Where did that come from? Actually this scene comes from a Catholic mystic by the name of Anne Catherine Emmerich (1774-1824), an Augustinian nun who was known to have had visions of souls in purgatory as well as visions of Christ’s passion. Following Jesus’ scourging, Mary and Mary Magdalene go back to the pillar where Jesus was scourged and proceed to wipe up the blood with the cloth. In this particular scene, the wife of Pilate comes to Jesus’ mother Mary and offers her some white linen. No doubt many of the Catholic nuances will go unnoticed or thought to be merely “artistic license.” However, there is an interesting scene that Gibson chose to include that needs to be mentioned. Gibson favors a Tridentine liturgy, and each Sunday he celebrates mass in Latin at a private chapel in his home. He also believes that Mary is a co-redemptrix, and her character plays a prominent role in the film, often being referred to as “mother.” Gibson has been critical of the Catholic Church as an institution and prefers a type of Catholicism reminiscent of pre-Vatican II. It is well known that Mel Gibson considers himself “an old-fashioned Catholic.” As a traditionalist, he firmly believes that salvation can only be found within Catholicism (although he seemed to waffle on this when interviewed by Diane Sawyer). Was the film accurate? I had my concerns. For this I personally am willing to take responsibility, a responsibility I am sure many of my fellow believers are more than willing to share. On the other hand, since His death was a part of God’s salvation plan, if culpability is to be put anywhere it should be on the shoulders of those He came to save.
Technically, because Jesus Himself forgave all those who were involved in His actual execution (Luke 23:34) no individual or people group should be blamed. As of this writing, I have not heard any outcry from the Italian community. Do they really expect a guy like Gibson to introduce another people group so that their objections could be assuaged? Are these detractors so intolerant that they feel Christian history must be revised lest it trample on their sensibilities? Have we gotten to the point that Christian history can no longer be displayed publicly without protest? If anything, I thought the film pinned most of the brutality on the Romans. Amid such concerns I couldn’t help but wonder what they expect any film producer to do who chooses to portray the final hours of Jesus’ life. Is their protest based on the premise that Jews were not at all involved, or that Jesus was judged unjustly? History proves conclusively that the principle characters involved in Christ’s death were Romans and Jews. Many in the Jewish community decried the film by insisting that it would raise anti-Jewish sentiment. Such hypocrisy shows that it isn’t the blood that offended them.
The passion of christ movie summary professional#
Many professional movie critics objected to the violence, yet I found it highly inconsistent that many of those who condemned The Passion for its realism have praised other movies with a high content of violence and blood. However, with each stroke of the whip, I couldn’t help but think, “That was for me.” One can only imagine what that would do to human flesh. Several of the pieces of metal tied to the end of the lash sticks to the wood. The lethal effect of the cat-of-nine-tails is vividly exposed when the Roman soldier, prior to using it on Jesus’ back, strikes a wooden table.
On a couple of occasions I found myself having to close my eyes momentarily, though my reaction was more based in compassion rather than a flinch. They had a job that involved keeping order, and it was through the threat of severe punishment that order was kept. Scourging and crucifixion is not a pretty sight, and the Romans made sure that it wasn’t. I have to agree that his depiction was much closer to how it really was than many (all?) of the other films that focus on the life of Christ. This he fully accomplished, and it definitely earned its R rating. Gibson said that he wanted to portray Christ’s “Passion” (or suffering) in a realistic manner. With all of the publicity surrounding Mel Gibson’s film depicting the last 12 hours of the life of Christ, it was absolutely necessary that I see for myself if all of the accusations (and accolades) were warranted.
Mormon Objections to Christian Evangelism.Doctrine and Covenants / Pearl of Great Price.