PASSION
O F T H E C H R I S T
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There have been the Passion plays all over Europe and in America, and even Hollywood has taken a swing at the event with films like �The Greatest Story Ever Told� and �The Last Temptation of Christ� (which is blasphemous altogether). But never before has a film so accurately displayed the crucifixion of Jesus with such attention to detail.
Everyone has heard about this film by now. It has caused such a large spread of controversy that you can�t turn on the television without hearing or seeing something about the film or about Mel Gibson. They have been calling this film anti-Semitic, and I find that offensive. To say that this film blames Jews for the death of Christ is absurd. It is a sin to believe that any one person or group of people killed Christ because we are all responsible for killing him. (That�s Mel Gibson�s hand nailing Jesus to the cross.) It was his purpose for coming to earth in the first place. He desired to do it, and in fulfilling that mission he saved us all from eternal death. Personally, I find that this film is anything but anti-Semitic.
You may have heard some say, �...all the Jews are shown as wild animals�. Well, all I have to say is that all of Jesus� disciples were Jews, his mother was Jewish, Simon, who helps carry the cross was a Jew. Even Jesus was a Jew. Everyone is portrayed accurately in the film.
Yes, I know that Caiaphas and the whole of the Sanhedrin were Jewish, but it comes down to the fact that when a leadership is threatened by something...anything, they will try to eliminate that thing any way they can. They were the high priests and Jesus� claims and miracles were threatening their hierarchy. But that was their own fault. To deny that a man is the Son of God when he can and has proven it is no less absurd that calling this film anti-Semitic. The Roman Guards, on the other hand, are viewed as heartless and bloodthirsty, but �Gladiator� and other films of its kind have showed that that is exactly how they were. The Romans even had Christians thrown into the Colosseum and killed without remorse. Every man or women in �The Passion� has a personality: some good, and some bad. But all make a choice; everything else is Gibson's artistic vision.
Others are saying that this film is too violent. I'm not positive, but I don�t remember anyone getting angry when �Saving Private Ryan� hit theatres. �Private Ryan� is a wonderful movie, but the point is that �The Passion� is more important. It is perhaps the most important film ever produced. We are talking about eternity here. Once you�re dead, there�s no coming back and the life you chose to live dictates where you will stay forever.
Sometimes the word �passion� gets confused with romance or compassion. Really, the term �passion� means suffering in Latin. So the actual title of this film is �The Suffering of the Christ�. If it were specifically about Jesus� teachings, it would have been called �The Teachings of the Christ�. Don�t put a double standard on things like this. Because Gibson tells the story as though we already know it isn�t saying that we should already know it. What he�s trying to accomplish (and has accomplished) is to make non-believers want to know just what this film is trying to show. That�s how this film is so hopeful and evangelical.
Finally, a filmmaker has the guts to come out and stand up for his beliefs. Mr. Gibson may never make another successful film after this, but in the now-infamous interview on Primetime with Diane Sawyer, Gibson simply said he doesn�t care. The reason this film is so violent is because that is how it happened, just as that is how the D-Day invasion took place in referring to �Private Ryan�. Prophecies, testimonies, and eyewitness accounts tell how Jesus was killed. Isaiah even says that Jesus was unrecognizable. The violence is needed. And if you ask me, I�m glad that it so violent.
In an interview, Gibson was quoted as saying, �The Holy Spirit was making this movie...I was just directing traffic.� He justifies, over and over again, the reasons for making this picture the way he made it. He instantly justifies the blood in the opening seconds of the film when that Isaiah 53 scripture comes to the screen. (�...by his wounds, we are healed.�) Remember that as you watch the movie.
I was deeply moved by the epic portrayal of the last 12 hours of Jesus� life. Gibson wants all non-believers walking out of this film with a lot of questions. In fact it is not a film, but an experience; one of those rare movie-going experiences that can change your life. Mel Gibson�s powerful film �The Passion of the Christ� is graphic, heart-breaking, and simply beautifully made. ****
Note: This is easily the most personally violent film I have ever seen. I hope that parents will view it before letting their younger children see it because to a child there will be no hope and no freedom - only suffering and blood. It is, however a moving picture for those who can endure it. It has had a profound effect on me.