TALLADEGA — Simon Cole is searching.
The 45-year-old resident of Malibu, Calif., is
learning the faith of the Navajo nation, getting
acquainted with monks in Santa Fe, N.M., and spending an
afternoon with the Alabama Free Thought Society in
Talladega, all in an effort to find God.
He’s on a mission; and he’s willing to travel across
the country to serve it out.
"I sort of got rich and had everything I’ve always
wanted," said Cole, a commercial producer originally
from Nottingham Gate, England. "I have a beautiful
girlfriend, wonderful friends, a loving family, a $6
million home on the beach. I had achieved every goal I
had set out to achieve, but I suddenly felt an
emptiness, a hollowness, a craving for a spiritual life
beyond what I had."
And so he did what anyone would do … well, anyone who
could hire a crew of six people, buy a bus and finance a
trip across the country, that is.
Cole set out on a journey to find God in the face of
religions across the United States, documenting his
travels with the help of his brother, cinematographer
Ben Cole, and a crew of four others.
"I had no need for forgiveness, no tragedy, just an
overwhelming need to decide if there was a God," Cole
said. "I want to believe in God, but my biggest problem
is I just don’t, so I decided to take time off … and
search for the voice of God."
And he has for the past two months, traveling from
California in a bus with his friends and crew members,
taking in the sights and trying his best to get to know
the Creator.
He’s prayed with Navajo Indians in the Santa Clara
Pueblo sweat lodge, eaten lunch with Benedictine monks,
been baptized in an Alabama lake and talked with a
number of Episcopalians, Baptists, Catholics,
evangelical Christians and others from across the
country.
"The film is about whether I find God," Cole said. "I
generally want to, but the problem is I haven’t yet. …
The idea purely came from lying on my bed and wondering
why I didn’t feel the things I should feel."
No matter where his travels take him, Cole’s decision
has sparked mixed emotions from family and friends:
admiration for his dedication from crew members and
confusion from his girlfriend.
"It’s a huge struggle because I’m in love with my
girlfriend," he said. "She doesn’t fully understand why
I need to do it. I’m constantly trying to balance the
need to love God and the need to love my woman."
Despite any doubts people who know Cole may have,
he’s confident his journey is the right thing to do.
Apart from seeking God, learning the various
religions has taught him and the crew the commonalities
between the different denominations and even religions.
"It’s fascinating to have an opportunity to talk to
so many different religious type people," said David
Doumeng, a producer traveling with Cole. "Just to be
involved in the great debate of religion and just see
the common thread of everybody is amazing. No matter
what religion people are, if you ask them what God is …
most say love."
When asked how long his search will last, Cole said,
"I don’t know.
"I’ll go until I say, ‘Listen guys, this is not
working for me,’ or I find God," he said. "I guess I’ll
stop when that decision is made."
Cole spent Friday afternoon with the Alabama Free
Thought Association, a Talladega group that advocates
the separation of church and state, and was scheduled to
participate in a tent revival outside Nashville, Tenn.,
last weekend.
Monday, he was in Indiana visiting the Rourke family
in an Amish community, Doumeng said.
"I think it’s unbelievable, wonderful," said Ben
Cole. "It’s about time we question what is mysteriously
mythological. We have to break open the myths and break
open the truth of religion."
"It’s his own personal ideological quest and, in a
sense, he’s not denouncing religion but trying to find
the meaning of his own spirituality," said Keith
Winsell, a member of the Free Thought Association. "I
think he’s been questioning religion for a long time. In
a sense, this is his last quest to find his own
philosophy."
