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Mel Gibson's Passion of Christ Film

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These headlines and others continue to hit the newspapers, radio talks and television interviews. No doubt this controversial movie is going to be around for many years.

Unfortunately, this film was the Pope Pius XII case will create new problems for Catholic-Jewish Relations. Once again, we call for calm and reason. Otherwise, there will be a permanent rift in Catholic-Jewish Relations. We will have lost the mutual ground of understanding and appreciation of one another’s religious Faiths.

Mel Gibson's Life
He was born in Peekskill, New York on January 3, 1956. Having attended the University of New South Wales, he married Robyn Moore in 1980. They have seven children: Hannah, Edward and Christian (twins), William, Louis, Milo and Thomas.

He is a devout conservative Catholic traditionalist, he supports all solid Catholic doctrines. Very generous to Catholic traditional causes, he is considered a faithful Catholic.

He and his family live in California and Australia.

Mel Gibson's Movie
The film, The Passion of Christ depicts the last hours and crucifixion of Jesus Christ. The dialogue is entirely in Aramaic and Latin with few subtitles. The story is familiar enough. It is not necessary to interpret this story to anyone who has read the Christian Gospels. The film open with Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane as he prays to be delivered from the sufferings he is about to endure. However, Jesus acknowledges that it is God’s will that he (Jesus) die.

Gibson’s film depicts Christ’s journey along the Via Dolorosa on the way to area called Golgotha where Christ will be crucified. Along the way Christ meets a woman called Veronica who wipes his face.

Gibson says that the bloody scenes of the scourging of Christ by the Roman soldiers, the tortuous path to Golgotha and the crucifixion is done deliberately to make the viewer feel uncomfortable. It is not done to blame anyone in particular but to blame all mankind.

Gibson says that his film is an intensely Catholic account of Christ’s Passion. It follows the Catholic accounts of the gospels.

Gibson says that Christ’s death on the cross was ordered by Pontius Pilate at the urging of the Jewish High Priest, Caiaphas. Caiaphas did what he did following the judgment of the Sanhedrin (Jewish Religious Court) that judged Jesus guilty of blasphemy. That is an historical fact, but it is the Romans who held the trial, scourged and crucified Jesus. They bare that responsibility.

Gibson says that he is showing the crucifixion and death of Christ because we all bare some responsibility-some Jews, some Romans and all humanity (their sins).

Recently Gibson said, “To be certain, neither I nor my films are anti-Semitic. Nor do I hate anyone, certainly not the Jews. They are my friends and associates, both in my work and social life.”

Gibson says that he is showing the crucifixion and death of Christ because we all bare some responsibility-some Jews, some Romans and all humanity (their sins).

Recently Gibson said, “To be certain, neither I nor my films are anti-Semitic. Nor do I hate anyone, certainly not the Jews. They are my friends and associates, both in my work and social life.”