The Least of These (Film Recommendation)

The King will reply, “Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”

Matt. 25:40
  • Released 2019
  • Stream online on PureFlix, Prime Video, or Apple TV
  • Starring: Sharman Joshua, Stephen Baldwin, and Manoj Mishra
  • Directed by Aneesh Daniels; Written by Andrew E. Matthews
  • Synopsis: The least of these is the true story of the life and martyrdom of missionary Graham Staines.
  • In the credits, the movie directs viewers to iForgive.com, a website dedicated to forgiveness!

I don’t do a lot of film recommendations, but I just watched a fantastic film on PureFlix and wanted to take a moment to mention it.

The Least of These: The Graham Staines Story is a beautiful testament to forgiveness, based on the martyrdom of an Australian missionary who ministered to lepers in India. Filmed on location in India, the movie focuses on the political issue of “forced conversions,” which were unlawful in the region. Forced conversions were a means of dishonest gain for missionaries and government officials were, rightfully, concerned about forced conversions serving as a gateway to imperialism.

Prior to watching the film, I had never heard of Graham Staines, but his story— and that of his widow— is truly moving!

This is an intense film, featuring a violent scene (martyrdom by burning), but also very powerful. Rated PG-13. I would classify it as appropriate (as a family viewing) for children ages 12 and up.

If you’re looking for a meaningful film to watch this weekend, I highly recommend The Least of These.

See Also

Published by Stephaniesninthsuitcase

Hi, there! My name is Stephanie and I’m a Fresno, CA native. After studying at Biola University, I received my MLIS (Masters in Library Science) from San Jose State University. I live with my mom, poet Kimberly Vargas Agnese, and serve as her unofficial agent. We reside at MeadowArc, a food forest in its infancy. I am called to, and passionate about, purity. In fact, the name Agnes means “pure.” Before I was born, my mom felt led to include the name Agnes in her name, and in the names of her children. My full, hyphenated name includes 26 letters (but not the whole alphabet).

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