The Footprints of God: Mary the Mother of God

The second film in the Footprints of God series is dedicated to Mary, mother of Jesus. Unless your an expert in the ancient Biblical history and a frequent traveller to those places or a Christian Biblical tour guide in Israel, Turkey, Egypt, Italy, Greece, Jordan and Syria at the same time, the series is definitely not to be missed. They say the Holy Land is the fifth Bible. It is definitely true in that so many places described in the Bible, unless they were completely destroyed by wars and time, are there to tell us their stories of life, customs, traditions and events of the time. They help to get the much needed dose of reality of those events that happened in the course of several thousand years of history, especially in this age of scepticism or plainly a blind refusal to accept the historicity of Christianity. If you'll never see some of the places, use it as a great travel and history source, and if you're going to see some of them - as a travel guide of the places not to be missed. And not just a travel guide, it will help you understand the deep meaning of the events connected to these places.

And that's what Steve Ray does. Mary is often overlooked and ignored and even reduced to simply a speechless tool in the story of Salvation by most of the non-traditional (Protestant) Christian denominations that appeared no more than 500 years ago. But her role is not that of simply a birth-giver. Her "yes" to God was key to all that happened later, as was her life after the Annunciation. Christians have always venerated saints and Mary as a very special saint. They also venerated the sacred places where most important events happened, they built churches over those places, thus preserving the memory for future generations. Christianity is not a religion of the Book that "fell from the skies", completely detached from this world, people and places. It is deeply rooted in history and without its history it is in danger of turning into a myth - exactly what the sceptics and atheists are desperately trying to make it to be.

Of course, there is so much to tell about Mary's life and her role in Salvation - both historically and theologically, and one hour of this documentary is barely enough just to cover the main points, albeit briefly. But it does the job very well, combining history and faith in one organic story-telling, and can certainly be used as a starting point to familiarise yourself with what it is that Catholics actually believe, as opposed to what you may think they believe. If you are not a traditional Christian: Catholic, Orthodox or Oriental, things that you hear may sound quite daunting and not entirely clear but information is all widely available in books and online. I would recommend this to anyone - whether you are a sceptic, a protestant or a traditional Christian.

In this 98-minute documentary, author Steve Ray takes viewers to all the Biblical places and sites where Mary, the mother of Jesus, lived. It includes aerial film of the Holy Land, Egypt, and the archeological remains of the once great city of Ephesus, in modern-day Turkey. Ray traveled to these and many more places in the air and on the ground for this and nine other films of a 10-part documentary. "The Footprints of God" series presents the story of salvation, from Abraham to Augustine with modern visits and film of the places and sites of the Bible and ancient Church. Ray and his wife, Janet, planned, researched, filmed and produced the series over a period of some 15 years.

This video tour begins in Jerusalem and the Church of St. Ann, the mother of Mary. Then, it's off to Nazareth and the Basilica of the Annunciation which is built over what was believed to be the Holy Family's home in Nazareth. Aerial film shows the route over the country that Mary would have traveled to Ein Karim to visit her cousin, Elizabeth, who was six months pregnant with John the Baptist. Then, at Bethlehem, Ray enters a cave - one of many in the hills around the town, to show how the people kept their animals at night. Next, we go inside the Church of the Nativity which is built over the very site where Christ was born.

The film then shows Cana where the Mother of Jesus prodded him to work his first miracle. In Jerusalem, the film visits the West Wall outside the area of the temple mount. It goes to the area of the praetorium, then along the Way of the Cross (Via Dolorosa) and to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher which is built over what was the hill of Golgotha and the nearby tomb where Christ was lain and rose from the dead.

After a visit to the Upper Room, where Mary would have been with the Apostles and other disciples after the crucifixion, the film takes viewers to Ephesus in Turkey. And, above the ruins of the once spectacular metropolis is Mary's house where she is believed to have lived when the Apostle John took her with him to the city. The last stop of this video is the Isle of Patmos where John had been banished for a time and wrote the Book of Revelation

In my travels I was able to visit all of these places, except Egypt. This is an outstanding video and film series that most people should enjoy. Especially Christians and those interested in the Bible, archaeology or history of the region.