Seattle Metro Church

We watched Hotel Rwanda tonight for our Film & Spirituality event. It was our first time to go to a theater instead of watching a DVD, and it was definitely worth it, if for no other reason than to tell Hollywood that we need this type of movie.

This film brings us to the inevitable question: What are we going to do about Darfur? The situation is much the same as the situation in Rwanda 11 years ago, and the world must not stand idly by as it did last time.

NPR is asking people to submit statements about what they believe for their “This I Believe” project:

In 1951, radio pioneer Edward R. Murrow embarked on a remarkable project. He asked Americans from all walks of life — including former U.S. presidents, captains of industry, taxi drivers, actors and homemakers — to write brief essays about their most fundamental and closely held beliefs. The series, This I Believe, was an extraordinary success. Eleanor Roosevelt, Presidents Harry Truman and Herbert Hoover, Helen Keller, Jackie Robinson, and Albert Einstein were just a few of the hundreds who participated.

Now, NPR, Atlantic Public Media and This I Believe, Inc. are partnering to re-create the project with host Jay Allison. We invite you to tell us about the principles by which you live and the people and events that have shaped your beliefs in an essay to be considered for broadcast on NPR. See our essay writing instructions for further details.

The project will be aired on April 4 on Morning Edition and All Things Considered. Very cool.

Because time is short for seeing Hotel Rwanda in theaters, and because this film sheds important light on the present conflict in the Darfur region of Sudan, we are postponing our screening of The Reckoning until April 16.

We will meet at the Drakes’ apartment in Queen Anne at 6PM and go to the 6:40 screening of Hotel Rwanda at Loew’s Uptown Cinema. After the film, we will return to the Drakes’ for coffee, snacks, and discussion.

To learn more about the ongoing genocide in Darfur, visit Passion of the Present. To learn more about the connection between Hotel Rwanda and Darfur, visit www.SaveDarfur.org.

David & Dawn Drake’s home
615 W. Nickerson #4
Seattle, WA 98119 (map)
206-216-3950

Tickets will be paid for by Seattle Metro Church, so you won’t need to bring money. We will carpool to the theater to make parking easier. If the 6PM time is difficult, though, feel free to meet us at the theater a little before 6:40.

Synopsis:
Don Cheadle stars in the true-life story of Paul Rusesabagina, a hotel manager who housed over a thousand Tutsis refugees during their struggle against the Hutu militia in Rwanda. More from IMDB.

From FilmNite.com