Cinema with the Shepherd 2025 Archive

Cinema with the Shepherd

It has been almost 30 years since Pope St. John Paul II wrote these words, “… I would like to invite you to think about the cinema as ‘a communicator of culture and of values’” (Message on World Communications Day, 28 May 1995). Yet, any trip to the local movie theater, or to one’s TV screen, or to a streaming video on a mobile device quickly reveals that the “culture and values” that are communicated through films are not always consistent with the Christian understanding of the human person … or a vision that enhances the dignity of that same human person. Throughout my 33 years as a priest, I admit to an ongoing interest in the power of a film to communicate culture and values. Over these years, I have sponsored many film series, when I would invite brothers and sisters in Christ to gather to watch a film and then, to discover the culture and values expressed in them (or not!) and to become more critical viewers of this form of social media which is so ever-present around us. 

With this in mind, I am happy to announce the first annual film series Cinema with the Shepherd: Jubilee Year of Hope Edition. Across the films in the series, we will explore ten films that have something to say about the virtue of hope. Each viewing will begin with my introduction to the film with keys for understanding the background and significance of the movie. Then, after viewing the film, we will take time for some discussion about what we have just seen and what it might say about culture and values, with a special focus on its examination of the virtue of hope.  

Each month, the film will be viewed at a common gathering in St. Joseph Hall in the Cathedral of Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Rapid City. A viewing guide will also be available on the diocesan website to provide some background and some discussion questions to inform how one might view the film critically. Then, at the “in-person” viewing, I will facilitate a discussion once the viewing of the film is concluded. We expect to film both the introduction and the post-film discussion, which will also be available for viewing at a later date.  Because some might not be able to travel to Rapid City to see the film, I hope that these on-line resources will assist a critical viewing at other times and locations — all the films are available through streaming video services or other home video delivery methods.  

All viewings will begin at 6:30 pm in St. Joseph Hall at the Cathedral in Rapid City.  To defer the cost of the viewings, a free-will offering is encouraged, and to enhance the viewing experience, refreshments will be available, the proceeds from which will support various groups in the Cathedral Parish community. I hope to see you there! 

+Bishop Scott Bullock