An early autumn evening set the scene for a remarkable event in the Diocese of Central Florida, as nearly 200 people gathered on Oct. 16 to watch and discuss a film dramatically portraying a vibrant contrast between theism and atheism. Several churches in the Episcopal Diocese of Central Florida, including All Saints, Winter Park; the Cathedral Church of St. Luke, Orlando; Emmanuel, Orlando; and Church of the Messiah, Winter Garden, sponsored the screening and scholarly discussion afterwards. It was an exhilarating night.

For decades, Harvard Medical School psychiatry professor Armand Nicholi Jr. taught a worldview course contrasting atheism with theism and selecting Sigmund Freud and C.S. Lewis, respectively, as representative spokesmen for the two views. In 2002, Nicholi published The Question of God: C.S. Lewis and Sigmund Freud Debate God, Love, Sex, and the Meaning of Life, which PBS subsequently made into an extremely popular four-hour documentary.

In the epilogue of his book, Nicholi noted that, shortly before the famed psychologist’s death in September 1939, “a young Oxford professor visited Freud … but has not been identified,” wondering if it might have been Lewis. Inspired by the idea, in 2009, playwright Mark St. Germain debuted a play exploring that tantalizing possibility. The play was later made into a movie, Freud’s Last Session, which premiered in 2023 and featured Anthony Hopkins as Freud. Ironically, Hopkins had also portrayed Lewis in Shadowlands in 1993.

A number of years ago, a theater company in Houston invited a local psychology professor and me to give a talkback following a performance of the play. When the Rev. Jonathan Turtle of Emmanuel, Orlando, suggested a screening of the movie last spring, I proposed a similar evening, and with encouragement from the Rt. Rev. Dr. Justin S. Holcomb, we put it together. The Rev. Stu Shelby, rector, All Saints, Winter Park, graciously stepped in to facilitate the entire event.

Audience gathered for the film screening and talkback discussion. | Photo: Keith Winter

We gathered at Aloma Cinema Grill for a screening of the movie; a talkback discussion featuring Rollins College Dr. Bob Smither, dean emeritus; and a moderated Q&A led by Rollins College drama professor, director and playwright Dr. Marianne DiQuattro, a St. Luke’s member who had staged the play at Grove City College. With the support, promotion and attendance from the sponsoring churches, the event quickly sold out; the energy in the room was palpable.

Following the screening, Smither and I each offered our perspectives on the film, the portrayals and how closely the movie depicted the facts we know about both of these towering 20th-century figures. Though we noted that the film’s creators took some liberties, it offered a fascinating engagement with the life and work of both men. It also prompted questions about the nature of morality, the intersection between the inner and outer life, and the viability of a theistic and even Christian worldview.

After the talkback, DiQuattro asked a number of intriguing questions of the audience and the panel, inviting a wide range of interaction. This proved an exciting part of the evening as people around the room reacted to some big questions, not only about theology and psychology, but also concerning some of the specific choices of the filmmakers, which prompted an engagement with the creation of art and the practice of faith.

People reacted positively and left the room buzzing, displaying a general enthusiasm for more such events. We have already begun discussing other ways to engage with the wider community, especially considering the intersection between the life of the mind, the life of the soul and the viability of faith, even in our age. All in all, this event offered a powerful and provocative way to spend a few hours entertaining some of the greatest questions we can consider.