One of my favorite movies of all time is Ghostbusters, released in 1984, filled with goofiness and quick one-liners repeated ever since. I bet I’ve said “dogs and cats living together, mass hysteria” a thousand times (if you’re a fan of the film you get my drift).
I also like when movies quote scripture, and Ghostbusters includes a dive into a biblical text. Two of the ghostbuster crew, Ray (played by Dan Aykroyd) and Winston (Ernie Hudson), drive across town in the dark just before dawn. They start talking about God, and quickly turn to the book of Revelation.
In the movie Ray quotes Revelation 7:12, (he’s actually quoting Revelation 6:12)—I watched as he opened the sixth seal. There was a great earthquake. The sun turned black like sackcloth make of goat hair, the whole moon turned blood red, and the stars in the sky fell to the earth.
Judgement Day.
Along with getting the reference wrong, the ghostbusters leave out words and add in a few as they remember the text. But they are quoting from memory as they head toward a battle with the ancient Hittite god Gozer, so let’s cut them some slack.
I read this passage this morning and my mind took me down into this wacky world of ghost chasing. But there’s nothing wacky about the events represented in Revelation. In the movie, Ray refers to judgment day as a myth, but Winston immediately pushes back with the idea that judgement day is upon them—perhaps the dead have been rising from the grave! Ray turns on the radio to avoid the subject.
I tend to avoid the subject as well. Who knows when the events portrayed might come to pass? In this delightful theological scene, Winston gives the words of scripture the attention they deserve, while Ray chooses to ignore their warning.
So, when choosing a ghostbuster to emulate, I’d go with Winston, based on his appreciation for Biblical truth. And spoiler alert—if you see the newest movie in the franchise (Ghostbusters: Afterlife)—you’ll discover that Winston did pretty well for himself after that confrontation with the giant Stay-Puft marshmallow man.
Revelation 6 in week forty-nine of reading the Bible cover to cover
Image from Sony Pictures
Well now I need to see the new movie. I’ll admit to running from all the Revelations “stuff” due to growing up with all the Hal Lindsay end times literature from the 70’s. The central message of being prepared gets lost failed efforts of interpretation of current events.
So true. We like to imagine all the gruesome details without any worry on our part. The new movie is entertaining, but nothing too new or creative. Mostly throwbacks to the original.