David Suchet: Bible is under-appreciated

Actor David Suchet has come out in support of the re-launch of Bible Society’s movie magazine to get more people reading the Bible.

Bible Society is set to re-launch the popular Reel Issues resource on Wednesday, once again making online discussion notes freely available to Christians keen to connect their faith with the latest blockbusters.

“It gets people back in touch with the roots and fundamentals of what Bible teaching is all about,” said Suchet, best known for his part as the Belgian detective Hercule Poirot in the televised Agatha Christie murder mysteries.

“The Bible I’ve always said, sadly, is the biggest selling yet most under-appreciated – and possibly one of the least read books cover to cover.

“Reel Issues will help take people back to their Bibles and ‘onto a completely new world’.”

Reel Issues comes in a variety of formats to resource Christians in small group settings or informal conversations with their friends or family. The resource has been designed to help Christians make the link between themes in popular movies and everyday life and the Bible.

Stuart Hazeldine, Hollywood screenwriter and BAFTA-nominated director of Exam, said Reel Issues was a way for people to engage with culture.

“The church has a long history of being hostile to culture but thankfully, through initiatives like this, that’s changing now,” he said.

Nev Pierce, Editor of Empire movie magazine, said it was important to help people engage with the film properly.

“They put their brains into gear,” he said. “It’s very smart, drawing out themes and ideas from films – making you think intelligently about what you’re consuming as entertainment.”

The resources can be downloaded from www.reelissues.org.uk