Writing at Townhall.com, Mark Joseph (of The Culture Beat) has some words of caution about a recent trend in Christian films. Some Christian films are bypassing movie theaters and are being shown in churches instead.

A recent example is the latest Left Behind film, which, because it

occurred outside of the mainstream of American cultural life in venues only accessible to some, the film’s content wasn’t debated on talk radio, featured on the cover of Time Magazine or discussed on All Things Considered, The O’Reilly Factor or Hardball. In pop culture terms, it was as if it had never happened.

Joseph isn't condemning the motives behind this avoidance of mainstream pop culture, but he worries that this signals a "retreat" from mainstream culture (and from mainstream relevance) similar to what happened to Christian contemporary music in decades past. The strict separation of religious and secular art might appeal to churchgoers and non-religious people alike, but it makes for an unhealthy "preaching-to-the-choir" atmosphere.

What do you think? I'd say it's too early to panic just yet, given that the last few years have seen several overtly Christian or faith-friendly films in mainstream theaters. But Joseph's piece is a good reminder to beware the temptation to segregate our message away from a world that needs to hear it.