Film

Pope Leo XIV Needs to Update the Vatican Film List

Here are 3 films he can start with…

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I’ve been a movie buff since I was 3 years old and first saw Disney’s The Little Mermaid in theaters. I’ve been a Catholic since I was 26. The convergence of these two loves culminated in a great interest in the official . A list of films that display “truth, beauty, and a Catholic world view” put out by the Vatican. As much as I love this list, I also believe that it desperately needs an update.

Created at the direction of Pope John Paul II in 1994, it was, in part, a reaction to another list, the disapproved index, that has created controversy over the years. The index of disapproved material contains artistic or intellectual works that the Vatican discourages the faithful from consuming. Created in the 1300s, the index contains mostly books but also plays and a few early films. After Vatican II, the index was largely abandoned, and in 1995, Pope John Paul II sought a way to encourage the faithful to view edifying artistic works rather than focusing on the negative (ie. what should not be consumed). This desire led to the creation of the Vatican Film List.

This list breaks movies into three categories in which Vatican officials believed said film shines: Religion, Values, and Art. The index…