The film was shown at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome on May 2. Participants — who hailed from many parts of the world including India, Pakistan, and the United Arab Emirates — gave feedback and offered testimonies of similar experiences in their countries.
“It was almost like a proof of concept, if you like, because so many people stepped forward to say, ‘This movie may be set in the penal times many hundred years ago in Ireland but we are still experiencing this in our country today,’” Gallagher explained.
He added that the film left the audience inspired because it showed that “even though evil tries to root out the manifestation of Christ, in his Church, through the holy sacrament of the Mass, that as the Lord said, ‘Peter you are the rock and on this rock I will build my Church and the gates of the underworld cannot hold out against it.’”
“And that’s what happened in Ireland and that’s why I suppose there were so many people who came to us, particularly from those countries, and voiced those very positive sentiments.”
One month before the film was to be shown in Rome, Gallagher sent the Holy Father a letter in which he asked for a blessing upon the film. His letter explained the relevance of the film today, in that even though it takes place during the penal times, Christians around the world continue to be persecuted for their faith. The letter also expressed that a papal blessing would help the film’s success and the propagation of the faith worldwide.