THE CHOSEN Goes to the Capitol: ‘God Gave Us Our Freedoms’
By Movieguide® Contributor
This week on Capitol Hill, government officials and staffers experienced the story of Jesus’ birth through a special screening of CHRISTMAS WITH THE CHOSEN: HOLY NIGHT.
CBN News reported, “Members of the cast were invited to meet lawmakers and their staffers through Hope to the Hill Ministries, a group that tries to connect more members of Congress with faith.”
HOLY NIGHT combines previous THE CHOSEN Christmas specials, THE SHEPHERD and THE MESSENGERS, with new musical performances to create the ultimate Nativity experience.
Before the event, Hope to the Hill posted on Facebook, “God has opened the door for us to screen THE CHOSEN Christmas special for Congress with the cast this coming week during our Christmas outreach! We need God to bring open hearts as Members watch the Christmas story.”
THE CHOSEN executive producer, Brad Pelo, told CBN, “It’s very important for faith to be part of the dialogue around policy and governance. We were first created by God. He’s the one who gave us our freedoms. So, when it comes to governance, especially in a free nation established on those principals, I think we’ve got to continue to bring His name, His principals, His commandments into the dialogue of governance.”
“It’s very inspirational to me because one of the things we deal with here is perception. People have a certain perception of what happens in Congress or what the congressmen and women should be doing,” Congressman Barry Loudermilk stated.
“If you watch THE CHOSEN, Jesus is facing that same perception even from his own disciples who have a preconceived idea of what Messiah is supposed to be: a political hero,” he continued. “But Jesus is coming and fighting a different battle of good and evil from an eternal standpoint. Seeing some of that play out, but also seeing the human side of people we read about in the Bible.”
Pelo also told CBN why THE CHOSEN has taken off, garnering millions of viewers worldwide.
“Immediately we discover [the Bible characters are] kind of like me,” Pelo explained. “They struggle with faith or they struggle with an addiction relapse. They’re just like me. And I think in that experience, we come to see Jesus differently because we see how they experienced Him and how He impacted their lives.”
CHRISTMAS WITH THE CHOSEN: HOLY NIGHT will premiere in theaters Dec. 12-17.
Movieguide® recently reported on CHRISTMAS WITH THE CHOSEN:
Dallas Jenkins announced a new Christmas special that will combine his previous holiday specials into the ultimate nativity movie.
“Over six years ago I made a little short film on my friend’s farm in Illinois. Entitled THE SHEPHERD, it was about the birth of Christ from the perspective of the shepherds, and it was only intended for my church’s Christmas Eve service,” Jenkins explained. “It ultimately ended up launching THE CHOSEN.”
“A few years later, with many more resources, we did THE MESSENGERS, a special episode about the birth of Christ from the perspective of Mary and Joseph,” he continued. “This year I had an interesting idea…what it we combine the two? I didn’t think it would work great, but it might be an interesting experiment.”
“When Amada and I saw the first rough cut, we were so moved,” he added. “It does work, and the nativity story took on even more relevance…I can’t wait for you to see it in theaters and ultimately start a new Christmas tradition.”
