Select language, opens an overlay

Comment

Jul 16, 2018Andrew Kyle Bacon rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Previous to reading this book, I saw the two major films based upon it. The first by Masahiro Shinoda; the second by Martin Scorsese. Each films offers something different to their viewers, each being a different sort of film, but the book, written by Shusaku Endo, is a whole different beast. While some ideas are perhaps better explored in the film versions (idolatry in Shinoda's film and personal-faith in Scorsese's), the overall depth of Endo's book is unmatched. But, no matter what medium the story exists within, the story of Silence is difficult, disturbing, and though-provoking. Is the book heretical, or faith-affirming? Can it be both? Does Endo tap into something core to Christianity, or does he miss the point entirely? I'm of the opinion that he finds something at the center of Christian doctrine -- the idea of firm and true salvation, from which nothing can separate us -- yet it is so disguised behind a troubling exterior that most will never see it. "This is a movie about turning your back on the Lord," I was told. I think this book (and the movies based on it) are far more complex than this. Distilling this story down to this point misses the nuance and gut of the story. Faith is difficult to distill, because it is so elusive in so many ways. Endo, thankfully, did not write a simple story about faith, but about a man whose faith is tested and falling apart. Do I agree with everything this book presents from a theological level? No, not at all, yet the book stirred my soul and my mind in an extraordinary way. This is a powerful and incredible book.