Tabby Kibugi explores what Christians can learn from the controversial film Is God Is, beyond the question of whether its violent and blasphemous themes make it inappropriate viewing. The film raises uncomfortable questions about revenge, forgiveness and the danger of creating a version of God who simply mirrors our own desires.
The recently released film, Is God Is, by Aleshea Harris, has been attracting a lot of attention for much more than its revenge-driven storyline. It follows twin sisters Racine and Anaia, who are sent on a quest by their mother to take revenge on their father for setting her ablaze when the twins were younger.
The sisters were severely disfigured as well in their attempt to help their mother, Ruby, during the fire, before being abandoned by their father. The film is known for the now-infamous line by Ruby: “Make your daddy real dead.”
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The twins refer to their mother as ‘God’ because, according to them, she gave them life.
The twins refer to their mother as ‘God’ because, according to them, she gave them life. However, this isn’t the God we know of forgiveness, redemption and healing. Instead, this god figure validates the sisters’ anger towards their father and directs them to conduct vengeance. This god demands obedience and her word is law, despite it being a kill mission that is not particularly godly.
We can’t deny the fact that the father is not a good person. He is abusive to his current (third) wife and was also abusive to the twins’ mother, who had to spend the rest of her life in severe pain due to the burns before her death. He abandons his second wife during pregnancy and even goes as far as to physically harm his lawyer after suspecting that he might reveal his plans to finish the job of killing off Ruby for good.
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Initially, I was drawn to the film because the title piqued my interest as a Christian.
Initially, I was drawn to the film because the title piqued my interest as a Christian. Lots of Christians were debating whether they should watch the film, considering that, despite the mention of God in the title, it is, after all, a revenge film with bloodshed and some gore. Yet, while watching the film after much deliberation, and beyond all the surface-level conversations about whether the film was blasphemous or not, I couldn’t help but think about how it was a bigger lesson for Christians on revenge and how easy it is for us to create a version of God that mirrors our selfish desires. Is God Is presents revenge as a path towards closure for the twins.
However, their deeper wounds of rejection, bullying over the years due to their scarred looks, and the grief of losing their mother cannot be undone through violence. Just like the sisters, as Christians, we have all been severely wronged at one point in our lives. When we are hurt, betrayed or treated unjustly, it can be surprisingly easy, even as Christians, to imagine a God who wants exactly what we want and sides with us rather than our enemies.
Romans 12:19 reminds us: “Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: ‘It is mine to avenge; I will repay,’ says the Lord.” In Isaiah 55:8-9, God also reminds His people that “my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways.” It’s a verse that tells us that we shouldn’t be tempted to reshape God’s ways according to our own desires.
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The Bible never attempts to dismiss any pain we experience or the injustices we go through. Instead, it presents us with a God who reminds us that revenge is not for us as Christians to pursue. For me, the film was worth reflecting on despite its themes of violence and revenge. It reminded me that it’s not just about whether we should watch a potentially blasphemous film about revenge as Christians, but what we take away from it. I went into the film expecting a straightforward revenge story, but I left reflecting on whether the God we say we believe in is truly the God revealed to us through the Bible, or simply the God we have created in our minds, shaped by our thoughts and desires, and the dangers of doing so.
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