Author: Troy Carruthers

  • ‘District 9’ Reminds Us of God’s Call to Love the Alien

    ‘District 9’ Reminds Us of God’s Call to Love the Alien

    For as long as I can remember I have been captivated by the mysterious myth of aliens from outer space. In grade school I was as excited to talk to my friends about them as I was to talk about comics, TV, music, even girls. Anytime there was a TV show or movie based on…

  • Mahatma Ghandi and the Christian Call to Social Justice

    Mahatma Ghandi and the Christian Call to Social Justice

    Just yesterday I told my daughter that I loved history in high school, but that I also did terrible in it. I would forget what I studied faster than I could pull out my pencil to write a test. But one thing I will never forget: learning about the Hindu caste system when in the…

  • The Day I Became A Kid From Stand By Me

    The Day I Became A Kid From Stand By Me

    Anyone who has had the joy of watching the great 80’s classic Stand By Me has also had the shock, disgust, sorrow and other mixed emotions of the scene involving the corpse of a young man. I hadn’t even seen one in real life when I saw this movie as a 14-year-old. It would end…

  • The Cowgirl Story That Broke Our Hearts

    The Cowgirl Story That Broke Our Hearts

    Of all three Toy Story movies, the second one touches me the most emotionally, and it’s mainly because of Jessie. In fact, she and her character arc in Toy Story 2 can almost be described as having a transforming moment for computer animated movies. No one can bring rich sadness to an animated screen like…

  • Strength in Weakness: The Trials of Humphrey Bogart

    Strength in Weakness: The Trials of Humphrey Bogart

    Ever hear a story about someone famous that talks about their limitations or past failures and makes you feel better about being you? I remember hearing that Albert Einstein had failed math in school as a kid. That encouraged me to work hard academically and stop worrying about not making it. Too bad the story…