''A Matter of Faith'' is a 2014 American Christian drama film directed by

Rich Christiano Rich Christiano (born October 2, 1956) is an Cinema of the United States, American filmmaker, who has directed, produced and Screenwriter, written many Christian films. He owns Christiano Film Group, co-founded Five & Two Pictures and founded Ch ...

and starring

Harry Anderson Harry Laverne Anderson (October 14, 1952 – April 16, 2018) was an American actor, comedian and magician. He is best known for his role of Judge Harry Stone on the 1984–1992 television series '' Night Court''. He later starred in the ...

(in his final role), Jordan Trovillion, Jay Pickett, and

Clarence Gilyard Clarence Alfred Gilyard Jr. (December 24, 1955 – November 28, 2022) was an American university professor, actor, and author. As a performer, he appeared in film, television, and stage productions; some sources give his middle name as Alfred. ...

. The film was released into theaters on October 17, 2014 by

Five & Two Pictures Five & Two Pictures is an independent Christian film production company founded in 2002 by Dave Christiano and Rich Christiano. They have produced several Christian feature films; ''Time Changer'', '' Unidentified'', ''Me & You, Us, Forever'', ''Th ...

. The film follows a Christian student (played by Trovillion) and her father (Pickett) who are challenged by a biology professor (Anderson) who teaches

evolution Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation ...

Plot

Rachel Whitaker has been raised as a Christian by her loving parents (her father is a minister). However, after she leaves for her freshman year of college, she begins to be influenced by her biology professor, Dr. Kaman whose charisma and light-hearted approach make him popular with the students. He teaches that complex life forms evolved from simpler life forms and that the Biblical theory of creation is not a considerable alternative. Rachel's father Stephen is concerned by the change in his daughter's personality and beliefs, and goes to confront the arrogant professor, finding himself challenged to a debate much to the embarrassment of his daughter. As he prepares, Stephen is approached by a sympathetic student who tells him to go to the university to see a former professor named Portland, who was fired years before at Kaman's behest for teaching Biblical theory to his students. Portland initially rebuffs efforts to "get him back in the game". On the night of the debate, Kaman seems to be swaying the audience when Portland suddenly appears and confronts his old nemesis at the movie's conclusion.

Cast

as Professor Marcus Kaman * Jordan Trovillion as Rachel Whitaker * Jay Pickett as Stephen Whitaker *

as Professor Joseph Portland *Chandler Macocha as Evan Carlson *Justin Brandt as Jason *Barrett Carnahan as Tyler Mathis *Stephanie Shemanski as Ally *Sarab Kamoo as Kimberly Whitaker * Scott Alan Smith as Phil Jamison

Reception

''A Matter of Faith'' was initially released to 25 movie theaters and its widest release was to 52 theaters.

Common Sense Media Common Sense Media (CSM) is an organization that reviews and provides ratings for media and technology with the goal of providing information on their suitability for children.

gave the film a one out of five rating, criticizing its "clear agenda" and "clichéd plotting". The

Young Earth creationist Young Earth creationism (YEC) is a form of creationism which holds as a central tenet that the Earth and its lifeforms were created by supernatural acts of the Abrahamic God between approximately 6,000 and 10,000 years ago. In its most widespr ...

and

Christian apologetics Christian apologetics ( grc, ἀπολογία, "verbal defense, speech in defense") is a branch of Christian theology that defends Christianity. Christian apologetics has taken many forms over the centuries, starting with Paul the Apostle in ...

organization

Answers in Genesis Answers in Genesis (AiG) is an American fundamentalist Christian apologetics parachurch organization. It advocates Young Earth creationism on the basis of its literal, historical-grammatical interpretation of the Book of Genesis and the Bible ...

(AiG) strongly endorsed and promoted the film. Other prominent Creationists who endorsed the film included

Ray Comfort Ray Comfort (born 5 December 1949) is a New Zealand-born Christian minister and Evangelism, evangelist who lives in the United States. Comfort started Living Waters Publications, as well as the ministry ''The Way of the Master'', in Bellflower, ...

, founder and CEO of Living Waters Ministries, Tim Wildmon, President of the

American Family Association The American Family Association (AFA) is a Christian fundamentalist 501(c)(3) organization based in the United States.

, Gary Bates, CEO of

Creation Ministries International Creation Ministries International (CMI) is a non-profit organisation that promotes the pseudoscience of young earth creationism. It has branches in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa, the United Kingdom and the United State ...

, and

Kent Hovind Kent E. Hovind (born January 15, 1953) is an American Christian fundamentalism, Christian fundamentalist evangelist and tax protester. He is a controversial figure in the Young Earth creationism, Young Earth creationist movement whose ministry ...

. The

Dove Foundation The Dove Foundation is an American non-profit organization based in Portland, Oregon, that issues film reviews, ratings and endorsements of movies that it considers suitable for family audiences, and that bases said reviews on Christian values. De ...

gave the film a rating of five out of five dove seals, writing that "This quality movie features solid acting including two veterans, Harry Anderson and Clarence Gilyard."

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Matter of Faith, A 2014 drama films American drama films Evolution in popular culture Films about evangelicalism American independent films Works about creationism Young Earth creationism 2010s English-language films 2010s American films