I loved it. I saw it on Wednesday and haven't stopped thinking about it since. I have seen many films about Jesus and the crucifiction over the years and none has ever affected me the way this movie did. One of my first thoughts was that here I was seeing about 20 minutes of the pain He went through for all of mankind, when in reality it probably went on much longer. There is no greater love.

I thought the violence, though extreme, was necessary. Most everyone knows the story of Christ and that he died for our sins, but I don't think most people quite realized how much he went through before death, and the violence of the movie, at least for me, really drove the point home.

_________________
"Be excellent to each other." - Bill S Preston, Esquire & Ted "Theodore" Logan

Excellent post, Jay! You hit the nail on the head. That's also how I felt. When it's laid out in front you, it seems to bring you face -to -face with the reality of what He went through on our behalf.

<small>[ March 03, 2004, 02:25 PM: Message edited by: tinman ]</small>

Against my better judgement, I'll go ahead and open this can o-worms.

This makes zero sense. "Jesus died on the cross because he loves us" makes even less sense. Why would an omnipotent being be concerned with our behavior in the first place?

_________________
"I think if you know what you believe, it makes it a lot easier to answer questions. I can't answer your question." - George W Bush

LOVE

alright, im not strict into religion, but from what i have read (which i'll be the first to admit isnt as much as most people) that is what i have come to believe that theoretically Jesus paid for sins that we committed so that we could enjoy the passage to Paradise.

Cmoo, I ask you to tell me YOUR beliefs, and also, if you have seen the movie, what point did you get from it? After seeing it and discussing it I know that every person has their own perspective on it, that being why most showings were followed by discussions on the movie, and im interested to hear what others got from it.

_________________
"Be excellent to each other." - Bill S Preston, Esquire & Ted "Theodore" Logan

Love? By example then the ultimate expression of my love for my children would be to allow them to kill me?

"Pay for our sins?" Pay whom? Why is payment even necessary?

My beliefs? I'm not sure anyone is truly interested in my beliefs. Lets just say that I tried most of my life to "believe" in the teachings of my church, and for many years I pretended to be one of the flock. I eventually came to the conclusion that I was only lying to myself. After much soul searching I invented my own "religion" constructed of ideas and beliefs that are my own and that make sense to me. One of my guiding principles is the idea that THERE ARE SOME QUESTIONS THAT HAVE NO ANSWERS. Most people can't come to grips with this concept so they follow a leader or religion that answers the unanswerable questions for them.

No I havent see the movie, but I plan to. Im told its 120 minutes of torture with subtitles. Maybe I'll wait till it comes out on video..

My Jewish friends are not liking this movie or Mel Gibson.

_________________
"I think if you know what you believe, it makes it a lot easier to answer questions. I can't answer your question." - George W Bush

well i can honestly say i respect you for following your own beliefs. i think the most important part of life is following your heart and your mind and thinking for yourself. i choose to believe that God exists and that Jesus was part of him, whether he was God himself or his son, im not yet sure. one thing you have to admit (somewhat quoting the editor of the UW-Marathon "Forum" Newspaper) is that whether or not you believe Jesus was the messiah, you have to admit that his philosophical teachings are very wise and very inspiring.

as for the "120 minutes of torture" that may be what you see on the screen, but the result, for me anyway, was a few days (and still going) of deep thought and re-consideration of values that i held until that point.

also, i dont understand why your jewish friends dont like the movie or Mel Gibson. this movie does not, in my opinion, express any hatred or blame towards the jews. the people that see this movie and decide to hate or take violent actions against jewish people completely missed both the point of the movie, and the lessons of Jesus, and were probably looking for a reason to take violent action before the movie came about.

_________________
"Be excellent to each other." - Bill S Preston, Esquire & Ted "Theodore" Logan

Ok Jay, based on your recommendation I'll go check out The Passion this weekend.

_________________
"I think if you know what you believe, it makes it a lot easier to answer questions. I can't answer your question." - George W Bush

jcg - Its actually MORE violent then Braveheart? Im not sure how its even POSSIBLE to create a movie with more violence than Braveheart.. Braveheart was 177 minutes of utter carnage - including a rape scene - capped neatly with 20 minutes of torture within which Randall Wallace has his private parts mangled with some rather primitive (but shiny) hand tools.

_________________
"I think if you know what you believe, it makes it a lot easier to answer questions. I can't answer your question." - George W Bush

Marty, that was so well said. You have a gift for putting things into words. Thank you for taking the time to explain things so eloquently!

Marty. I'm happy that you are comfortable with it all. Thats what really matters at the end of the day I guess.

_________________
"I think if you know what you believe, it makes it a lot easier to answer questions. I can't answer your question." - George W Bush

jcg - Bingo. You have just targeted the basic religious tenet with which I have the most confusion. Maybe Marty can clear things up.

Ive never been clear on why God - the omnipotent being responsible for creating the ENTIRE UNIVERSE - would put such a priority on my faith and/or sentence my eternal soul to purgatory for my beliefs. Did Satan deceive us by planting evidence (like the entire fossil record for example) that seems to contradict the writings in The Bible? Its very perplexing stuff.

I couldn't get out to see The Passion this weekend. I went to a hockey game instead.

<small>[ March 11, 2004, 01:19 AM: Message edited by: cmoo ]</small>

_________________
"I think if you know what you believe, it makes it a lot easier to answer questions. I can't answer your question." - George W Bush

.