Britain is one of the most secular nations in the world, a new poll in 10 countries finds. Levels of religious belief and activity in the UK are far lower than in almost all other countries surveyed across the globe in a special poll undertaken for the BBC. In January 2004 the independent opinion research company ICM conducted a survey of 10,000 people in 10 different nations for the BBC programme What the World Thinks of God. The countries surveyed were the USA, UK, Israel, India, South Korea, Indonesia, Nigeria, Russia, Mexico and Lebanon.
2004-02-23
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Exploration of prejudice and culture clash that a group of Laotian Buddhist refugees must endure in Rockford, Illinois.
Documentary on gentrification, colonialism, and the way that minorities have been repressed through a lack of representation.
Filmmaker Amy Berg sheds light on the sexual, financial and spiritual abuses heaped upon members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by their former leader, Warren Jeffs.
A chronicle of "Million Dollar Man" Ted Di Biase's journey from childhood to wrestling stardom to becoming an ordained minister.
Stretching along the river Ganges rests Varanasi, the holiest of India’s seven sacred cities, and a place where devout Hindus go to die in hopes of achieving moksha - becoming liberated from the cycle of rebirth. Hindu scriptures say that a soul has to undergo 8.4 million rebirths before reaching the human form, the only form one can attain moksha, and dying in Varanasi and being cremated along the banks of the river is believed to be the ideal way of achieving this. Several so-called ‘death hotels’ exist to accommodate believers who abandon their lives and come here in wait for death - some for as long as 40 years.
J. Golden Kimball, one of the most colorful LDS General Authorities, peppered his popular sermons with "damn" and "hell," words left over from his cowboy days. It was his candor and originality, however, that endeared him to Church members and made him a folk hero. Hear some of his best stories in a one-man show performed by his great-grandnephew, Jim Kimball.
A documentary about Tanjuska who is a 12-year-old White-Russian schoolgirl, with a face like an icon. Two years ago she stopped eating, then talking and finally she stopped growing. The village priest in Estonia has explained to the family that seven devils have made a home inside Tanjuska. These devils are giving her orders and only a daily ceremony can force the devils to leave the girl.
Split into five parts and filmed on location in Israel and elsewhere, Yeshua features interviews with scholars, reenactments of events, and recreations of ancient culture and ritual.
Creened in several international film festivals, as well as the Musée de L’Homme in Paris, this film takes viewers into a secret world rarely seen by outsiders. Nearly eight centuries after his death, Mevlana Jalaluddin Rumi, Sufi master and mystical poet, is ever-present in the whirling ceremony of today’s Mevlevi dervishes. The Halveti zikr, Mevlevi semas, and the Gharib, or secret, sema-not seen for over 100 years-were filmed in Cairo, Istanbul, and the Garden of Rumi in Konya. This unique footage set to Mevlevi music is enhanced by interviews with Sheikh Abu Bakr Siraj ad-Din (Martin Lings), Islamic philosopher and author Seyyed Hossein Nasr, and Sheikh Omer Tugrel Inancer, who reveals the hidden meaning of the reed flute.
The Circles of Remembrance is an 82 minute journey into what is usually a hidden world of Sufism. This documentary explores "zikr" ceremonies in Cairo, Istanbul, Morocco, and the U.S., along with interviews with some of the most prominent Sufi scholars and musicians, on the outer and secret meaning of the remembrance of God. Martin Lings, Seyyed Hossein Nasr, Gai Eaton, Sheikh Ali Gomma, T.J. Winter,and Tosun Bayrak are among those interviewed.
Explores the processes of political maneuvering which led to the Hyderabad communal riots in 1984. The city’s history, the provocative speeches of its politicians and the instrumentalisation of religious processions stands next to the testimonies and the striking visual accounts of the Old City’s working class – those who lose their livelihoods through violent attacks and long periods of imposed curfew.
For Muslims everywhere, the ultimate goal is to make the Hajj at least once during their lifetime. This spiritual journey is the basic premise of an entire religion and sees impoverished African Muslims mixing with their incredibly wealthy Western counterparts. This documentary follows some of the 20,000 Britons who make the journey to Mecca, unravelling the mysterious aura that surrounds this remarkable event. Combining the wondrous backdrop of Mecca with intriguing interviews that provide a previously undocumented view of Islam, Hajj will enchant both Muslims and non-Muslims alike.
Two former Mormons seek to file a class-action lawsuit against The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, detailing for skeptical attorneys the history, doctrines and secret rituals of the Mormon religion.
The Oscar®-nominated documentary about a promising young actress who left Hollywood to become a nun.
The life of Christopher Hitchens as told through his own words and through archive footage.
The film follows Tarcísio Amaro, a retired miner living in the vicinity of Serra da Estrela, interweaving thoughts on the past and the present, and looking at the decline of rural life in the deserted Portuguese hinterland.