“Standing Silent” is a new documentary by Phil Jacobs. It uncovers the ritual abuse in an Orthodox Jewish community in Baltimore, Maryland. Jacobs went on a quest to uncover the stories from the sexual abuse survivors.

The Washington Post has a piece on it. It’s very moving.

One by one the victims stood and described their alleged molesters: the Torah teacher, the rabbi, the ice cream truck driver, the man at the mikvah.

That meeting, held nearly six years ago in a small room in a synagogue in Pikes­ville, just outside Baltimore, went on for four hours. Seated in a circle with the other victims was Phil Jacobs, a Baltimore Jewish Times journalist. He was not there as a reporter. He was there because he, too, had experienced sexual abuse.

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“Standing Silent” was filmed between 2007 and 2010, with a three-person crew that traveled with Jacobs through Baltimore’s suburbs and to Israel, eventually recording more than 125 hours of video, much of it interviews with victims and alleged perpetrators.

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There is a gallery of a few still from the movie. You can view the “Standing Silent” gallery here. I’m unsure where to actually watch the film. Or when it’s coming out.

In any case, there’s also Survivors for Justice.

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For most comedies these days, as I sit before the large or small screen, I come to a disheartening realization that I had already seen the funniest moments in the previews and trailers. That was not the case with Religulous. I found myself laughing (almost non-stop) throughout the movie. In addition to the documentary’s hilarity, I’ve come across the review that it’s “preaching to the choir”, which I’ll agree with on some points but not in totality.

There was definitely a sense that if one is religious, he/she may not feel a home. Bill Maher may have uttered a few Really‘s and Come on‘s that could possibly upset the deep believer. With that said, the movie is potentially for those in between. The agnostics and even the irreligious deists and theists; which I would explain as those who realize religion is harmful but still may believe something. Moreover, I would love for this movie to reach a larger audience, to encompass the ones who still check the Christian, Jewish, Muslim, etc box but either don’t really believe or just don’t really think about it. It’s time they do.

After all the comedic interviews, Bill Maher gives an epilogue that is truly amazing. A serious call to all, encouraging the audience to understand the harm the worldwide religions are causing.

Hopefully, it will explain our irreligious standpoint. That no one knows and doubt is a good thing. It’s what keeps us humble. It’s not about believing in a supreme being or an ever-glowing energy ball (or not); it’s about growing up and away from religion’s stranglehold for the good of humankind. He ends with a notion I couldn’t agree with more: for us to expect our world civilization to continue to aspire and advance, we must leave religion behind.

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