The Rite

"You know, the interesting thing about skeptics, is that we're always looking for proof... the question is, what on earth would we ever do if we found it?" Father Lucas remarks.

"Gets complicated when no proof of the devil is somehow proof of the devil," Michael rejoins.

We do never get to see the devil.
Toads, mules, and three-inch nails are the few extraordinary traces Michael can touch and see.

And so The Rite leads the audience into those eternal questions:
Does God exist?
If so (or not so), does the devil exist?
Or is everything psychology, our brains trying to cope with the immensity of life?

The movie had plenty of chilling effects to keep my head turned away half of the time.
The other sisters had no problem.
I've never had a stomach for horror films.

However, this one wasn't a horror movie like The Exorcist.
The frightening parts were the conversations between Father Lucas (played by Anthony Hopkins) and Michael (Colin O'Donoghue), a seminarian.

Because it wasn't about exorcism.
It was about faith.
Exorcism can be a trick. But not faith.

“Faith is not the simple acceptance of abstract truths, but a close relationship with Christ” (Pope Benedict XVI at WYD 2011 in Madrid)

I would recommend The Rite if you want thoughtful questions about the existence of Christ.
Faith is up to you.

Photo credit: www.spicymoviedogs.com

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