DAVID CRUMM: 'Walking the Bible' takes viewers to the Holy Land

Documentary DVD shows dozens of Jewish, Christian and Muslim religious sites
June 3, 2006
BY DAVID CRUMM
FREE PRESS COLUMNIST
Half the world's population has a spiritual home in the Holy Land. Hopes for the region have never dimmed in Jewish and Muslim communities, but, among the world's 2 billion Christians, the streams of pilgrims have nearly dried up.
The current challenge for Americans, say California-based TV producer Drew Levin and local minister Loretta Job, is reminding people of the vibrant sights and sounds they can find there.
"Most people haven't traveled to the Middle East, so part of the problem is that people have started to think of these places in terms of the violent incidents they see reported on CBS or Fox News," Levin said about his passion for changing Americans' impressions of the region. Levin's three-hour documentary, "Walking the Bible," which aired on PBS in January, is out now on DVD ($39.95) and this fall, PBS will rerun it.
"The Holy Land is the source of so much misunderstanding," Levin said, "but it also holds the roots of our traditions."
That's the same motive that prompted Loretta Job, a minister at Brighton First United Methodist Church, to agree to host a free appearance at 7 p.m. Oct. 21 of the Bethlehem Bible College choir. It's a group of Palestinian Christian singers from the ancient town just south of Jerusalem that also holds sacred sites for Christians, Jews and Muslims.
"This isn't a political statement," Job said about the concert. "It's our way of trying to help remove fears and make the world seem a little smaller.
"There's so much potential for people to be touched in profound ways by the Holy Land, but now people have pretty much stopped going because of fear. Well, my fear is that our connections with these sacred places may disappear. I don't want to see that happen."
It may be hard to remember after all the violence around the world since 2001, but there was a time when large groups of Americans, including many church groups from Michigan, regularly made pilgrimages to the Holy Land. Countless American voices -- from novelist Mark Twain to columnist Thomas Friedman -- have argued that visiting Jerusalem is an essential part of the quest to understand humanity.
That's the message that Levin says leapt off the pages of Bruce Feiler's book "Walking the Bible: A Journey by Land through the Five Books of Moses" (HarperCollins; $14.95).
"I was blown away when I read it, having never sat down myself and looked at the root of all these ancient stories," Levin said. "So, we decided it was a perfect time to take this incredibly dramatic story Feiler had written and make it into a what's basically a movie about these places."
Levin may not be a household name, but he is a TV-industry heavyweight. Over the years, he has produced shows with the late astronomer Carl Sagan, novelist Stephen King and singer Madonna. He also was among cable TV pioneers, producing family hits like "Amazing Tales" for Animal Planet. So, when Levin said it was time for Americans to take a fresh look at the Holy Land, influential people listened.
Feiler, a journalist turned best-selling author, agreed to host the three-hour documentary that takes viewers through dozens of Jewish, Christian and Muslim holy sites.
"People have forgotten how magnificent the Middle East is," Levin said. "Instead of thinking of violence, I want people to think of deep blue oceans, beautiful mosques and churches -- and all these stories."
Levin said he's aware that he wasn't the first Hollywood producer to think of this. "Long before me there were the epics of Cecil B. DeMille, who understood what wonderful dramas there were in these lands.
"Now, we've got to remind people again that this truly is the home of the greatest stories ever told."