Murdock Theatre

Part spiritual quest, part travelogue, Mysteries of the Jesus Prayer takes viewers on an extraordinary journey to some of early Christianity’s holiest sites. Emmy award-winning filmmaker Norris Chumley and Fr. Anthony McGuckin gained unparalleled access to the oldest monasteries in the East, where monks and nuns faithfully preserve the ancient tradition of silence as a path to inner peace. Among the practitioners of the time-honored Jesus Prayer are a former atheist who lives in a remote cave in Egypt, a blind Romanian elder who describes the prayer as the bridge between mind and heart, and a young Ukrainian monk who learns to pray after the fall of the Soviet regime. Filled with dramatic landscapes, resounding chant, and luminous icons, Mysteries of the Jesus Prayer generates a profound atmosphere of calm and peace. “This is a documentary film, but not in the traditional sense,” explains the filmmaker. “It’s a study in essences and in absences: what is not spoken is as important or more important than what is.”

Q&A session to follow.  Sponsored by St. George, St. Mary, and St. Michael Orthodox Churches of Wichita.