God's Not Dead: A Light in Darkness Page #7

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Well, let me ask you this.

Do you think that

your religious beliefs

get in the way of

real social change?

No, my beliefs are

the foundation of change.

The belief that every human

is made in the image of God.

I mean, Jesus was the ultimate

social justice warrior.

He said the lives

of children mattered

and regarded women

with honor and dignity

in a cultural moment where a woman's

testimony wasn't even permissible

in a court of law.

He consistently stood up for the

mistreated and the marginalized.

Well, I've been doing this

a long time,

and I wish I'd seen those words

put into action more often.

Yeah. Me too. We're all

responsible for our part,

but it's grace and then justice,

not the other way around.

Why do you serve the court,

not the Lord?

We should follow the example of Jesus

because... without grace as our goal,

we're just, you know...

we're just fighting.

[Dave] Amen.

Let's say grace.

Dear Lord, thank you for this day.

Thank you for this food.

Bless it to our bodies and forgive

Pearce for eating before grace.

- Amen.

- Amen.

That's not funny.

[Dave] So, if the judge agrees to let

us go to trial, do we have a shot?

[Pearce] If we go to

trial, we're gonna win.

Public's on our side,

jury's on our side.

- What if the judge says no?

- Then we're done.

[Dave] Great.

[sighs] Am I allowed

to talk in there?

Please don't.

You know, I've been

thinking, I like this Meg.

She's the good kind

of Christian, authentic.

You ought to seal the deal

before she gets wise.

- It's not exactly great timing.

- [clucks]

Maybe I don't want to

rush into things.

Try not to end up

with two ex-wives.

[scoffs] I forgot to tell you.

It's three now.

Three?

Hadleigh offered a sum that's fair

market value for the property.

It's perfectly fair.

But Saint James' value can't

be measured only in dollars.

The court has no standard

for determining intrinsic value.

Your Honor, Saint James

has had a positive impact

on this community

for generations.

The university concedes the

plaintiff is not without merit,

but we question

the relevancy to this case.

- May I say something?

- You brought the lawsuit.

If you want to assess the value of the church

to this community, just turn on the news.

The community

is speaking loudly.

This is what victory feels like.

We're going to court!

Come on, man, this is a big win.

Be happy.

- Ow!

- Be happy!

- Stop it.

- Be happy.

Ow! Will you just...

Be happy. Oh!

There's my little brother!

No, I'm not happy

suing my friend.

I'm not happy

suing anybody.

Okay. Well, number one, Tom

Ellsworth is not your friend.

And number two, I'm going to

bed, 'cause you're a buzzkill.

Paul tells us that

even if you can speak

the language

of both man and angels,

if you lack love,

brothers and sisters,

you're just making

a lot of noise.

Maybe you're

the world's smartest person

and you have a great faith

that can move mountains,

or you give all your money

to the poor,

or you give your body

over to hardship.

My Bible says, without love...

you're saying nothing.

Without love,

you gain nothing.

And without love...

you are nothing.

[phone buzzing]

Hey, Adam. Hey!

Pastor Dave?

- Is it true?

- I don't... I don't know.

- Is it? Tell me!

- Adam!

[grunts]

- You killed Jude, didn't you?

- Hey, hey, hey. Take it easy, pal.

Get off of me!

Get off of me!

What is wrong

with you?

[man] Hey, man,

what is going on?

[indistinct chattering]

[man] That is bad stuff.

[beeping]

[man]

Know what I'm saying?

I just took your fingerprints

and he's gonna book you.

Is this, like,

a mug shot?

Yes. Stand there.

[Newscaster]

After a shocking confrontation

by Reverend David Hill

on Hadleigh campus,

the suspect has been identified as 21-year-old

Hadleigh student Adam Richertson.

The college senior has no criminal

record and no history of violence,

which has left many people wondering what

inspired his deadly attack on a church.

[sniffles]

I'm so sorry.

[Teo]

This is beyond messed up.

I know Adam. He's a

good dude, sincerely.

And Pastor Dave needs to take

a page from his own book.

So, you know what? We're

having a protest Friday night.

Saint James. Make sure

your voice is heard.

Be there. Be mad. 'Cause

this fight is far from over.

Have you seen this?

Media works both ways.

This gives us

a real shot.

Get the team working on it. I'm gonna

send a gift basket to Reverend Dave.

We condemn the hateful

actions of Adam Richertson

in the strongest possible terms.

They do not represent the values of

our esteemed Hadleigh University.

We will not stand for

violence or discrimination

in any form, of any people,

regardless of their religious

backgrounds and beliefs.

We've taken the immediate steps

to expel Mr. Richertson,

and we have encouraged

the state to prosecute him

to the fullest extent

of the law.

None of this, however,

should excuse

the actions

of Reverend Dave Hill.

His outburst has made

our position stronger...

that Saint James Church has become a

beacon of violence and controversy,

and it has no place here

on Hadleigh University campus.

Good day.

[reporters clamoring]

So, Reverend Hill goes after Ellsworth.

Now Ellsworth fires back.

And meanwhile, this kid Adam Richertson

is caught in the cross fire.

Judge, this kid

killed somebody.

Oh, come on. It was an accident.

Everybody knows that.

The judge and jury's

gonna decide that.

Speaking of judge and jury,

who's gonna hold

this reverend accountable?

Okay, there's a big difference

between a death and a fight.

This reverend

did attack this kid,

and now he's calling for the kid

to get put away for 30 years?

That's insane.

And there you have it.

Both sides are totally fired up.

Huge protest is planned

for the weekend.

And this is teed up

for disaster.

That's the sign of the times,

isn't it?

Everybody's yelling.

Nobody's listening.

[Keaton] It doesn't make sense.

Nothing makes sense.

Adam never meant

to hurt anyone.

I'm not saying he shouldn't

own up to what he did,

but I just don't see

God's mercy here.

Especially

not from Pastor Dave.

He's human, Keaton.

Yeah, but he's supposed

to be a man of God.

What kind of example

is that?

I mean, if being a Christian

doesn't affect the way we act,

then... how do we actually know

that our values and beliefs

are any more valid

than anyone else's?

[scoffs]

Can I show you something?

A friend said this to me

when I was in high school.

[chuckles]

It was inspiring.

It's why I came to Hadleigh. I

wanted to be a part of something.

At the time, I'd never even

considered that God could be dead.

But now...

It's okay, Keaton. It's good

to ask difficult questions.

God can use it. He's not

afraid of your uncertainty.

But I am.

You know, I think about

John the Baptist.

If anyone should've been sure

about Jesus, it was him.

And John said, "I've

seen, and I testify

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