2004/02/29
My thoughts on The Passion
"Warning!": Spoilers follow this "Warning!"
Overall, I found the movie to be fantastic. It was beautiful and artistic, yet raw and gut-renching. It did tug at the emotions instead of the head (as it has been accused of doing by some critics), but I don't think that Gibson was unjustified in doing so. It seems to me that the non-Christian critics of the movie are grasping at straws. One critic said of Jim Cavizel, "basically he just made himself a human punching bag for two hours." Oh really? Kind of like the person that he was portraying?
My only negative reaction during the movie was when this was left out:
Matthew 27:54 (ESV):
When the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe and said, "Truly this was the Son of God!"
I've always found that to be a very touching and authoritative line, and I was looking for it and missed seeing it in the movie.
Overall the Catholic content was not subversive, intrusive, etc. The only thing that was goofy was saying that Mary Magdaline was also the adulterous that Jesus saves from being stoned. That's such unsubstantiated conjecture that it's embarrassing for Gibson that he included it.
I do fear that this may further the ecumenical movement.
As far as personal reactions go, I found myself hating those two or three soldiers who were charged with scourging Jesus. I hated them at first, but by the time Jesus was halfway through His walk to Golgotha, I was hoping that God was heaping extra fire on them in hell. I hated them so much. Then, after Jesus had been nailed to the cross and they slammed Him back and forth into the ground, He screams "Father! Forgive them!" And I felt so ashamed. I know the story so well, you would think that I would have remembered that He said that, yet I hated those men so much for a good portion of the movie. I'm pretty sure God was saying something to me there. I far too often hate my enemies instead of praying for them.
Overall, I found the movie to be fantastic. It was beautiful and artistic, yet raw and gut-renching. It did tug at the emotions instead of the head (as it has been accused of doing by some critics), but I don't think that Gibson was unjustified in doing so. It seems to me that the non-Christian critics of the movie are grasping at straws. One critic said of Jim Cavizel, "basically he just made himself a human punching bag for two hours." Oh really? Kind of like the person that he was portraying?
My only negative reaction during the movie was when this was left out:
Matthew 27:54 (ESV):
When the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe and said, "Truly this was the Son of God!"
I've always found that to be a very touching and authoritative line, and I was looking for it and missed seeing it in the movie.
Overall the Catholic content was not subversive, intrusive, etc. The only thing that was goofy was saying that Mary Magdaline was also the adulterous that Jesus saves from being stoned. That's such unsubstantiated conjecture that it's embarrassing for Gibson that he included it.
I do fear that this may further the ecumenical movement.
As far as personal reactions go, I found myself hating those two or three soldiers who were charged with scourging Jesus. I hated them at first, but by the time Jesus was halfway through His walk to Golgotha, I was hoping that God was heaping extra fire on them in hell. I hated them so much. Then, after Jesus had been nailed to the cross and they slammed Him back and forth into the ground, He screams "Father! Forgive them!" And I felt so ashamed. I know the story so well, you would think that I would have remembered that He said that, yet I hated those men so much for a good portion of the movie. I'm pretty sure God was saying something to me there. I far too often hate my enemies instead of praying for them.
The Beginning of the End
Well, I've reached a new stage in my life. So I was thinking to myself, why don't I start a journal to record what I'm thinking about all this. Then I thinks to myself, "Self, what better way to hash out what you're thinking than on a medium that's open for all to view and criticize?" So here it is, the second-best page in the universe.
