During our tour the BBC film crew complied more than 50 hours of recordings.  We all wondered at how they would that all of the information and weave it into a cohesive story that would be consistent with the goals and objectives set out by Marco Crivellari who was our first contact from the BBC.
 
Well, what can be said for such a “documentary” as this?  The BBC clearly revealed their hidden agenda for this film through their press office with this formal release.  It was a long way from the film concept shared with us by Marco Crivellari of the BBC.  The BBC’s advert is a follows:

Wonderland – The End Of The World Bus Tour
Episode 5 of 8, Wednesday 13 February, 9.50-10.30pm BBC TWO

The eclectic, observational documentary series continues this week with The End Of The World Bus Tour.

Most package-holiday tourists are seeking sun, sex or adventure, but the customers in Sharon Stolebarger's charge are looking for something rather different.
 
Sharon is the tour rep on a special 10-day holiday for people who believe the Apocalypse is only a few years away. Her customers are off to Israel to take a last-chance look at the "valley of Armageddon" – before it's awash with the blood of unbelievers – and to get baptised in the very waters that Jesus once walked on. They even get the chance to spend a day helping out at an Israeli military base – the highlight of the holiday for many of the tourists.
 
As the bus winds its way through the Holy Land, the tourists talk about their vision of Doomsday and reveal troubled pasts that seem to have led some of them to take refuge in such extreme religious beliefs. But as soon as film-maker David Clews gets to know them better, they decide they want to save his endangered soul and threaten him with an eternity of suffering.

The rest of the press within Great Britain wasted no time in jumping on the bandwagon with their own snipes at the “crazy Christians.” Given that provocative introduction let’s see what the other media messengers had to say.

The Radio Times (TV Guide) wrote, “Film-maker David Clews uses Louis Theroux tactics to get to know these doomsday tourists better, and the result is both compelling and alarming.”

The Guardian wrote, “We're on a coach tour of Israel, with a bunch of mainly middle-aged Americans. So far, so unextraordinary. The reason they're here, though, is that they all believe that the end of the world is just around the corner. Apocalypse-tourism - much more exciting than eco-tourism. So they visit the valley of Armageddon, which is a real place and looks pretty peaceful today. Not for long, though, because this is where man and Satan will rise up against God, and soon the whole place will be flowing with the blood of 200 million soldiers. Lots of the tourists get baptised, some for the second time, not in the Jordan but in the Sea of Galilee because it's handier for their hotel complex. And, anyway, the Jordan runs through Galilee so it's kind of the same. They're preparing themselves for The Rapture. They spend a day at an Israeli army camp, doing menial tasks to help out the soldiers. Because Palestinians are God's enemies, obviously. But it's hard to get angry with this lot, because they are all quite mad, with troubled pasts - lost children, drugs, multiple relationship failures. Just look at their eyes: they're clearly bonkers. Lovely.

The Telegraph wrote, “Questing film-maker David Clews goes along, learning about their literal belief in the Bible. The group turns out to include likeable folks – some with troubled pasts – and the film includes moving baptisms in Lake Galilee. The sour note comes with these uncompromising people’s absolute indifference to the plight of the Palestinians.”

The TV Times wrote, “Tonight’s documentary tramples the well-worn path of poking fun at Bible-bashing Americans, but it’s also got heart.  The cameras follow a Christian tour group to Israel, where they believe Doomsday will kick off in the next few years.  Add to this the Christians’ vocal anti-Islamic views and it’s tempting to dismiss them, until the film reveals the personal tragedies that have driven many of them to seek solace in extreme religion.”
 
Some of the Internet TV Guide sites found this pre-programmed propaganda a simple bore.

www.lowculture.co.uk announced their disgust with the typical BBC jaundice journalism by stating, "You would think there couldn't be any more tales of extremist American (we're assuming most of tonight's subjects are American, as that is what the trailer has led us to believe) religious types to tell, but apparently not.
What seems to set this documentary apart from all the others is the focus on the tourism aspect of the trip to Israel, and the fact that Wonderland tends to take a slightly more unique (read: less patronising) angle than other similar documentaries.
Even so, documentary makers, take note, this theme is getting a little old.

Do we have “anti-Islamic” views?
Comments like the groups “anti-Islamic views” and “these uncompromising people’s absolute indifference to the plight of the Palestinians” are shocking indictments indeed.  Real born-again Christians do not HATE Muslims.  Why?  Because the Bible tells us that our God doesn’t “hate” them.  The Gospel of John, chapter 3 verse 16 says, “For God so loved the would that He gave his only begotten son, that who so ever believes on him shall not perish but have everlasting life.”  We don’t HATE anyone that God loves enough to send His Son Jesus Christ to die for their sin along with everybody else in the world.  What then do we “feel” for them?  Sorrow and even pity that they have not discovered the blessing of knowing and worshipping the loving God of the Bible.

One of the statements our new-found critics referred to is a conclusion the producer David Clews drew while the group were in the Muslim Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem. He stated, “these people don’t seem to be interested in sharing with the heretic Muslims.”  What a strange conclusion given the fact that just before that shot the entire group had just finished a meal at a restaurant in the Muslim Quarter owned and operated by Muslims. 

David asked one person of her shopping plans in the Old City and completely ignored the activities of the rest of the group. David obviously did not want to show the fact that many on the tour stopped in and purchased items from many of the shops in the Muslim Quarter.  In fact, the woman who was quoted as saying, “I like the quality of the items in the Jewish Quarter” was simply stating a fact that the shops in the Muslim Quarter are many trinket tourist type shops and the more up-market, higher quality merchandise shops are in the Jewish Quarter.  That is not a racial comment motivated by some sort of hate.  Anyone who has ever been to Jerusalem would tell you the same thing. 

Are we “all quite mad?”
What a strange assessment made by the press concerning a group they’ve never met.  Throughout the tour we feared that David had another agenda which was not consistent with the goals and objectives Marco Crivellari of the BBC assured us were the foundation for this exposé.  David seemed to “pick on some of the weaker (in biblical understanding) people and ask them very complicated geo-political questions” which had nothing to do with either the tour or views held by mainstream evangelical Christianity.

There were so many others on the tour that gave David a sensible answer but their comments were obviously deemed inappropriate our unusable in the BBC editing room. David seemed to intentionally avoid the stronger or more articulate ones in the group in favour of the ones he could wind up and catch out.  Yet, to our shock and dismay, David continually targeted a few of the less articulate and in the group with questions about the “Palestinian problems.” The result was comments like this one made in the Guardian stating, “Just look at their eyes: they're clearly bonkers.”

Finally, “they want to save his endangered soul”
Now there’s an harsh indictment indeed.  David made it quite clear to most in the group that he was “seeking for spiritual answers.”  Was he really or was he simply applying the journalistic technique of “fake naive” as was suggested in the Radio Times which claimed that David “uses Louis Theroux tactics.”

From our point of view, we could do nothing more loving then try and share our understanding with David as he requested through his own questioning.  According to Pascal, the seventeenth century French mathematician, physicist, and philosopher, every man is gambling when it comes to the issue of the existence of God.  He stated that “If God does not exist, one will lose nothing by believing in him, while if he does exist, one will lose everything by not believing.”  

Our sincere hope and desire for David, Marco and any other’s who are honestly searching for the truth about God and the meaning of their life.  As the Bible says in the Book of Jeremiah, chapter 29, verse 13 “you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.”

Our reaction to being vilified?
Are we angry with the BBC for this sad misrepresentation of us as individuals or the gospel (good news) of Jesus Christ; His life, His death, His resurrection, His second coming?  Absolutely NOT!  We are naturally disappointed with the biased treatment by this film but we now understand that the programme was more about what David Clews thought and felt then on what we thought and felt. After all, Jesus taught during his Sermon on the Mount recorded in Matthew’s Gospel, chapter 5, verses 43-45, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.”

We can honestly say that we lived our lives openly and honestly before the BBC crew.  If they protayed themselves as something other than what they revealed then they are the ones who acted without itegrity.