Over two weeks ago (which I’m pretty sure makes it about 100 in blog years), Tim Swanson wrote an interesting retrospective on “Boyz N the Hood” which appeared in the Chicago Tribune. (Weirdly, it doesn’t seem to exist on the Tribune website.)

What I found most interesting was this paragraph, which was the third-to-last one (pen-penultimate?? ante-penultimate?? tertiultimate??  I need a ruling here):

And while the movie helped to spotlight the struggle in places like South-Central, it ultimately did little to change the habits of Hollywood, which seemed more interested in tapping the financial potential of a new sub-genre than further democratizing the filmmaking process.

Hollywood creates movies in order to make money, not to create a fair and justice society. Now, I often use thoughts, ideas, soundbites, clips, retellings, quotes from TV shows and movies to make or illustrate a point in a sermon or a lesson. So I’m well aware of the power of story – especially the power of stories well-told.

But that ‘graph has me thinking: Are we guilty of expecting Hollywood to be something it’s not?

And perhaps more importantly: Do we do the same thing with the church? Is the church really interested in democratizing the leadership process? Or does she just trying to tap into the latest fad in hopes of boosting collections?