June 27, 2012, Filed Under: Exhibitions + Events, FilmIn the Galleries: Robert De Niro’s King James Version-inspired tattoos in "Cape Fear" The 1991 Martin Scorsese–directed thriller Cape Fear may seem an unlikely candidate for documenting the use and influence of the King James Bible, but its central character, Max Cady, as played by Robert De Niro, wielded biblical verses like weapons. This aspect of Cady was absent in both the original… read more
April 5, 2012, Filed Under: Books + Manuscripts, Exhibitions + EventsIn the Galleries: The Origins of WWJD In the 1890s, Kansas minister Charles M. Sheldon (1857–1946) turned to “sermon stories” to engage his congregation. In 1896, Sheldon began reading to the Central Church of Topeka a new series of stories called In His Steps. Like other Sheldon sermon stories, In His Steps ran as a serial in… read more
April 3, 2012, Filed Under: Books + Manuscripts, Exhibitions + EventsIn the Galleries: John Bunyan’s "The Pilgrim’s Progress" Few writers have been as biblically obsessed as John Bunyan (1628–1688). In his spiritual autobiography, he writes of being literally accosted, struck, and pursued by Bible verses wherever he went. His life, like his writings, was a biblical allegory. One of his most famous works, The Pilgrim’s Progress, was the… read more
