[TruthTalk] The passion of Christ

[Judy Taylor]

Thanks for sharing your perspective Terry, I've been hearing so much about this movie and presently have mixed feelings about it.  Our daughter got tickets for our whole family so I will be going next Saturday; I've read about the making of the movie. Apparently Mel Gibson is a devout RC and he was influenced by a mystic nun in writing the script. They had latin mass on the set every day and claim that miraculous things took place while they were making the movie. The man who plays Jesus is also a devout RC who prays to Mary - he and his wife are involved with the Metagorje apparitions.  I'm aware that God can and will use whatever is available to draw ppl. even what the devil means for evil God is able to turn and use for good; he once used the Rock Operas Jesus Christ Superstar and Godspell to get my attn.  I just wonder what all the violence on the screen is about when noone in our generation was there so they really don't know exactly how it was, exactly how Jesus reacted to the violence and exactly how the main players acted. In Psalm 22 as well as two of the gospels it is written that the Roman soldiers cast lots for Jesus robe; I've heard it said that his robe was a one piece garment that was worth some money but when I saw a photo from the movie showing Jesus carrying the cross in our local newspaper I wondered who would want the tattered thing they had him wearing, let alone cast lots for it.  So the main question I have has to do with the "graphic detail" are ppl being drawn and emotionally hyped by a figment of someone's imagination?  Scripture teaches that he (Jesus) learned obedience by the things he suffered and I've always believed that his suffering involved  much more than the physical scourging. The worst of it which was the three hours of darkness when he endured the curse of sin and momentary separation from the Father would be impossible to depict on the screen?  I'm glad you thought it more than religious nonsense. I'll just have to wait and see....   Grace and Peace, Judy     From: "Terry Clifton" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Went to the movies today for the first time in about twenty-five years.  My wife and I saw "The passion of Christ".  The first few minutes were a turn off because I had understood that the script was true to the Gospels, and right away it was evident that several artistic liberties had been taken.  As Jesus is praying in the garden and his companions are sleeping, the camera pans to Jesus praying, then pans toward the sky and shows a full moon.  This happens twice in short order, Jesus praying while looking toward the full moon, making me wonder how the full moon figured in the story.  As He finishes praying, a large snake crawls up to him and He stomps on it's head.  At that point, I was ready to walk out, but I am glad I stayed.  The arrest, trial and the cross followed in such graphic detail that it was overwhelming.  It made me realize that what we can picture from skimming through ten minutes of reading the Bible or forty minutes of listening to a preacher could never give as stark a picture as that on the screen.  At some point, watching the torture that Jesus endured, the thought came to me that "This is how much God hates sin"  Rather than lower His standards for entrance into the Kingdom, He planned for His own Son to suffer so terribly.   My next thought was that "This goes far beyond my definition of love"  Only God could love that much and only God could make such a sacrifice." I came out of that movie with a new view.  I now see sin more clearly than ever before, and the things that were once fun and exciting are now so ugly.  The price  He paid for the fun I had was way too high.  The suffering was too much.  None of us are worth it. See the movie.  You will understand better than you have ever understood before. Terry