'More than an iconic rebel': New Johnny Cash documentary focuses on his Christian faith

The key to understanding Johnny Cash is through his born-again Christianity, according to a documentary released this week.

The country music legend's son John Carter Cash is featured in the documentary and spoke to the Tennessean at a soundstage in Franklin, Tennessee, where he was conducting interviews about the release. He described his father as a devout believer who loved gospel music, developed skills as a rock 'n' roll artist at Sun Records but always maintained a connection — though wavering at times — to spirituality.

"The father and man that I knew and connected to while growing up was a man of strong faith more than an iconic rebel," Cash said.

"Johnny Cash: The Redemption of an American Icon" was produced by religious organizations including Harvest Ministries and features Jimmie Allen, Alice Cooper, Sheryl Crow, Franklin Graham, Wynonna Judd, Tim McGraw, Marty Stuart, Joanne Cash Yates and more.

The new film casts the life of "The Man in Black" as "the true story of a man who was haunted by his inner demons and through facing them, ultimately found an unshakable faith in God," said the film's producer Jon Erwin. Information about how to view it is available at https://www.fathomevents.com.

Carter Cash said his father had a scholarly reverance for Christianity. He wrote the 1986 book "The Man In White" — a historical novel about the life of St. Paul before and after his religious conversion — and kept annotated copies of first-century Jewish scholar Flavius Josephus' works on his bookshelf.

"As much as my father was known for rebelling against his better judgment, he also gained great strength from the depth of his connection to his faith."

The documentary also dives into Cash's longtime friendship with renowned ministers like evangelist Billy Graham and the longtime reverend at North Nashville's Evangel Temple church, Jimmie Snow.

For decades, he preached to the likes of Cash, Bill Monroe, Kris Kristofferson and Connie Smith.

For six decades, Graham was a Christian crusader whose televised ministry encompassed Scripture and mainstream popular culture. Graham used his friendship with Cash, who he met in 1969, to connect with his son Franklin, whose favorite song was Cash's "Ring of Fire," and his teenage peers. The teens' focus on religion was waning because they were distracted by drugs and promiscuous behavior. From Cash's perspective: "His kids were not going to church and losing interest in religion, (because) the music in church sounded old," he told Country Music Magazine.

John Carter Cash compares his father and Billy Graham's relationship to that of St. Peter and St. John in the Bible.

"Peter was the flawed voice of the church in the trenches and John was a leader — but also his companion in pushing forward the mission of the church. [Johnny Cash and Billy Graham] were friends unified by simple upbringings but also brothers in Christ until the day they died."

The documentary chronicles numerous struggles with depression and drug addiction in Cash's life — including in the period before recording his "Man In Black" album in 1971 and his return to contemporary cultural relevancy via his American Recordings albums in the late 1990s.

Carter Cash said Cash's famous cover of the Nine Inch Nails song "Hurt" is more "about overcoming one's ego and surrendering to redemption instead of hopelessly being in pain. Every time [my father] turned his life around, he reached out to a higher power to understand how to make [overcoming his ego] happen."

"Johnny Cash and his music are an indelible part of the fabric of America," said Ray Nutt, CEO of Fathom Events. "Audiences being able to live his spiritual transformation through this film will be especially inspiring."

Carter Cash believes the most profound lessons of the documentary occur when watching home video footage of his father and mother at home in their later years, in Jamaica in the 1980s or reading "between the lines" of his father's words taped for his second autobiography.

"My father's greatest legacy was being a great husband and father to his children. Everything else came second. From sitting in the Saskatchewan wilderness on a fishing trip to moments when he taught me the Bible — and so many more [instances] — that was important."

He adds: "This film sugarcoats nothing about my father. My father was a humble musician who [excelled] because he maintained his faith in God. I don't want this film to make anyone think they need to be a Christian to [excel], though. Instead, I think that people should take the message that believing in something that strengthens who you are and what you do when all else fails is best."

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: New Johnny Cash documentary focuses on his Christian faith