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The Passion of the Christ
Beloved Jesus;
I made the decision to see Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ,
and I am very grateful my Christ Self reminded me to call for spiritual
protection before the movie started. If I hadn't done this, I believe
watching it would have drained me of so much energy, for it was both
dramatic and shocking to say the least. I would like to comment on the
movie if I may, but I will focus on the movie itself and not Mel Gibson,
for I believe it is not my place to comment on the person but rather
his work.
I obviously knew that the movie was about the crucifixion of "Jesus",
but this movie seemed to go way too far. I will not lie, I have seen
a number of violent movies in my life, including war movies like Braveheart
and The Patriot (both of which Mel Gibson had the major acting
role), but The Passion of the Christ had to have been the most
violent and disturbing movie I have ever seen. It was not only violent,
but really like a horror film as well. I know violence and horror can
increase the dramatic experience of watching a film, but this movie
was seriously above and beyond any other I have seen. Modern movies
oftentimes have unbelievable visual effects. Movies nowadays are so
much more graphic and vivid than in the older days, causing one to almost
feel that they are a part of the movie. Of course this modern technology
can be used for both good and not so good purposes, and I believe that
this movie did make one feel as if they were right there feeling Your
pain. However, the images were absolutely shocking in a gruesome way!
I do not want to ruin the movie for anyone who has not yet seen it,
but it started out just like a horror film, and continued this way the
entire movie. (Jesus, I hope my discussing this does not bring back
any memories you would rather forget, for it is not my intention to
upset you.) But another example that seemed unnecessary was the scourging
scene. It is not for me to say if this scene should have been a part
of the movie, but watching "Jesus" being scourged had to have
lasted at least 15-20 minutes. Witnessing "Jesus" (or anyone
for that matter) being whipped is not pleasant to watch, seeing it done
5-10 times in one scene is more than anyone needs to view, but this
scene was absolutely ridiculous in that we had to watch "Jesus"
get beat mercilessly for a quarter of an hour! It was easily the worst
scene in the movie, although others were a close second. I even found
myself thinking, "Stop already, this is absurd! How long is this
scene going to last?" I may not be exaggerating when I say that
there were only a handful of scenes in the entire 2-hour movie that
"Jesus" was not getting beat. It was horrible to see "Jesus"
portrayed as a battered and beaten piece of flesh for 2-hours. There
was seriously more blood in this movie than in some war movies that
I have seen.
Beloved Jesus, I do not know how inaccurate this movie was compared
to Your actual crucifixion, but I cannot imagine someone enduring so
much abuse and still be alive when it came time to be put on the cross.
Not that You couldn't have done it, but it was really a 2-hour movie
of "Jesus" being tortured. It was interesting to see after
the movie that barely a person breathed, let alone moved; it is as if
they were in total shock. People just sat there in silence even while
the credits were rolling, and one could have probably heard a pin drop.
It was eerie.
I, personally, was excited at the end of the movie for two reasons:
1.) because it was the end of the movie. 2.) because there was a scene
of the resurrection. However, my excitement was short-lived, for the
resurrection scene lasted about 10-15 seconds. Out of two hours, Your
glorious resurrection lasted 10-15 seconds! Therefore, it is my opinion
that this movie may not aid people into entering their personal Christhood.
Instead, I believe it may actually do three things: 1.) reinforce the
doctrine and dogma of Christianity which has been around for 2000 years
or so. 2.) Upset Jews and thus make them think that Christians hold
them responsible for the death of Jesus; this may widen the already
existing division between Jews and Christians. and 3.) stir-up hatred
for the Pharisees who initiated in wanting to kill Jesus. The movie
had scenes portraying the Pharisees as being arrogant and prideful (which
they were) and You being so loving, peaceful, and forgiving. This is
good of course, except that felt the movie almost seemed to urge the
viewers to want to be angry with those who killed you, especially watching
"Jesus" being beaten for 2-hours and watching the Pharisees
showing no remorse at all. I am certain you would now say that hate
cannot end hate, and that only love can conquer hate; of course this
is true. But the positioning of the camera during filming was such that
it would often show "Jesus" on the ground full of blood and
the Pharisees standing up so proud and arrogant, meanwhile "Jesus"
would just look up in agony and not say a word to them. I even found
myself thinking about how exciting it will be when the fallen ones are
finally off this planet and are no longer harming the sons/daughters
of God, so it may be that other people have similar (and maybe more
angry) feelings about this matter.
I was wondering if this movie could actually cause people to be afraid
to follow in Your footsteps. After watching the suffering "Jesus"
went through, it may cause others to say, "Wow, I am so grateful
Jesus did all that for me, instead of following His example I will just
worship Him and therefore I will not have to go through what He did!"
I wonder if this movie might cause some to consciously, or subconsciously,
become fearful to tread the path of the Christ, thinking that torture
and a horrible death is always the result of walking this path. It is
as if old doctrine is still able to cause fear, but now can do it through
a movie. I do not yet know if I was in embodiment when You were on earth
as Jesus, but I cannot imagine how difficult that part of Your life
must have been, even if the movie is inaccurate. I am certain that others
feel the same way.
I, personally, hope that Mel Gibson has a sequel called something like
The Resurrection of the Christ, for that would be exciting
and inspiring to watch. Anyway, I can now say that I would rather not
have seen the movie. Although it helps me to understand what Christians
(and others who see it) may be exposed to, and hence what they may experience
internally because of it. I am going to have to purge my mind with the
violet flame in order to help rid myself of the images I saw. If I wasn't
going to call to be taken to the inner retreats tonight, I would say
there could have been a good chance I would have nightmares or bad dreams
of some sort. Again, all that I have written is just my own personal
belief about the movie.
Beloved Jesus, thank you for allowing me to freely express my opinion
about The Passion of the Christ.
TAB
Jesus' comments:
Your powers of observation do you credit. You are indeed right about
all the points you make about the movie's effect on people. This movie
will not make it easier for people to follow in my footsteps; it will
only cement the Catholic culture of putting me on a pedestal and turning
me into an unreachable idol. Yet I can assure you that this dysfunctional,
fear-based culture is dying. This movie might actually prolong the death-throes
on a temporary basis, but it cannot stop the process itself, because
the process is irreversible.
Although some Christian leaders
have claimed that the scourging scene is historically accurate, I can
assure you that it is not. The number 40 is often used symbolically
in the Bible. It often indicates a number so large that there is no
point in counting it exactly. For example, I did not spend 40 actual
days in the wilderness—who could survive that long in the desert
without food and water, and who could survive 40 actual lashes. Take
note that the Romans had no desire to kill me as a result of scourging.
The central punishment was the crucifixion, so they wanted me to carry
the cross and suffer on the cross. If I had died as a result of scourging
- and anyone subjected to the punishment pictured in the movie would
have died - there would have been no point in the crucifixion.
You now understand why I
said that I did not want anyone to feel obligated to watch this movie.
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© 2004 by Kim Michaels |
