The Passion of The Christ

Mrs. Jensen, After reading your letter in The Villanovan this morning, I was surprised that you were upset that Darren Poley did not see the film, because in my opinion you did not see it either. You went into the movie with the preconceived notion that this film is anti-Semitic blasphemy. Not only did you not take the time to read the gospels before or after the movie to judge its historical accuracy, you write the same rhetoric that this film is “excessively violent” and cruel not to mention your offensive comment paralleling a movie based on sacred texts to “Kill Bill: Volume 1”. You mention that in Roman history people were never lashed more than 39 times. First off, Jesus was not lashed he was scourged. Secondly, people accused of blasphemy were not usually crucified under Roman or Jewish law. So you cannot deny that Jesus’ punishment was extravagant and excessive. The Sanhedrin hated Jesus with a passion and they wanted to punish him in ways that were not commonplace. Therefore if they were cruel enough to crucify someone for blasphemy, would you deny that they would not scourge him excessively? You say that Pontius Pilot was the guilty party in the crucifixion of Jesus. According to the Matthew and the other gospels, Pontius Pilot continually declares Jesus’ innocence to no avail and declares that he is innocent of Jesus’ blood. While Pontius Pilot should have done the right thing in not giving in to masses, he did and it lead to Jesus’ death. However, you again miss the point, we are all guilty of Jesus’ death together. We are all sinners and he died to save us all. In closing, I want to add that I did not feel any hatred towards Jews after watching this film or after reading your letter. However, it is letters like yours, which for many, fuel anti-Semitism in this country more than any film ever will. -Paul Gabe