Advent and the film The Greatest Showman

Christmas party for the group who had gathered through Advent to look at the Film The Greatest Showman.

As we watched the film section by section over 4 weeks the Rev Claire Rawlinson led reflections on themes illustrated by the film but linked to our Christian Journey.

At the start of the film the lead character, Barnum, has a dream of becoming a success and we thought about what dreams we have had over our lives and whether we achieved them, comparing this to the dreams and expectations we see in the bible about the coming messiah.

The story continues with Barnum starting a show featuring all sorts of misfits. This prompted consideration of how welcoming the church is to those who society rejects.

After achieving success Barnum, who has seemed to chase success without caring about those around him, suddenly looses everything.

We were asked how we cope when things coming crashing down, where do we find support?

We also considered what are our priorities, what does it mean to be successful?

The group found this an interesting way to look at some issues that face us all.

At the end we had a wonderful bring and share party, watched the whole film through and some even joined in with the singing!