By Beth Peltola

Over the past few weeks Muslim protestors have stood outside UK cinemas, demanding a film about Muhammad’s daughter, ‘the Lady of Heaven’, be cancelled. Their protest has been rewarded and at least one chain of cinemas cancelled the film, citing safety fears. The protestor’s concerns range from it being “blasphemous” and “disrespectful” to being “historically inaccurate”.

The writers and producers of the film, followers of Islam, support the films content by pointing to their year-long research before production ever began. They believe the film is honest and does not romanticise Islamic history.

The executive producer: Malik Shlibak, expressed his view of Fatemeh on Sky News (Article: Why is the Lady of Heaven so Controversial? June 9, 2022), believing her to be

"the best figure in history for us today to learn from, to know how to tackle things such as extremism, radicalism and corruption. And we felt it's important to share this story with the world."

For those of us interested the history of Islam, investigating this claim makes for a fascinating research project. What do we really know about Fatemeh? Is she an example to follow today? What kind of environment did she live in and was Islam a religion of peace and sanctuary during her time? It would be fascinating to know if the film’s portrayal of the first Islamic Caliphs (Political leaders) is closer to historical reality than modern Islamic minds wish to accept. What if a true portrayal of the first caliphs do align them with modern day terrorists? Certainly the earliest biographies and hadiths speak of war-time atrocities which would not be acceptable in modern day Western war-courts. The Qur’an also alludes to troubling texts of how Muslims should treat ‘enemies of Islam’ today (Sura 5:33, 8:12).

Perhaps verses like these fuel the largely Sunni objectors to their fellow Muslim film makers. The debates on both sides of this current emotional conflict have highlighted the tug-of-war of internal debates existing from Islam’s beginning.

Debates among non-Muslims have also ensued on whether a country-wide cinema chain should have cancelled the movie. Many are concerned about losing our freedom of speech, including the freedom to challenge or present alternative view points to main-stream thinking on multiple topics. And questions have been asked about the response of cinemas if it were Christians standing outside protesting an offensive film about their faith.

What if the film was about one of the great women of the early church? What if it was a movie on Mary, the mother of Jesus, or Patricia, Susanna, or Lydia? Women who were friends and ministers to Jesus, considered among the first saints of the modern church. What if Jesus’ mother Mary was portrayed contrary to who she is? What if she were portrayed as a woman with an amoral lifestyle… Certainly there are movies out there insulting Christ, his family and the first Leaders of today’s church. How does the Christian respond? How does Christ exemplify how the true believer should respond when faced with false presentations of our history, and those we respect and learn from?

The Lord’s written word is rich with insights and help in such scenarios. It aids the Christian to rise above petty human insult and false representation (Proverbs 13:16). It empowers the Christian to live in the light of their true status before Jesus and the eternity He give us (John 10:28-30). It brings calm and peace to the Christian, regardless of any false accusation against those things we hold dear (1 Peter 4:14). Peace and love then lives among communities (Leviticus 19:18, Proverbs 10:12), because the Christian knows that all injustice, all lies, will be dealt with by the Living God (Psalm 72:4). The issue will be resolved, the insulter will be dealt with, by the judge who understands their every word and deed (Proverbs 10:22, Romans 14:10-12); And truth will prevail.

The Christian remains immovable, because their status is not dependant on human opinion and biased accounts of Christian history, rather they follow in the ways of Jesus who is filled with grace and truth (John 1:14). They belong to the eternal family of God, dwelling together with God in harmony and truth (Ephesians 2:19-22, Revelation 21:3-7).

Colossians 3:13-15 challenges the Christian to live a transformative peace-filled lives when we disagree. This not only blesses the church, but all who come into it’s vicinity:

…bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful.
(Colossians 3:13-15)

Christians are called to live in harmony and unity, knowing that our faith, history and reputation may be scrutinised through unkind eyes:

Conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or remain absent, I will hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel; in no way alarmed by your opponents—which is a sign of destruction for them, but of salvation for you, and that too, from God.
(Philippians 1:27-28)