There are at least two important reasons to regularly watch one of the great Catholic movies on FORMED as a family: faith sharing and saints. Let’s begin with faith sharing.
According to Dr. Amanda Drury in her book “Saying is Believing”, testimony is an essential practice for Christian spiritual formation, especially for adolescents who are in the process of developing their identity. In other words, sharing with others how you are personally growing in your understanding and relationship with God, as well as hearing from others how they are growing in their understanding and relationship with God, is a necessary component for the formation of one’s Christian identity and practice. A primary reason so many young Catholics drift away from the Church is because they had very little faith sharing in their homes as a family. In fact, a recent poll on Catholic family life shows that less than 20% of Catholic families are sharing faith and praying with one another in the home. If parents are intentional about having meaningful conversations that are inspired by watching a great movie on FORMED, then they will have created a powerful environment for their children to become more rooted in their Catholic identity.
The second reason for having a regularly scheduled Catholic movie night is the saints. The lives of the saints convince us as Catholics that holiness is attainable. They are our heroes and the Church intentionally gives them recognition in order to be models for us in Christian living. Many of the movies on Formed bring the saints to life. They give us visual images of their heroic generosity and love for God that we can recall time and again into the future for personal reflection, inspiration, and faith sharing with others.
