When I told my mother that I went to see the new David movie, her first question was, “Was it super Christian?”
It wasn’t an unreasonable question. As I sat down in the theater, I felt serious trepidation that the story pulled from the Hebrew Bible would inevitably turn into a Christian tale prophesying the arrival of Jesus. It wouldn’t be the first time a piece of media was used to sow messianic themes into “Old Testament” stories.
Yet, the film was a masterfully constructed telling of the first Book of Samuel. From David’s time as a shepherd to his duel with Goliath, his relationship with King Saul, and his eventual ascension to the throne, the movie remains both entertaining and honest to the original text.
More than 25 years after The Prince of Egypt became the gold standard for Jewishly thoughtful Biblical adaptations, David is a powerful opportunity for anyone to fall in love with the character that has been a moral hero throughout the generations.
One of the ways the movie best demonstrates its respect for Jewish tradition is through its use of Hebrew. In an early scene, Samuel the prophet anoints David to be the next king of Israel. To do that, he offers a blessing chanted in Hebrew. I was shocked and delighted to hear words and melodies that were as honest to Jewish tradition as could be expected (nobody alive has ever witnessed the anointing of a king, so there is at least a little bit of permissible creative liberty).
From the pronunciation of names to the use of monikers for God in lyrics, Hebrew was applied with care, appropriate dialect, and meaningful context. It served as a powerful shibboleth to those who needed to hear their language spoken to them with integrity and respect.
Perhaps the most powerful moment for me as a Jewish professional came during the credits. After a selection of names had flashed across the screen, the director, Phil Cunningham, shared his vision for how the movie would be received. He spoke about the power of the story of David as a tale of courage, faith, and community, and shared his hope that the movie would inspire a generation of children to feel empowered to become a positive force for change.
To accomplish this, the producers have worked to offer free tickets to over 1 million children, giving as many young people as possible the opportunity to experience a story that has inspired so many throughout the centuries.
Spreading the gospel is a deeply Christian idea. But in this application, it became clear that sharing a story held sacred by a diverse collection of traditions was meant to serve as a bonding agent rather than a wedge. Instead of inviting criticism through ideological application of the text, the creative team allowed the enduring message of the narrative to guide an invitation for conversation, welcoming the biblical narrative into the modern world.
As a Jewish professional, I admit to frequently feeling defensive that our tradition will be used as a kind of bait and switch, an underhanded attempt to sow Christian ideologies into otherwise inclusive spaces. After all, most Jews have endured more than their fair share of proselytizing. David, though, was a profound opportunity to see religion as a place for meaning-making and inspiration, a universal celebration of the values that have underpinned faith throughout the ages. I went in expecting more of the division and conflict that we so often find in the rest of our world. I walked out, reminded of just how beautiful it is when people unite under a collective banner of moral storytelling and faith. And that is a message we all need to hear.
Austin Zoot is the Rabbi Educator at Valley Temple in Wyoming, Ohio.
