soul | Two Handed Warriors

Connecting to God in Hollywood

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Soul-Nourishing Practices in a Soul-Deadening World “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” -Jesus of Nazareth (Matthew 11:29) by Gary David Stratton, PhD As I write this, I am watching my 14-year-old daughter, Micaiah, take a riding [...]

It’s a Wonderful Life and the Courage to Live (and Create Art) Idealistically

Thursday, December 22, 2011

Few of us will ever get an invitation to an early screening of our life’s work like George did. Yet we will all appear before the judgment seat of Christ. To be a two handed warrior is to live for that heavenly red carpet affair, not its pale imitation at the Kodak theatre.

Capra’s Tale of a Depressed Idealist: It’s a Wonderful Life, Part 2

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

It’s a Wonderful Life (1946) provides a wonderful expression of the complicated interplay between modern Physicalism and Idealism as life-interpreting stories in the life of its main character, George Bailey.

It’s a Wonderful Worldview: Frank Capra’s Theistic Masterpiece, by Gary David Stratton

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Golden Globes host Ricky Gervais’s atheism joke and his holiday message in the Wall Street Journal, “Why I’m An Atheist,” provide a perfect backdrop for examining one of Hollywood's most famous attempts to defend Theism–It’s a Wonderful Life.

When a Star ‘Loses It’ Emmy Roundtable Video: TV Showrunners on how they would handle a Charlie Sheen

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Bill Prady (“Big Bang Theory”), Steve Levitan (“Modern Family”), Dan Harmon (“Community”) and others explain how they would handle the “Two and a Half Men” situation. The Hollywood Reporter‘s annual Emmy Roundtables don’t begin running until late May, but here’s a little tease of the great discussions we’ve got on tap for this season’s Roundtable [...]

Emmy Magazine Interview with Emmy-winning Producer Kurt Schemper (Intervention), and Korey Scott Pollard (Lie to Me, Monk, House)

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

NEW SERIES: Soul-Nourishing Practices for a Soul-Deadening World: Finding the Voice of Your Own Gladness in Hollywood and Beyond To help launch our new series on spiritual formation in Hollywood, I thought I would repost the Emmy Magazine article that helped spark my thinking on the subject. At the time of the interview I was [...]

The Golden Globes, Ricky Gervais’ Atheism and Sentimental Hogwash: It’s a Wonderful Life, Part 1

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Golden Globes host Ricky Gervais’s Atheism joke and recent essay in the Wall Street Journal “Why I’m An Atheist,” provide a great background for examining an all-time great Christmas movie and one of the best defenses of Theism in Hollywood history–It’s a Wonderful Life.