By this time you would have to be comotose to have missed the news, controversy, interest, furor, and joyous anticipation of Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ." According to various minister who have previewed the film it is the most powerful depiction of the final 12 hours of Christ's ministry they have ever seen.
On the other side, according to many Jewish leaders it is a blatent attempt to smear Jews and blame them for the death of Christ. Gibson and James Caviezel, who played the role of Christ, have both gone on record that every effort was made to adhere to scripture while avoiding any depiction that would be construed as inflamitory towards the Jewish people. Still, those who look for a reason to be offended can always find what they are looking for. No matter what is left on the cutting room floor. I suspect that had the original story been changed to explicitly release the Jews from blame, these people would still find fault. It's not the movie that is the problem for them, it is their own fear of the possibility that Jesus was in fact the Messiah.
And it's not just the Jews, people of any background who refuse to accept Christ's atonement for their sins will look for and find reason to point a finger of blame. This to divert attention from their own short comings. Am I any less to blame for the cross than the man sitting on death row, than Pilate who ordered the crucifixion, than the high priests and Jewish leaders who sought his death to protect themselves from someone they percieved as a threat to their control over the people?
This is a story that long precedes Mel Gibson. It has been told since the crucifixion itself. Men have used the crucifixion to advance their own agendas from Constantine to the KKK and white separatists. Hatred and Christianity are antithetical to each other. Yet men will decieve others, and cause harm to true believers, by using Christianity as a cloak for their own weakness and personal agendas.
Don't let the anger and controversy keep you away from seeing this movie. My personal take is that the uproar truly does mean something. It means this is one of the most powerful means of advancing the gospel message to come along in a while. Satan's worried.
Other links:
The Passion of Christ (Unofficial site)
Christian Spotlight on the Movies - Review
Plugged In - From Focus on the Family (Review available Feb 24)
Crosswalk.com - Article
Conservative Jewish Leader Denounces ADL for Gibson Critique
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