Everyone's talking about "The Hunger Games," and now two North Carolina pastors are taking advantage of the hype.
Reverends Andy Langford and Ann Duncan created a Bible study centered around the highly praised Suzanne Collins trilogy to engage young parishioners, the Christian Post reports.
Since January, about 80 people have attended the study, dubbed "The Gospel According To 'The Hunger Games' Trilogy" at Langford's Central United Methodist of Concord, the Post observes.
The group is even planning to see the movie together when it hits theaters later this month.
Duncan, a pastor at Hoyle Memorial United Methodist Church of Shelby, urged her father to read the series after she began finding Biblical parallels within the plot, according to the United Methodist News Service.
The pastors say they make a point of discussing themes found in the stories and how they relate to aspects of faith.
"We’re not trying to make [the series] something that it’s not, but we’re trying to find themes that we as Christians can relate to,”Duncan said in a press release.
The study, which is also available as an e-book on Amazon, includes character analysis and highlights themes like sacrifice and selfless love.
But the two pastors aren't the only ones who've recognized the series as more than just a pop-culture phenomenon.
In a post for Elev8, Oretha Winston observes that "The Hunger Games" challenges readers to contemplate their moral planes and inspire change.
She examines the themes by encouraging readers to ask:
Just how far have you been lulled into “sleep”, accepting that life is as it is and there nothing you can do. Are you in the arena playing your part until death?....Are you willing to accept the status quo because it's too hard to fight?
"The Hunger Games" will hit theaters on Friday, March 23.