A Palatable Messiah
I have a dirty secret. I don't like The Chosen.The hit TV series has become a viral phenomenon among Christians. Billing itself as "the first ever multi-season show about the life of Christ," the project explores the Gospel story from the point of view of the people closest to Jesus: his mother, Mary Magdalen, and the apostles. The show claims to be the highest crowd-funded media project of all time and has been viewed by over 160 million people. Director and creator Dallas Jenkins has plans for seven seasons in total. So far, two have been released, with a third fully funded and in the works.
Clearly, the series resonates with audiences. The show's website features positive reviews by influential Christian and pop-culture figures, including Kirk Cousins and Dr. Alveda King. My own Catholic circles are abuzz with positive reviews. Recommendations have flooded my Facebook feed. Countless friends have heartily endorsed the show, saying it has brought Jesus alive for them in a wholly new way. The consensus seems to be that this show avoids the issues that typically plague "Christian" television and movies, especially the dreaded accusation of "cheesiness."
I'm not convinced.
Modernized Middle East
THIS ARTICLE ONLY AVAILABLE TO SUBSCRIBERS.
FOR QUICK ACCESS:
Kateri Kuplic is a graduate student at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Get six issues (one year) of Touchstone PLUS full online access including pdf downloads for only $39.95. That's only $3.34 per month!
Get a one-year full-access subscription to the Touchstone online archives for only $19.95. That's only $1.66 per month!
bulk subscriptions
Order Touchstone subscriptions in bulk and save $10 per sub! Each subscription includes 6 issues of Touchstone plus full online access to touchstonemag.com—including archives, videos, and pdf downloads of recent issues for only $29.95 each! Great for churches or study groups.
Transactions will be processed on a secure server.
more on culture from the online archives
34.1—January/February 2021
Live Not by Lies: A Manual for Christian Dissidents by Rod Dreher by Hans Boersma
19.4—May 2006
The Culture War Is Between Religious Believers on Both Sides by Howard P. Kainz
31.6—November/December 2018
Victimhood Culture Scapegoats Its Very Source by Michael P. Foley
more from the online archives
32.1—January/February 2019
Answers Secular & Religious by Allan C. Carlson
24.5—Sept/Oct 2011
A Critical Memoir of Thomas Merton at Gethsemani Abbey by Patrick Henry Reardon
27.4—July/August 2014
The Bible, Sacred Theology & the Mind of Christ by Patrick Henry Reardon
calling all readers
Please Donate
"There are magazines worth reading but few worth saving . . . Touchstone is just such a magazine."
—Alice von Hildebrand
"Here we do not concede one square millimeter of territory to falsehood, folly, contemporary sentimentality, or fashion. We speak the truth, and let God be our judge. . . . Touchstone is the one committedly Christian conservative journal."
—Anthony Esolen, Touchstone senior editor
