perseverance and belief.
Harold has a face that is as thin and cold as Abraham Lincoln. His toughness and pride stem from his sensitive self-esteem. Running is his way of earning respect. He must overcome discrimination and injustice, overcome his inner fear of unknowable forces, and overcome pressure from the secular society. When the school gave him a warning because he hired a professional coach, he calmly and resolutely confronted the school authorities representing secular concepts and sportsmanship, because his pursuit is not just a matter of sports, but a matter of personal dignity. And value.
Eric faced the family’s accusations that he stayed away from ministry. He tried every means to make his family understand that the Lord needed his victory, and the Lord gave him good running legs for no reason-but for the sake of faith, in the end At the moment, he refused to play on the Sabbath. At this time, what he had to fight against was the secular kingship, the whole of Britain, and even the reputation of being a traitor for this. But he did not retreat. At the moment when a choice must be made, one can only listen to a call.
Harold represents the secular and Eric represents the divine. But movies do not simply favor one another, they are all worthy of respect. Inner prejudice, discrimination, and injustice must be overcome, and physical obstacles and physical heaviness must also be overcome. I remember the silence when Harold waited for the starting gun, a strange and lone figure about to challenge the rules of the established world. I remember Eric’s peculiar posture when he was running, his head was high, his face was full of joy, his eyes didn’t even look at the track, "I feel the Lord’s happiness when I run", "If you respect me, I will value him." The Lord will lead me to the finish line with my feet. And these two great young people have since become lifelong friends.
Eric Riddle
Eric Riddle was born in Tianjin, China in 1902. His father came to China from Scotland at the end of the 19th century to preach, including his mother, brother and sister. Their whole family is a diligent and pious missionary. scholar. He returned to his motherland to study at the age of 8 and gradually grew into a clergyman who used his testimony to spread the gospel.
After the Olympics, in 1925, Eric resolutely returned to China and began his teaching career in Tianjin. At first he taught chemistry and physical education at a mission school in Tianjin, but he soon lost his inner peace. He believes that God called him to China not for a comfortable life in the city, let alone to move around among foreigners and wealthy people. Soon, he resigned from his teaching position and went deep into the border areas of Hebei, Shandong and Henan (Hebei, Shanxi and Henan Province), especially in the rural areas of Hebei Province to spread the gospel.
After the Pearl Harbor incident, Eric's activities in China began to be monitored. Soon, he was imprisoned in a Japanese concentration camp in Weifang, Shandong. In the concentration camp, Eric was brutally persecuted, and his body began to lose weight every day. However, in such a hard life, Eric, the eternal chariot of fire, still maintains a strong belief, optimistic and full of charity to care for every companion in the concentration camp, and carry out various activities here to make the camp Everyone can face the temporary ordeal with strength. An American named Langedon Gukai described Eric as follows in his book "Inside the Shandong Concentration Camp": "When I walked through the recreation room at night in the concentration camp, I often see Eric Riddle leaning over to work next to a chessboard or ship model, or instructing people to dance a kind of social square dance. He is always engrossed and interested in capturing the imagination of the prisoners without hesitating Trying hard to exhaust his energy and physical strength in the camp. He is in his forties, but his body is still light and soft, and his steps are flexible. But most importantly, he is full of humor and passion for life at that time.
His enthusiasm and charm made everyone adapt to that period of suffering." On February 21, 1945, Eric died in a concentration camp due to a brain tumor. His last sentence before his death was: "This is complete surrender."
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