If we do not nip in the bud this burst of theocratic influence in the US Armed forces we may see the end of the world soon since, unlike the Romans, the Crusaders or the Nazis we do have nuclear weapons and the Jews in the military are the canary in the coal mine.

I was invited to the premiere by Mikey Weinstein, founder of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation.  The film features him and his family prominently.  Mikey and his sons and daughter-in-law are all Air Force Academy graduates. I have blogged in the past here and elsewhere about the Weinstein's cause.

Mikey Weinstein leads the fight against the penetration of the Pentagon by the James Dobson hordes starting at the Air Force Academy.  His son Casey and his wife Amanda appear in key scenes, what honor it was to meet them both.

The film received a standing ovation and I will be surprised if it does not win the prize for the best documentary at the festival.  It will soon be distributed widely and if you thought Jesus Camp was worth seeing (it was), trust me this film will give you a whole lot more bang for your buck.

Carroll and Jacoby convincingly manage to link events that took place almost 1700 years ago during the Roman Empire, 1000 years ago during the Crusades, 500 years ago during the Inquisition and 70 years ago in Nazi Germany to the United States today.

Constantine's Sword will stay with you and will make you see things from a whole new perspective.  It proved to me that I was clueless about the history of Christianity, its relationship with Jews and the origins of anti-Semitism.

One low point in the film is the scenes with Ted Haggard, responsible for most of the efforts to evangelize cadets.  Obviously the documentary would not be complete without him.  (The thought that him and his theo-con friends get to chat on the phone with Bush every week is very disturbing.)

One of the most interesting stories told (and I counted dozens of interesting stories woven together masterfully by Carroll and Jacoby) was the story of Emperor Constantine, his wife Helen, the True Cross and the Robe of Christ (fans of The Da Vinci Code may want to see the film just for this aspect.)  I had never understood how the church that Jesus Christ started evolved into the aggressive strain of Christianity that now is best represented by the US religious right.  This story alone could justify several documentaries.  Bottom line according to James Carroll's interpretation, it was Constantine who adopted the cross as the sign of Christianity and turned what was a peaceful religion into a violent movement with strong anti-Semitic content.  This powerful perspective will shock most Christians.  I am an atheist and it shocked me.

Catholics will be made very uncomfortable with Carroll's account of the history of the Church during the Nazi era and the broadside he fires on the current Pope, Benedict XVI.

The Pentagon will probably squirm with the angle on intolerance and proselitization at the Air Force Academy.

If you are a Jew and a Bush supporter, you better pay attention.

Look I just want you to go and see it, you will thank me and your brain will explode.

If you are a fan of Mel Gibson's Passion of the Christ, you are excused.

Watch the trailer here.