The new movie “Last Ounce of Courage” is a statement calling on people to “stand up for their rights and defend their religious freedom,” says a young Catholic actor with a large role in the film. Hunter Gomez, a 21-year-old actor from Arizona, said the family film is about faith and urges Americans to not “be complacent anymore,” he told CNA September 11.
Gomez plays the role of Christian Revere, grandson of the movie’s main character Bob Revere, who is played by Marshall Teague. Christian finds himself rebuked for bringing a Bible to school and sees Christmas being ignored or secularized in a town where it was once celebrated by locals. “He comes home and he feels like his rights are being stepped on,” Gomez summarized. “He can’t put a cross wherever he wants or bring a Bible to school or read a Bible in public.” Christian, whose father died in war, asks his grandfather, the town’s part-time mayor, what his father died for. The question prompts the Revere family to decide to stand for their beliefs and inspire their town. Gomez said the movie is about supporting all faiths, not just Christianity. He said it has been “very well received” and is not a partisan film. “It has no political agenda. It’s simply about standing up for your rights and becoming involved in political discussion.” Gomez is presently a student at Arizona State University. His home parish is the Catholic Community of the Blessed Sacrament in Scottsdale, Ariz. He said he feels free to speak about his faith in daily life. “But you have to be careful,” he said. “You can’t say certain things.” He said there is a “misconception” that those who are vocal about their faith, especially Catholics, “can come across as a bigot or someone that is deemed by the public as crazy. I think we should be able to live in a society where especially young people can be expressive and excited about their faith and say ‘I’m a Christian’ and not have to hide that.” Gomez advised Americans to “directly confront” social pressures to conceal their faith through discussion and dialogue.
The “Last Ounce of Courage” movie runs special screenings on September 11 and opens nationwide September 14.
The spiritual climax of the Gospel of John, as Father John Waiss points out, occurs at the foot of the Cross, where Jesus utters his parting words: “Woman, behold, your son!” and “Behold your mother!” (John 19:26-27). While these words were addressed to the Apostle John, the disciple whom Jesus loved, the Church has long understood this moment as a universal adoption. To truly image Christ, we must share in His parentage; if we embrace God as our spiritual Father but reject Mary as our mother, we treat Christ as a half-brother rather than our "firstborn among many brethren" (Rom. 8:29). As Origen noted as early as the third century, the profound depths of the Gospel are only accessible to those who, like John, rest their heads on Jesus’ breast and receive Mary into their own homes. This maternal role is deeply rooted in biblical typology, positioning Mary as the fulfillment of the great mothers of the Old Covenant. She is the New Eve , the mother of all the living according ...