Event Details

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Mahdi in Movies: Messiah Figures Across Traditions with Dr. Mahjabeen Dhala

*attendance available online only*

This seminar engages movies such as Dune: Part One and Part Two, Matrix, The Book of Eli, and others through a sacred and communal lens, exploring how film adaptations of the idea of a "promised savior" might serve as fertile ground for theological and interreligious reflection. We will examine themes of prophecy, power, destiny, and the spiritual codes woven into film drawing on multi-religious theological perspectives. Central to our inquiry will be the concept of the Mahdi and other “chosen ones” in religious and cultural narratives, the interplay of prophecy and power in shaping communities, and the spiritual consequences when faith becomes an instrument of empire. We will also investigate how cinematic imagery, ritual enactments, and landscapes function as sacred storytelling on screen. Through close readings of film scenes alongside sacred texts and theological scholarship, students will engage in comparative analysis, considering how messianic and eschatological motifs travel across traditions and media.