- The Passion of Christ operates simultaneously on many
different levels, therefore it isn't surprising that it draws different
reports from different people.
-
- As a piece of entertainment, this film is not a movie
so much as it is an experience. I didn't expect anything like the
way this film took hold and refused to let go until well after the closing
credits. Think about your very first roller coaster ride...now, imagine
it going on for two straight hours.
-
- "Bad trips" on LSD result from the eleven-hour
forced introspection that the drug creates. Most cannot stand to
look that closely at themselves, certainly not for that long. That's
why Leary and company were getting complete cures of psychotics after five
or six guided LSD trips, of course, before the government stepped in and
outlawed the drug. Well, this movie is like being on acid for two
straight hours, only the subject isn't yourself, it is Jesus Christ.
-
- The Passion gripped me like nothing I've ever seen.
Maybe it's the subject matter, which occupies such a special position in
Western civilization. Surely, it must be that. Watching this
movie is like watching a horrible auto accident take place in slow motion,
up close and personal, right before your eyes. You want to look away,
but you can't. You know how it must end, yet still you hope, somehow,
some way, it will be different.
-
- It was surreal to emerge into the glitz of a theatre
lobby afterwards. A long walk down a dusty road after the credits
should have been included in the price of admission. Nobody
from the audience was speaking, other than in hushed tones. Everybody
seemed to sense that something truly significant had just taken place.
-
- I want to shake Mel Gibson's hand and thank him for making
this very important motion picture.
-
- There is no question in my mind that this is one of the
best written, directed, acted and filmed movies I have seen. The
Academy Awards should be cancelled this year altogether. To have
other movies jockeying for awards alongside this one, which so clearly
is in a class by itself, seems obscene. Yet, I will be surprised
if this film gets even a single nomination, considering who controls Hollywood.
-
- Violent? No. Nothing like what is standard
fare for America's teenagers, such as Halloween or so many other slasher
movies or, even, Gladiator, the huge hit from two years ago. What
insults the senses about this movie is not so much what is being done to
Christ throughout, as the reality that people actually did this sort of
thing to one another, let alone the Savior.
-
- Religious propaganda? No, there is no danger of
being converted during this movie.
-
- AntiSemitic? Only in the minds of some Jews.
Only Jews could expect Gentiles to hold them responsible today for the
acts of their forbears two thousand years ago. However, some of the
rhetoric I have heard coming from the likes of Abraham Foxman this week
is reminiscent of the impression left by The Passion's Jewish elders, I
must confess. It must really be genetic. I actually had one
Jew email me that, "He (Jesus) had it coming." Imagine.
-
- Why does it (everything, that is) always have to be about
the Jews? The only thing AntiSemitic about The Passion is the furor
being created over it by the Jews! If only they knew when to shut
up.
-
- I've said it before. Let me say it again, as the
Jewish reaction to this film more than amply demonstrates: AntiSemitism
is a disease - you catch it from Jews.
-
- It is okay, in fact it is de rigueur, for Hollywood's
Jews to produce filth like The Last Temptation of Christ, a trashy piece
of total fiction, yet a production like this, hewn faithfully from the
four main Gospels, is somehow not acceptable. It is okay to desecrate
the memory of Christ, but don't you go hinting that Jews are anything other
than God's gift to the world. The real problem with Christians is
a sincere belief in Jesus' admonition to turn the other cheek. The
Chosen certainly have no such proscription for themselves.
-
- See this exceptional movie. See it now in a theatre
with lots of other people so that you can experience the majesty of how
differently this film affects people. See it this week so that its
opening week gross through Saturday night goes through the roof and sends
a message to the troglodytes in Hollywood.
-
- See it by yourself first, then see it again with your
children. Be there for them throughout this very disturbing film.
It will hurt you to watch them experience it, but, as they say, it hurts
so good.
-
-
-
- "I didn't say it would be easy. I just said
it would be the truth."
-
- Morpheus
-
-
- Copyright ©2004, Edgar J. Steele
- Forward as you wish. Permission is granted to circulate
among private individuals and groups, post on all Internet sites and publish
in full in all not-for-profit publications. Contact author for all other
rights, which are reserved.
-
-
-
- Comment
- From Zeph Daniel
- zed7@earthlink.net
- 2-26-4
-
- Hi, Jeff. I am writing concerning the hateful views
Edgar Steele has toward Jews and Hollywood. This is not a movie-review,
but comments on his writing, in this case, his review of "The Passion."
I am flabberghasted that these comments came from a true believer in Yah
Shua. I guess I don't quite understand where he's coming from.
-
- Mr. Steele wrote:
-
- "I've said it before. Let me say it again, as
the Jewish reaction to this film more than amply demonstrates: Anti-Semitism
is a disease - you catch it from Jews."
-
- What a terrible thing to say. I agree that hatred is
a disease, but what about bombing innocent children in Iraq in the name
of Jesus? Is that compassion? Is that love? Is that turning the other
cheek? To me, war is Satan's thing. Hatred in motion.
-
- Hatred is a disease of humanity--you "catch"
it when you're born. We all have it--we stumble around trying not to kill
each other, but we'd like to, because we're fallen human beings! We were
like angels once, which is why we need a savior in the first place. To
restore us to Agape...Eternal Life. Deathlessness. Isn't that what we
all want? Every human being on the face of the earth?
-
- Our savior's name is Yah Shua, which means, "Eternal
Salvation," or "God, our Salvation." That means, eternal
savior, celestial savior, and God Himself...our Creator, Yah Veh.
-
- Hatred is a hallmark of being human after the Fall--not
belonging exclusively to Jews. Many people are commenting that they don't
understand why Jesus was tortured and killed after seeing Gibson's movie.
That's because the story-line is so narrow and fails to present the motivation
for Jesus' scourging. That motivation would have to more background and
not focusing solely on the tragic inhumanity to our Savior--which in the
end of course fulfills all the prophets and God's word...perfectly. . Which
is mind-blowing.
-
- And yes, Mel Gibson's father denying the holocaust does
upset some Jewish people. Try telling a survivor of Auschwitz or Dachau
that there was no holocaust. Or the Jewish kid shunned for being different...
maybe there is a persecution complex... sure. But still, I've seen the
persecution, first hand.
-
- The fact that Mel Gibson would not comment about his
father's views on the Holocaust added more suspicion about Mel Gibson and
his motivations for making the film.
-
- Yahshua said:
-
- Mat 7:14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the
way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
- Is God a liar? Is the path narrow or is it big-box-office
Hollywood?
-
- And Mr. Steele is dead wrong if he thinks this won't
convert anyone. The question is, to what?--the real Jesus or the false
Jesus? Christ or antiChrist?
-
- Just the trauma of watching 2 hours of whipping and beating
and bloodletting of even an innocent person would overwhelm anybody subjected
to it--make that character Jesus (played by an actor) and clever church
"salesmen" will be able to make their case and fill their pews.
Then they can present a seeker-friendly, way-kewl Jesus and will love-bomb
you so long as you join their, shall we say, "cause"? Which
is an abomination also unto Yah Shua. Pleasing God and pleasing man are
two opposite paths.
-
- Mr. Steele wrote:
-
- "The Academy Awards should be cancelled this year
altogether. To have other movies jockeying for awards alongside this one,
which so clearly is in a class by itself, seems obscene. Yet, I will be
surprised if this film gets even a single nomination, considering who controls
Hollywood."
-
- First of all, this is a 2004 film and would not compete
in the 2003 Academy Awards. "The Passion" would be eligible
for next year's awards, and I am sure it will have a lot of support if
we ever get to Spring 2005 in our so-called society.
-
- The charge of "obscenity" to have other films
competing? Would Mr. Steele like to do away with all other films? He
doesn't have to be tortured by the Academy Awards--he can turn his TV off
is he likes.
-
- I suggest everybody pray to find out whether to see the
movie or not--be a God pleaser, not a man pleaser. If your church pressures
you to see it and you do not desire to--leave the church! Walk away.
In this strange way, Yah Shua has set you free. After all, the churches
are the main supporters of this movie--you have to ask yourselves why?
What are they getting out of it?
-
- One last thing, Jeff. Mr. Steele attacked Martin Scorcese's
movie, THE LAST TEMPTATION OF CHRIST. In defense of Martin Scorcese, his
low budget project was truly an inspired, though perhaps not fully realized,
piece of cinema. There is nothing blasphemous about this film--Jesus had
to be fully God and fully man for the sacrifice to be complete, for man
to be redeemed to the Father, Yah Veh. His day-dream on the cross, imagining
what might have been if he were a mere human... TOTALLY VALID--his human
side dying...his last seconds of breath, and even validating the words,
Father, why hast thou forsaken me! That's proves his humanity, a necessary
component! That's all it was. Has Mr. Steele forgotten this? Or does
he simply hate Scorcese personally? And by the way, MARTIN SCORCESE IS
NOT JEWISH, as Mr. Steele misrepresents here.
-
- Mr. Steele wrote:
-
- "It is okay, in fact it is de rigueur, for Hollywood's
Jews to produce filth like The Last Temptation of Christ, a trashy piece
of total fiction, yet a production like this, hewn faithfully from the
four main Gospels, is somehow not acceptable. It is okay to desecrate
the memory of Christ, but don't you go hinting that Jews are anything other
than God's gift to the world. The real problem with Christians is a sincere
belief in Jesus' admonition to turn the other cheek. The Chosen certainly
have no such proscription for themselves. "
-
- Filth? Trash? Desecration? Sure, the whole TBN crowd
denounced it, the Christian right beholden to messiah figures like Sung
Yung Moon and the like denounced it. The Christian millionaire establishment
denounced it. But sincere seekers did not denounce it.
-
- Scorcese's film was not pushed by Hollywood--it was an
independent effort, and didn't have enough money to really push it.
-
- But Mel's Passion is on 4,800 screens this week! That's
right up there with Lord of the Rings!
-
- Where has Mr. Steele been? Passion is wildly successful!
Scorcese's pic hardly bowed to 1000 screens on its release. It was almost
an art-house release if I remember correctly. What in the world is Mr.
Steele talking about? There is almost no persecution of Mel Gibson's film--Steele
now seems to be in the realm of paranoia, not reality. The merchandising
alone is netting millions and we're not even into the season yet! There
were no NAILS sold at Scorcese's little movie. There were not hats, not
t-shirts, churches shunned it...Hollywood didn't advertise it. What is
Steele talking about?
-
- And if he thinks Christians are as he depicts, that they
have a "sincere belief in Jesus' admonition to turn the other cheek,"
he's deluded. We, as humans, just don't do that enough, if at all. Our
natural way is to beat the *@#! out of each other. So we repent...we fall
down, we get up...that's all we can do until we're glorified in the Father!
-
- And then to follow this with the inflammatory comment:
"The Chosen certainly have no such proscription for themselves."
-
- So Jews do not forgive? And the Chosen is some sort
of slap, some hateful denigrating euphemism? If this isn't hatred, what
is? Did he catch this disease from the Jews?
-
- I say this--go to Mr. Gibson's movie, if you are led.
Don't go if you are led not to. Live your life honestly. You are born
sovereign--man wants to control everybody, conform everybody. You do
not need man to be born again in Christ. It's a personal act of surrender,
of calling out to God...it's between you and God. It's between me and
God. What I do,may not be OK for you. What you do may not be OK for me.
Each must work out his own salvation and walk in the Lord. But if you
live for truth, you will be persecuted. Yah Shua, if anything, is the
definition of Truth. The world is a lie.
-
- Salvation is ultimately a mystery and contained in God's
word written in the heart of every believer. I'm simply commenting on
Mr. Steele's anti-Semitism. Hatred is not a Jewish problem. It's mankind's
problem.
-
- God bless us all. God save us from ourselves.
-
- Zeph Daniel
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