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Mel Gibson's film, "The Passion of the Christ," has evoked a number of different responses from viewers and critics. It appears that, like the topic of religion itself, the one certain thing is that it is impossible to remain untouched after seeing the film. Perhaps then a study of the scholarly and cultural ramifications of Gibson's work would be profitable. First then, the impact of the film on New Testament studies will be considered, after which the general cultural ramifications of the film will be considered.
Impact on New Testament Studies
Any film concerning Christ's passion is a combination of the four Gospels according to Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Gibson's film is no exception, yet there are some points of emphasis in this particular work that may impact New Testament studies significantly. The first of these is the emphasis on the Jewish nation as sinners, rejecters of Christ and directly guilty for the crucifixion. The second is the emphasis on the brutality of Christ's death in preference to the other elements of the salvation message, such as God's love and Christ's resurrection.
The crucifixion is of course the key to the Christian doctrine of salvation. However, as it is portrayed in the film as compared to the of the event. However, the brutality of the crucifixion in the film has been emphasized far beyond what was necessary to relay the message of salvation.
Furthermore too little is emphasized regarding God's love for all people, including the Jews, as well as the wonder of the risen Christ, when these are compared to the portrayal of the crucifixion. Indeed, what does seem emphasized, is the evil inherent in the Jewish nature, which turned an entire nation against their messiah.
The New Testament in the Bible in fact emphasizes God's love throughout Christ's life on earth. In the film this love takes second position to hatred within the Jewish heart, whereas those Jews who did love Jesus are also portrayed in a less prominent light than those who scream for his death. The discrepancy is not that Jesus was betrayed by his own people; he was that. Yet the way it is portrayed in the New Testament shows ignorance rather than evil at the heart of this betrayal, while the Jews in the film are portrayed as almost overwhelmingly evil and enemies of Christ.
A single film may not as such impact the way in which the New Testament is studied in scholarly institutions. The emotional impact of Gibson's work may however significantly impact the way in which…
Bibliography
Mel Gibson. "The Passion of the Christ." Icon Distribution, Inc. 2004. http://www.thepassionofthechrist.com/
The Bible. King James Version (1611). Bible Society of South Africa, 1982.
World English Bible. The Unbound Bible, Biola University, 2004. http://unbound.biola.edu
Passion of the Christ Director Mel Gibson's movie, The Passion of the Christ, has had a tremendous impact on New Testament studies and culture at large. The movie's violent nature has created a great deal of controversy, but the movie has largely been seen as an accurate portrayal. In terms of New Testament studies, the movie's reach is limited, as it contains a relatively restricted look at Jesus' teachings, and the
Mel Gibson's The Passion Of The Christ For most of its duration, Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ lingers horrifyingly on a mostly-naked male body in pain; as a result, the rest of the film seems exceptionally anxious otherwise about the issue of homoeroticism. Gibson claimed in interviews that the principal source for the film's screenplay (credited to Gibson and Benedict Fitzgerald) besides the New Testament came in the recorded
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Second, he must attempt to present good doctrine. Contrary to what some may suggest, these first two goals are not identical -- merely by translating from the page to the screen what the gospels describe happening would not explain the theological significance of the events, as Jesus is rather too busy being executed to have much time to explain his purpose of salvation in those chapters -- this purpose