Being that I am an art minor in college, this film held a particular interest. It is, as far as I have found, to be the most accurate presentation of any Scriptural theme/idea on film (I tried to go see The Gospel of John, but the theater's projector was broken - I'll just have to rent it from the video store when it comes out). Do you realize that the second highest grossing film in the "religious" catagory released recently is "Vegitales: Jonah and the Big Fish"? Sad.
Is it wrong, theologically on many accounts? Yes, it definitely is. Perhaps part of the reason why I find that fact disturbing is that Protestant Christians have abandoned the medium.
Recently (about 6 months ago - before the Passion was really known about), someone in my church asked me if I knew of any professing Evangelical artists? I couldn't give you the name of one who is well-known at all. In fact, I would hazard a guess that most Protestants have abandoned art altogether. This is not the proper response, but it is the one most often pursued.
To the Board: since (guessing) about 2/3rds of you believe this is a violation of the 2nd Commandment, is it possible, at all, to present the Gospel message in film or in any form of art?
One of my personal favorite artists, Nancy Glazier, released a poster where a lion is lying down with a lamb (from the passage in Rev.). But, that too would be potentially breaking the 2C (the Lion of the Tribe of Judah and the Lamb of God could be inferred).
With the movie, I had several pretty severe theological issues with it - if a Protestant (from any stripe) can see this film and not have major theological issues with it, then, I would guess, they either don't know their own theology well or they don't know Rome's.
However, with all this collective ignorance of the issues at hand, anytime I bring up the behavior of Peter (confessing to Mary) and Satan and Mary glaring at each other, Protestants get their hackles up. I'm "nit-picking" or something similar.
Mel Gisbson set out to give, in film, his statement of faith. He has done so. He is also staunchly pre-Vatican II and therefore would be highly opposed to the ecuminical positions within his denomination. It will be interesting to see how his views will shape the RCC.
My charge to whoever might be listening: where are our statements of faith? Are you willing to invest $25 million to do that? Especially with no certainty of a return?
In any case, I do recommend the film, but with reservations. However, I would recommend the Luther Movie over the Passion because of its much clearer presentation of the Gospel.
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Jeffrey Brannen
History Major/Art Minor
University of Central Arkansas
Covenant Presbyterian (PCA)
Little Rock, AR