Religious liberty subject of Catholic family film

While we watch and pray, and debate over Obama's contraception mandate, there is history that is as foreboding as it is inspiring. A movie about the little known portion of history of the French Revolution, the War of the Vendée, was just released February 24 by Navis Pictures. And with religious liberty at the forefront of America's struggles, this movie could not be released at a better time.

As you may already know, Navis Pictures is a one-of-a-kind movie studio, casting only children and young adults. Director Jim Morlino of Connecticut trains Catholic young people with little or no acting experience to accomplish things most of them never dreamed: to take part in a real and professional acting and  film making experience through the eyes of their faith. "The Catholic faith we cherish informs everything we do and say, believe and think," says Morlino.

Challenging the young actors to prayerfully reach deep inside and imagine the struggles and joys of the saintly men and women they portray, the results are nothing less than miraculous. Morlino can't praise the young actors enough. "They brought an incredible level of concentration, dedication and devotion to the whole process. They came ready to work and ready to play."

This latest film, The War of the Vendée,  featuring actors from 2 months to age 21, is poised to outdo his first film, St. Bernadette of Lourdes, which was incredibly successful around the globe, selling thousands of DVDs with no formal advertising campaign. A tale of virtue and valor, the story highlights the faith and courage of a people subject to the Reign of Terror during the French Revolution when the religious liberty was taken from them.

With a strong devotion to the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and the spirituality of St. Louis de Montfort, with rosaries and scapulars around their necks, and the Badge of the Sacred Heart on their breasts, these peasants fought valiantly to the death for God and King. While countless numbers of men, women and children perished, ultimately their mission was victorious in restoring the faith to France.

While the War of the Vendée is unlikely to be found in your typical history book, there is already a worldwide interest in the film. This is due to the small but fervent group of people in France and throughout Europe who work for recognition that the atrocities committed in of the War of the Vendée were nothing less than genocide.

Those who know the true history have a term for the deliberate attempt to deny the truth of the War of the Vendée and keep it from being told- "memoricide." Jim Morlino found this denial appalling. "Not only has the story of sacrifice been ignored, but [there is an effort] to kill the memory of this event." While we pray here in the United States that our religious liberty remains, this film will ensure that the martyrs of Vendée will not be forgotten.

Read more here:
http://www.examiner.com/catholic-in-hartford/catholic-religious-liberty-subject-of-family-film