Dear Members and Friends,
First of all, we are not saved because we have seen a particular movie about the Cross. Yet, apart from that Cross, accepted by Christ, and the centerpiece of scripture, there is no salvation.
At this writing, I have seen Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ three times. I only thought I’d see it one time. I got even more out of it the second time. The third time, I was present with a loved one on her first viewing. There are some people who probably shouldn’t see The Passion, others who definitely need to, and at this point, millions who already have.
Gibson’s unflinching rendition of the last hours of Jesus Christ is not nearly the most violent or bloody picture I’ve ever seen. But it is by far the most painful. Set amidst the incredible incongruities of coming attractions and popcorn boxes, this latest epic of Jesus’ death and resurrection seems to be much more than a mere movie. In its accurate presentation of the crucifixion, it is creating a profound catharsis in the hearts of so many Christians, many of whom are reacting as though they are perceiving the Gospel for the very first time.
In my view, sanitized crosses should never be projected on screen, because they never exist in real life. I have often felt that war movies made decades ago were too sterile, minimizing the horrors of combat, and therefore, the heroism. In The Passion, when one watches the actor portraying Jesus telling his followers to “love your enemies”, interspersed with the ugly events on Calvary, a dramatic point is made that deeply convicts and powerfully redeems.
Among many things, both praised and panned, in representing Christ’s death as he has, Mel Gibson has produced a present day dynamic, completely consistent with a most ancient, biblical reality. Through, and yet beyond the images and the dialogue, for those on-screen and in the seats, this film recreates a scenario in which Jesus is willing to carry and give his life on a cross that people cause, but will not really accept. We turn our eyes and attempt to ignore the object and ordeal he deliberately embraced on our behalf – in a fullness that only God could experience, in the frailty only a Man could manage.
Over the next few weeks, in our renewed interaction with the crux of our faith, as we find the strength to face Good Friday and the death of our Lord, we will also find magnified our appreciation of Easter, and his rising from the grave. Thus, may we all have a renewed encounter with the presence of God in Jesus Christ, holding us as tightly as he did our Cross, carrying us faithfully through the promise of our Resurrection.
From Reverend William J. Keane,
Senior Minister of First Baptist Church of Branford
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