A Kinder, Gentler Crucifixion

I wrote this blog quite a while back, but, for some reason or another, never published it. I sort of liked it, so, here it is. My daughter is now fourteen and has yet to see the film. I'm hoping we can sit down together with my wife next Easter to watch it.


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Mel Gibson is set to release his new version of “The Passion of The Christ.” The skuttle-butt is, that he has deleted/edited the more graphic scenes out to make the movie more agreeable to the young and/or squeamish.

Now, I'm not about to accuse Brother Mel of going belly-up to the critics or grossly coveting the almighty dollar. I sincerely will give him all the benefit of the doubt I can muster.

I realize this movie has been criticized for its graphic violence and nauseating bloodshed. My very own ten year old daughter, by my choice, has yet to see what I would call the greatest feature film ever made.

Still, it’s so entirely hypocritical of the nay sayers who decried this movie because of its purposeful intensity. The very fact that they have such a problem with the blood and gore shows that they, because of their darkened hearts, missed the whole point of the affair.

Christ suffered one of the most violent, painful deaths ever devised by man. We can never fully realize what must’ve been the indescribable agony of one so unfortunate as to die by crucifixion. Much the worse, He was abandoned not only by His closest friends, but also by His Heavenly Father. Our revulsion at the depiction of what was surely only a fraction of the suffering that Christ must’ve endured is understandable, but to have an inkling of it’s value, requires closer scrutiny than most are willing to invest.

I’ll never forget how jovial we were before entering the theater and how somber we were upon our exit. I remember smiling wryly as I saw the blithe faces of those who were waiting their turn at the viewing. I thought, “Just wait. You’ll be changed soon enough.”

Brother Mel, I think, gave us only a passing glance at the passion that Jesus suffered for us poor sinners. I fear a sanitized version of the film may only weaken it’s impact and undermine the disturbing quality that made this not just a film, but an experience. I know that I was certainly disturbed by my viewing of The Passion. I wouldn’t have had it any other way.