INTERVIEW with THE DOVE FOUNDATION
Dove:
Chris, can you tell us a little bit about the background concerning “The Masked Saint” and how you got involved in it?
Chris:
“It started a long, long time ago, when I first became a pastor in 1988. I was going to my first church– had some issues that took place there that were handled in a little bit different way than a pastor would normally do, and after that, issue after issue happened. Before you know it, I was thinking that it would be great to write this down. You don’t hear about many pastors doing this stuff. I tried to find someone else to write it, for a long time, because I didn’t think I was a writer and that didn’t work out. One Saturday I sat at my computer and began writing and before it was over I had the first chapter. My wife looked at it and she loved it, and she’s my biggest critic. So that’s how it all got started.”
Dove:
Is this a fictionalized story of your life partly based on truth?
Chris:
“In the book each chapter is based upon something that happened in my life. So there’s a lot of realism in it. I think the movie says ‘Inspired by’ but it’s based on my life.
Dove:
Chris, what were some of the positive experiences you had in both writing and filming the movie?
Chris:
“I think the great thing in writing it was that it just brought back a lot of great memories. You know, I struggled with some things. I know the Bible says the Lord doesn’t love a brawler and I’m not a brawler. I think there are some things that can only be dealt with, with a little bit of force. I mean, Jesus cleansed the temple with a whip and turned the tables over. I did struggle with that. I think looking at it–I didn’t go looking for it (physical altercations). I stood up for people that couldn’t stand up for themselves. With the movie, it was an awesome experience because I felt like a blind dog in a meat house. I didn’t know which way to go. I had never experienced anything like that. I used to think movies were so easy. And now I have a greater respect for Brett and the people who do what he does, because they start at 6:30 in the morning and they go till 12:30 at night. It’s just one thing after another and of doing scenes over and over and over and over again.”
Dove asked about the era that Chris worked and he mentioned the period of Bobo Brazil and The Sheik and he said he didn’t wrestle those particular wrestlers because they were in different territories. “There were 26 territories to wrestle in at the time,” Chris said. He added the WWF became national and gained more exposure in the 80s. Chris wrestled a few big names including “The Undertaker”. Chris is a funny guy, adding that his grandfather thought “The moon landing was fake and wrestling was real!”
Dove:
Is there anything you would like to add regarding the message or the movie?
Chris:
“The overriding message is that God is a God of a second chance. There are a lot of people that have failed that just give up. God is able to put us back on the wheel as in Jeremiah 18 where he told Jeremiah to go to the potter’s house. When he got through working with the clay it was flawed so he put it back on the wheel, squished it back together and made it into a new vessel. I was able to be put back on the wheel and made into a new vessel and I think that’s the message for the people that see it.” He added that sometimes you have to stand up for those that cannot stand up for themselves.
