Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ Readers also credited Wallace's novel with making Jesus's story more believable by providing vivid descriptions of the Holy Land and inserting his own character of Judah into scenes from the gospels. One former alcoholic, George Parrish from Kewanee, Illinois, wrote the author a letter crediting "Ben-Hur" with causing him to reject alcohol and find religion. Parrish remarked: "It seemed to bring Christ home to me as nothing else could". Others who were inspired by the novel dedicated themselves to Christian service and became missionaries, some of them helping to translate "Ben-Hur" into other languages. This kind of religious support helped
Ben-Hur (2016 film) of "Forbes" felt that it was an appropriate film to advertise before Sony Pictures' faith-based "Miracles from Heaven" opened on March 16. The trailer garnered a polarized reception from critics and audiences, with comparisons being made to "", "Gladiator", and "". In its first week, the trailer was viewed over 8.2 million times across YouTube and Facebook, making it the fourth most viewed trailer of the week. The trailer was also screened in front of over 30,000 people at Hillsong Conference 2016. Jesus is in the film, which was used for some faith-based marketing to a Christian audience. "Ben-Hur" was