Cancel all Sunday School and adult education classes this September and get ready to replace them with a world of wonderful resources built around a new major motion picture on the life of Martin Luther.
Starring Joseph Fiennes (Shakespeare in Love, Enemy at the Gates) as Martin Luther, Alfred Molina (Frida, Chocolat) as John Tetzel, Claire Cox (Splinters, The Leading Man) as Katharina von Bora, and two-time Academy AwardŽ winner Sir Peter Ustinov as Luther's protector, Frederick the Wise, this gripping story of the solitary monk who changed the world will open in theaters across the U.S. beginning September 26.
Faith Inkubators is currently preparing a guerilla marketing campaign for the film, an edu-worship package for three weeks in September (with movie clips replacing your sermons), plus six study guides to help you turn September into a month of fun and meaningful outreach opportunities and Reformation studies built around the film.
Free Online Study Guides
Looking for a great way to kick off your fall? Free online study guides with photos from the film will be made available for:
Guide I: Confirmation Movie Night - Cancel confirmation and go to the movies instead! This study guide will include a cartoon comic book to teach Reformation history and lead students from discussion to action.
Guide II: Youth Group Movie Night - Kick off your fall by inviting youth and friends to a night at the movies, followed by a lively discussion on what would lead you to take an unpopular stand.
Guide III: Family Movie Event - Plan a family outing to the movies and follow it with a discussion on Luther's advice on marriage and parenting.
Guide IV: Couples Date Night - Why not schedule a couples event, followed by a discussion on Martin and Katie's marriage and relationship?
Guide V: Singles Movie & Discussion Guide - Create a singles event around the topic of Luther's experience with (and without) marriage.
Guide VI: Protestant/Catholic Dialogue - Do some community bridge-building with an interfaith look at the issues that divided the church 500 years ago and the actions that can bring them together for dialogue today.
Edu-Worship Package
Care to let clips from the film help preach your sermons September 7, 14 and 21? FINK is enhancing our existing three Luther theme sets with movie clips to help you tell the story in a powerful way. Complete with FINK's cartoon timeline, skits, a beautiful period art gallery and 30 nights of intergerational home devotions, this theme set is designed for both worship and three weeks of other Christian education settings (Combined Sunday School classes, confirmation, youth and adult forums).
Themes include:
September 7 - One Solitary Monk
September 14 - The Protesting Professor
September 21 - Kidnapped!
Guerilla Marketing
Care to camp out at a theater on opening night? Care to create a protestant/catholic youth servant event to show that kids can mend 500 year old broken fences? Care to shave your youth worker like a monk or find another way to get some free press for your church and the film? FINK is inviting youth groups around the country to help build the buzz with a variety of guerilla marketing activities and servant events. Sign up for two months of free cartoons, movie photos, goofy Reformation greeting cards and information on what you can do to help at www.faithink.com/luthermovie and you'll begin receiving the insider's stuff this month. Youth groups willing to take part in a fun theater "Camp-In Tailgating Party" and contact local media with a simple press packet will be considered part of our Guerilla Marketing Team and receive special perks and prizes.
Find out more about this exciting motion picture, co-produced by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans and NFP (the German Film company that produced Bonhoeffer: Agent of Grace), by visiting the official movie website (www.lutherthemovie.com ). It will grow with new material each week until September 26th.
Head to www.faithink.com/luthermovie to sign up for updates on the movie study guides, resources and future news about the movie.