What is the matrix? The world, explains Morpheus, that has been pulled over your eyes to blind you from the truth. The matrix is a computer generated program that makes us believe that everything around us is real, when it is actually all just a program. Our real bodies are being used as batteries for a giant, artificial intelligence system of machines who keep our minds active by placing us in the matrix.

The Matrix, a visually fantastic and intellectually absorbing experience, brings us into this world through Neo (Keanu Reeves), a computer programmer who happens to be the one who was once prophesied of – the one who will free the humans from their physical and mental enslavement to the machines. A team of humans, who live in the real world outside the matrix and are led by Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne), find Neo and free him of his enslavement by releasing his body and bringing his mind into the real world.

In the real world, Neo learns about the history of the world and the takeover of the machines. He learns to control his mind when inside the matrix so that he can bend what he believes are the natural laws of nature. He learns about the agents, led by Agent Smith (Hugo Weaving), who are devices of the matrix, programmed to destroy anything that shouldn’t be there. Most importantly, Neo struggles with the idea that he is The One – come to free the human race from captivity to the machines.

The Matrix, directed by Andy and Larry Wachowski, is a visually fantastic production. It introduces new camera movements and film techniques that bring its frequent fight scenes to the upper level in terms of production value. All the while is a cinematography whose picture is as beautiful as it is exciting. This is an action flick moving in on art film territory.

The Matrix is also saturated with symbolism and spiritual ideas. Details as to the symbols and significance of colors, names, places, characters and ideas can be found on tons of pages throughout the internet. Books worth of material has been written on the matter, and a large part of it from a Christian perspective. Though it’s merely an introduction, I hope to provide a synopsis of the ideas presented in The Matrix that make it such an enjoyable and spiritually uplifting experience.

The first and most obvious idea is the parallel between Neo and Jesus Christ. From the beginning, there are the prophecies of a man who would come to save the world and free the minds of all human beings. Morpheus plays the role of John the Baptist, who proclaims his coming and prepares the way. Cypher (Joe Pantoliano) is Judas Iscariot, the betrayer, and Trinity (Carrie-Anne Moss) is, well, the Trinity who loves Neo.

Neo eventually finds himself with abilities that stretch beyond those of other humans and has the heart to sacrifice himself for the sake of the people of Zion, the last refuge for all the remaining humans. Neo dies, is resurrected by the love of Trinity, and ends the film with his final ascension. Though the abundant Neo/Christ parallels are fun to watch for and notice, they never really lead to saying anything significant about the nature of Christ or enlightening us in any way.

What I like even more than Neo as Christ, is Neo as the archetypal Christian; possibly Neo as Peter, but really Neo as us – the common Christian people trying to come to grips with the universe and the importance of faith. Even though Neo knows the matrix isn’t real, it still takes “faith” in order to believe that he can bend the “laws of nature” inside the matrix. For example, in a scene that parallels Peter’s attempt to walk on water, Morpheus jumps from one skyscraper to another and then bids Neo do the same. Neo gathers all the faith he can muster, tells himself its not real, jumps off the building – and falls.

Neo is constantly struggling with the trial to have faith in what Morpheus has said, to have faith enough to break the “laws of nature” in the matrix. Morpheus frequently tries to teach Neo in terms that are general enough to work on the basic level of faith, he tells Neo, “I’m trying to free your mind. But I can only show you the door. You’re the one who has to walk through it.” In fact, the constant dialogue between Morpheus and Neo could just as well be representative of what God is trying to tell us.

If the context of the matrix seems to sci-fi to be really applicable, I think it helps to see the matrix itself as a parallel. The matrix works, on the spiritual level, exactly the way Morpheus suggests. “It is the world that has been pulled over your eyes to blind you from the truth.” The truth in this sense, is ironically opposite of its original intention. The truth is that we are free, that nothing is controlling our will, and that happiness will came by aligning that will to God’s will.

There are millions of things in the world that would deceive us of this latter fact. The supposed happiness that comes from chemical substances, wealth, or from seeking our own will in many different ways is a constant source of deception. Even though we “know” that aligning ourselves to God’s will is what will bring us happiness, we still see “the matrix” all around us and have to exercise faith in order to transcend the understanding of this world and see the bigger picture of the world beyond.

This works just as well on the level of freedom. Whether someone is “making us mad” or something “causing us” to be depressed, we frequently fall under the false belief that other people or events are in control of our emotions and even our actions. It takes a certain degree of faith to see through this worldly, superficial level of understanding. I think it honestly works to see the designer of this matrix as the Adversary, who would do anything to keep us from the truth – the truth about who we are and who we ought to be.

I also like the specific insistence on the matter from Neo as he says. “I don’t like the idea that I’m not in control of my own destiny.” Neo recognizes this notion of agency and is constantly working to affirm it. In the final scene, Neo is talking to the machines, but very well could be talking to the Adversary or to those who fight God’s will when he informs them that “I’m going to show them a world without you, a world where anything is possible.”

The Matrix would tell us that anything is possible and reveal to us the fact that many of the secular ideas we have about the world are indeed lies, pulled over our eyes to blind us from the truth. It would remind us that it really does take faith, to see beyond these ideas and recognize the truth about our nature.

Although these are some fairly general ideas, I believe it really is a reading that the text supports. The Matrix is, in fact, continually conscience of these basic concepts and is constantly reminding us of that fact. From the instruction of Morpheus to the coversation with the Oracle (Gloria Foster) to Neo's recollection that "there is no spoon", Neo's need for faith and self-discovery are strong undercurrents throughout the entire film.

Maybe it’s just that The Matrix always a possibility in our imagination. Like the world of Star Wars, we can always imagine that there are wars going on in outer space and that, beyond our knowledge, we are actually an integral part of that war and are needed to win it. When facing hard times, a child’s dream can always be one of Harry Potter, of a magical alternate world – very much like the human world but different – where he can find himself suddenly the most important character. The Lord of the Rings is likewise the dream of a small hobbit in an everyday village, suddenly called upon to save the world. The Matrix is a dream that’s just as lovable, just as incredible, and just as possible.

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