Reviews of Atlas Monks Film award -
Of Gods and Men, Des Hommes Et Des Dieux
Glasgow
-----
Forwarded Message ----
From: Andy . . .
To: Donald . . .Sent: Mon, 6 December, 2010
0:34:37
Subject: Of Gods and Men Des Hommes et
des Dieux
Dear
Donald
Anne
Marie and I have just returned from seeing the film of Gods and Men. What
a movie. Very sensitive to the spirituality of the life within the
monastery. The setting depicted the very simplistic way of life of these
monks and actors in no way detracted from the sensitive nature of the build up
to the kidnapping of the seven martyrs.
The
movie was very spiritual, prayerful and at parts very emotional especially
after the community had decided to remain in the monastery and during the
community meal one of the monks opened bottles of wine and played a recording
from Swan Lake - a very moving part of the story as each member of the
community realised what lay ahead of them
The
sensitivity of the Cistercian way of life was very evident in the singing of
the psalms, in the celebration of the Eucharist and in the Salve Regina. On looking
a some of the photographs of the Atlas Martyrs it is amazing how the actors
chosen to portray the monks resembled them. A film well worth
seeing.
God
bless
Andy
Amazon
US
5.0 out
of 5 stars
Brothers of Tibhirine,
11 Dec
2010
Movie Review
Of Gods and Men OST (Des Hommes et des Dieux) (Audio CD)
After
seeing this film I was moved by the very carefully selected music used as
assist in the understanding of the spiritual, emotional and prayerful depth of
the real life story of the Atlas Martyrs. The use of Latin and French text in
the singing aids the listener, or viewer of the film, to become involved in the
prayerful atmosphere portrayed within the Cistercian monastery. The musical
climax of the movie is the background playing of Swan Lake as the community
share their "Last Supper". A movie worth seeing and a soundtrack
worth listening too.
Glasgow
----
Forwarded Message ----
From: Anne Marie . . .
To: nunraw Donald . . . .
Sent: Mon, 6 December, 2010
21:42:56
Subject: Movie review
Well,
the film is more than you would expect. When it comes to monasticism I wondered
if they would be able capture it.
They
did it by not being afraid to be silent and to allow the
chant
to do its work. It seemed to bring you to the heart of the matter,
something mysterious and wonderful.
The
relationship between the community and the village was a true bond despite
religious differences and obviously a very important focus.
I won't
spoil any more for you. I was deeply moved by the film due to its
simplicity.
Anne
Marie
Dublin
-----
Forwarded Message ----
From: Noreen . . .
To: Donald. . .
Sent: Tue, 28 December,
2010 20:58:32
Subject: Re: Movie review
Jo and
I managed to see the film "Of Gods and men" on the 13th Dec. at the
Irish Film Institute in Dublin. They show award winning films from other
countries. It was shown in a smallish cinema, which was full that
afternoon. A lady next to me said there were so many coming that they
were going to transfer it to a larger cinema within their complex. It was
shown for a full month. Unfortunately, it is not showing in the larger
cinemas in the city.
Jo and
I really enjoyed it very much and found it easy to follow the French with
English dubbing. It is rare to see such a beautiful presentation of
Religious life. Having so much background knowledge from you both was of
course helpful. It is great to read such positive reviews also.
. . .
Noreen.
Edinbugh
The
film Of Gods and Men Des
Hommes et des Dieux was in
Edinburgh.
Friends,
who saw it, were gripped by the whole presentation.
Another
friend hurried to view the last showing and regretfully could not get place
even among the standing.
Leeds
-----
Forwarded Message ----
From: John . . .
To: Donald . . .
Sent: Tue, 18 January, 2011
Subject: RE: Leeds cinema.
Dear Fr
Donald,
Thank
you so much for your kind email and the attachment. I was delighted to be able
to print the copy of volume 1 of “A Heritage Too Big for Us” from the online
version you sent. I’ve long had and interest in the Atlas Martyrs ever since
reading John Kiser’s account. Their martyrdom has come to new appreciation
through the film ‘Of Gods and Men’ which I saw twice in Leeds. I found it
immensely moving.
Yours . .
John
Peter from Leicester spoke to us about how riveting and impressive silence at the end of the showing.
Other Emails and Letters came from UK and came friends in France to tell us of their pleasure to see the film on the Atlas Monks.
Our anticipation awaits the availability of the DVD.
The Amazon provider disappointed us by supplying the CD Audio ONLY,
and then failed completely to offer the DVD Of Gods and Men, Des Hommes Et Des Dieux.
Perhaps it may find the DVD through www.amazon.fr/dvd-dvds-doccasion-imports...tv/b?
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
RESOURCE.
An Archive of the background of the seven monks of Atlas, Algeria.
For those who wish to read more on our book on-line here.
Atlas Martyrs
Vol 1. edited by
Donald McGlynn, ocso
On May 21, 1996, seven monks of the Cistercian-Trappist
monastery of Our Lady of Atlas in Algeria died by assassination at
the hands of terrorists: Fr. Christian de Chergé, Br. Luc Dochier, Fr. Christophe Lebreton, Br. Paul
Favre-Miville, Br. Michel Fleury, Fr. Bruno Lemarchand, and Fr. Célestin
Ringeard.
In my heart a single phrase was resounding: “We will not
leave our dead alone, we shall come back!” (Dom Bernardo Olivera, OCSO
)
From the beginning
the General Chapter has been marked by the luminous witness of our brothers of
Atlas who have reminded us of the meaning, the value, and the fecundity of a
cenobitic life in the radical following of Christ, rooted in the local Church,
responsible for a particular people, open to dialogue between religions and
cultures. (Message of the General Chapter of 1996
)
Tibhirine was for us an icon of our vocation as Christians
seeking God in the
land
of Algeria, that is to
say in a Muslim land. . . . I think there is no other monastery in the world
which has such a general relationship with the members of the local Church.
Most of the priests, religious men and women, as well as the laity living
permanently in the diocese, had a personal bond with the community. (Mgr. Henri
Teissier, Archbishop of
Algiers)
I had hardly arrived in their house, so poor and welcoming
at the same time, when deep within me, coming I know not from where, I had the
powerful feeling that the true monks of today were right there. And I
remembered the words of Jean Baptiste Metz: that the religious life can no
longer be understood away from that precariousness which tells of its openness
to the eschatological. (Fr. Philippe Hémon, Tamié
)
Chronology
March
27–May 21 Fifty-six days of abduction.
|
|
March 27
|
Abduction of seven monks in their monastery of Our
Lady of Atlas, Tibhirine.
|
March 28
|
Paris demands that Algeria put
all its forces into operation to free them.
|
April 14
|
Pope John Paul II, in Tunisia, declares that his
thoughts “turned first of all” to the seven Trappists.
|
April 25
|
The aman, the
protection of the previous emir, is revoked. The GIA justify their kidnapping
of the monks “still alive” and demand of President Chirac “an exchange of
your prisoners for our prisoners.”
|
April 28
|
More than 2000 people pray in Notre Dame in Paris with the leaders
of different religions.
|
April 30
|
The French ambassador receives an audio cassette confirming
that the monks are still alive, as well as a letter laying down the
conditions for negotiation.
|
May 1
|
A day of prayer is observed world-wide in Cistercian
monasteries.
|
May 7
|
In Paris,
Muslim leaders issue a letter to the kidnappers condemning their action as a
violation of Islamic precepts.
|
May 9
|
The French authorities affirm that they will not negotiate
with the GIA.
|
May 21
|
The GIA affirm: “We have cut the throats of the seven
monks.”
|
May 27
|
Pentecost. Testament of Fr. Christian is opened. “Words to
inspire the world” give keynote to reflections on the events.
|
May 30
|
Cardinal Léon-Étienne Duval dies at ninety-two. The remains
of the seven monks are found. Abbot General Bernardo Olivera arrives in Algiers.
|
June 2
|
Cardinal Arinze preaches panegyric at Mass in Algiers for the seven
monks and Cardinal Duval.
|
June 4
|
Transfer of remains by seven military ambulances to
Tibhirine. Burial of the seven monks surrounded by mourning Muslim neighbors.
|
July 16
|
Reported assassination of Djamel Zitouni by other rebels.
|
August 1
|
Bishop Pierre Claverie of Oran is killed by a bomb on his own
doorstep.
|
October 5
|
Fr. Jean-Pierre
addresses the General Chapter on “Present Situation of Atlas.”
|
October 12
|
At Tre Fontane, Rome,
Archbishop Teissier preaches at Mass of General Chapter. Pope sends message
from hospital.
|
|
|
|
Abduction: March 26–27, 1996
Among those who lived through the events of the forced entry
of the GIA terrorists (Armed Islamic Group) and the abduction of seven monks on
the night of March 26–27, 1996, were three eyewitnesses who wrote accounts of
what happened.
Fr. Jean-Pierre was the porter of the monastery, who observed some of the
activities of that night. Fr. Amadeus’s room was close to the medical supplies,
which diverted attention from his locked door. The third witness was one of
twelve members of the Ribât group staying in the guest quarters. They were
fortunate to remain undetected. Each became aware of what was happening in his
own way. It is remarkable that so much could have been going on, within the
same walls, without everyone’s being alerted. A clear, composite picture of
events emerges from the independent accounts of these witnesses.
At the midday hour of March 26, 1996, the community Mass was
celebrated as usual. As the brothers heard the Gospel of the day, they could
not have anticipated the manner in which the words from John 8:21–30, “I am
going away and you will seek me,” were to be realized tragically in seven of
them that very night.
At 5:30 p.m., the end of the working day, the time people
stopped coming to the dispensary, Fr. Jean-Pierre locked up for the night. The
Security Services had been insisting on early closing for some time. At 1:15
a.m., Fr. Jean-Pierre, sleeping in the porter’s room next to the entrance, was
awakened by the sound of voices. Remaining concealed, he made out two or three
persons speaking in Arabic and immediately realized it could only be the
“brothers from the mountain” who had somehow gained access to the cloister. A
man with a tommy-gun joined the others. From another angle Jean-Pierre saw a
turbaned figure, also with a tommy-gun slung across his shoulder, making an
entrance near Br. Luc’s room; conversation was low and there was no violence,
so he did not realize the gravity of the situation. He had not heard the
doorbell and therefore assumed that Fr. Christian had forestalled him and had
taken matters in hand just as he had done on that all too acutely remembered
forced entry of Christmas Eve, 1993. He had no idea that some twenty terrorists
were deployed. He felt it wiser not to show himself and prayed anxiously for
them to go away. The thought of death and martyrdom had often occurred to him
but not the possibility of being taken hostage. He heard someone ask “Who is
the chief?” and a reply, “That’s him, the chief. You must do what he tells
you,” followed by comings and goings in the entrance hall. Then silence, and
the sound of the street door being closed. He thought Christian had sent the
intruders away. He went to go to the bathroom before returning to bed. The
lights had been turned off; everything seemed in order, except for some
clothing scattered about. He wondered, “Did they ask for some clothing that
they did not like and threw there on their way out?” Everything else seemed
normal. There was nothing more to be done. Jean-Pierre did not know that the
lights had been turned off by Fr. Amadeus.
Fr. Amadeus had been awakened by noise that made him think of
Br. Luc looking for medicines, except that Luc would not be so rough. He could
then hear voices but not Luc’s familiar asthmatic cough. Someone tried his
door. It was locked and the intruders seemed to turn their attention back to
the medicine cartons. Amadeus used his torch to check his watch. It was 1:15
a.m. He dressed silently. The figures were too close to the door for him to see
much through the keyhole as they continued to ransack the medicine stores.
After activities had stopped, he eased his door open. The lights were on.
Everything was in disarray. In the adjoining room of Br. Luc, medicines and
books were on the floor. The new little radio had gone. Expecting the worst, he
rushed to Fr. Christian’s office, where Christian had been sleeping recently in
order to be near those at the entrance. There also everything was turned upside
down, the electric typewriter and camera had disappeared, and the telephone had
been removed. Of Fr. Christian and Br. Luc there was no sign.
“What about the guests?” It was at this point that he quickly
extinguished the lights and hurried to find out about the twelve members of the
Ribât who were in the guest rooms near the community bedrooms. The doors of the
monks’ rooms all lay open, lights on, everything scattered about and the
brothers gone. In great fear for the guests he continued along the passage
through the enclosure door to the guest quarters. There everything was quiet.
The night-lights were on and the bedroom doors closed. He knocked on the first
door. He found the occupant wide awake and waiting, having been roused earlier
by another guest in the group. The two listened in alarm. They thought they
heard Célestin’s voice among others and supposed he might have taken ill and
that the brothers wanted to move him downstairs, or might have wanted to take
him to the hospital, but that was impossible in the night. Boldly, one of the
two half-opened the monks’ enclosure door. They knew immediately that the terrorists
had come again. When at last there was silence and the hallway was empty, they
still could not risk making themselves conspicuous or try to escape by the
external stairs, fearing that armed men were still around. They decided to
return to their rooms.
The intruders made a quick departure. Did they think they had
their full catch of hostages after they had rounded up seven of the monks? They
would not have known that two monks, Br. Paul and Fr. Bruno, had arrived just
that previous evening, another indication of a premeditated kidnapping. Police
findings showed that taxis had been requisitioned at the village of Ain Elrais.
These were later found abandoned. After that the kidnappers seem to have used
mules to cover their trek into hiding in the mountains.
As the guest in the
room nearest the monks’ enclosure waited in his bed with thoughts of death,
listening for further sounds, Fr. Amadeus appeared with a torch saying, “Are
you there? The monastery is empty. There isn’t a single father left!” Together
they began their search. The guest noticed that Br. Paul’s room was littered
with the wrappings of gifts and sweets he had just brought back for Easter. He
noticed one box left untouched because, he guessed, the chocolates contained
alcohol. He later placed these in the refrigerator to await the return of the
brothers. A large cheese was likewise left lying near the statue of Our Lady,
because it had the large Savoy Cross on the Tamié wrapping. In the kitchen,
refectory, and cloister they found little disturbed, except that the telephone
line had been cut. They went toward the porter’s room. “Jean-Pierre, it’s
Amadeus, are you there?” To their great relief Jean-Pierre, fully dressed,
opened the door with his usual peaceful smile. They told him, “We are the only
ones here, all the others have been taken away.”
The first thing to do was to contact the Security Services,
but the telephone lines had been cut. It was later found that the wires had
been severed fifteen kilometers away, another mark of a well-planned raid. They
went to the nearest house with a phone, only to discover that they could not
make a call. The family was terribly frightened, and Fr. Jean-Pierre stayed
awhile to comfort and encourage them.
By 3:00 a.m. nothing more could be done, and it was decided
to rest until the office of Vigils. Amadeus said he had not finished the rosary
he had begun while the others were out. Together they completed the prayer.
“Amadeus radiated an extraordinary peace,” the guest noticed. As arranged, they
began Vigils at 5:15, three guests feeling honored to hold the place in choir
of the abducted brothers, as best they could. It was thus in the chapel that
the other Ribât members, nine sisters, found them.
At dawn there was an unusual silence. The call of the muezzin
did not mingle with the sound of the monastery bell. It seemed that the
villagers already knew of the attack and were fearful. The twenty or so
faithful who normally came to the mosque, part of the monastery building, for
dawn prayer did not come. Fr. Jean-Pierre and one of the guests drove off
through the mist and arrived at the police station at Médéa at 7:15 a.m. The
commandant was on the point of setting off on a planned operation but gave them
his full attention. He immediately contacted his superiors and obtained
authorization to inform Archbishop Teissier, the French Ambassador, and the
Algerian Press Service. All was conducted in Arabic and with surprising
alacrity.
Ten members of the Ribât group departed for
Algiers in two cars. One had to wait for
other transport. Another decided to stay with Jean-Pierre and Amadeus that
night. The group reassembled at the
Diocesan
Center, “in communion
with our wounded Church and at the same time conscious that, as Sr. Jean-Marie
said, our brothers were living or were already in the light of God, and it was
for us to watch with them. This is why we felt it right to continue our
programme.”
During the day a contingent of police and then a detachment
of soldiers came to investigate. When they began to enter the cloister they
were stopped by the guest who asked them to stay at the entrance, using the
words of Fr. Christian on an earlier occasion: “This is a place of prayer and
of peace. We do not enter it with arms.” In each case the armed men respected
this situation. In the evening Jean-Pierre and Amadeus accepted the military
instructions and were guests at a hotel in Médéa for that night. The Ribât
guest accompanied them and admired how Jean-Pierre and Amadeus, in their rough
jackets and woolen bonnets, spoke with their usual simplicity and peacefulness
to the hotel manager, the head of the prefecture, the chief of police, and
everyone who welcomed them and wanted to fuss over them.
History of Cistercian Monks (Trappists) in Algeria
1843–1904, 1934–97
The fate of the Cistercian monks of Our Lady of Atlas at
Tibhirine, like the many Trappists who completed their special religious
calling in Algeria
before them, is marked by its Cistercian character. The present Constitutions
of the Order, approved as recently as 1990, express the exceptional nature of
certain communities living in non-Christian environments: “In God’s providence
monasteries are holy places not only for those who are of the household of the
faith, but for all persons of good will” (ST 30.B). North Africa
has always been exceptional, because it has held little hope of local
recruitment, and more especially because it has provided the need for a
Christian presence of a purely spiritual character in a non-Christian milieu.
The lives of the young monks who died in the early years of
Staouëli
are remembered not for anything they had to do with the forces of political
power of French colonization, which differed so much from those of the conflict
of Algerian Independence, but for the uncompromising pursuit of their own
monastic vocation of silence, prayer, and labor.
The commendable achievements attributed to the monks for a
number of good reasons—their contributions in agriculture, education,
evangelism, and medicine—may be a credit to them but are extrinsic to their
real aim. These achievements demonstrate both the reality of the social,
religious, and political conditions and how little these impinge upon the life
of the anonymous monk following the simple Cistercian vocation of austerity and
prayer. The lot of the Atlas monks in 1996 was apparently at the mercy of
external circumstances, as was that of their predecessors at Staouëli in the
previous century, and at the same time distinctive in the primacy of its
spiritual goal and faithfulness to that goal alone.
