What did you think of The Passion of the Christ?

[tomspug]

Citation, please? Outside of the bible itself where is there solid historical evidence? Out of curiosity, have you seen this before?

...and yes, I did see The Passion.

Josephus, a non-believing Jew, documented it. Jesus was also mentioned in a few Roman documents as well, including his crucifixion. The information is out there in books like The Case for Christ and such.

 

[angellous_evangellous]

Josephus, a non-believing Jew, documented it. Jesus was also mentioned in a few Roman documents as well, including his crucifixion. The information is out there in books like The Case for Christ and such.

The historical case for Christ is not a very good one. Lee Strobel is not a historian, and does not apply a critical apparatus to locating the historical Jesus. It's not so easy.

Josephus' testimony concerning Christ was preserved by Christians and almost certainly corrupted by them. As it is, evidence for the historical Jesus is scant to say the least. This is compounded by the fact that ancient historians and writers (whether Jewish, Greek, or Roman) would have little interest in a crucified criminal in Palestine.

note: Josephus on Jesus - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[tomspug]

Well if you don't trust Josephus, use Tacitus then.

And no, Lee Strobel is not an historian. He's a reporter. The Case for Christ is a collection of interviews WITH historians.

 

[angellous_evangellous]

Well if you don't trust Josephus, use Tacitus then.

And no, Lee Strobel is not an historian. He's a reporter. The Case for Christ is a collection of interviews WITH historians.

Which reference? I don't know of an undisputed reference to Jesus. There may be a Chrestus, but no Jesus.

Ah, here we go:
Tacitus on Christ - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Tacitus, Annals, 15.44

Consequently, to get rid of the report, Nero fastened the guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians by the populace. Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus, and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome, where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world find their centre and become popular. Accordingly, an arrest was first made of all who pleaded guilty; then, upon their information, an immense multitude was convicted, not so much of the crime of firing the city, as of hatred against mankind. Mockery of every sort was added to their deaths. Covered with the skins of beasts, they were torn by dogs and perished, or were nailed to crosses, or were doomed to the flames and burnt, to serve as a nightly illumination, when daylight had expired

 

[tomspug]

Which reference? I don't know of an undisputed reference to Jesus. There may be a Chrestus, but no Jesus.

Ah, here we go:
Tacitus on Christ - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Tacitus, Annals, 15.44

Sounds like a legitimate source to me... Who else could he possibly be referring to? Anyways, let's redirect the conversation back to the movie discussion. I want to know if there were any changes that Gibson could have made that would make it more enjoyable (should it be 'enjoyable'? Perhaps 'watchable'.). I've already heard some people say that there was far too much violence and that it could have focused more on the teachings of Christ...

 

[angellous_evangellous]

I want to know if there were any changes that Gibson could have made that would make it more enjoyable (should it be 'enjoyable'? Perhaps 'watchable'.). I've already heard some people say that there was far too much violence and that it could have focused more on the teachings of Christ...

I think that it is a masterpiece as it is. It's not as violent as many movies (including some that Gibson has starred in or directed), but it definately is in the "R" rating right along with them. The problem with the violence is that it is coupled with religion and therefore connected with all sorts of other issues that make people react to violence that otherwise would not warrant comment or attention (eg., otherwise direct our attention from our popcorn and coke).

Focusing on the teachings of Christ would be a great second movie, but it would not be a feature film in that case, indistinguishable from the scores of other films about Jesus.

 

[Hope]

Overall, I thought it was a great film. Definitely brutal, though----there were parts where I had to turn away and close my eyes (mainly the scourging). But as graphic as it was, I'm sure it wasn't as graphic as the real thing, and seeing with my own eyes what Jesus had to go through made me appreciate more His sacrifice for me. In this more civilized day and age where most of us rarely see such brutality, it's easy to gloss over Jesus' suffering and totally take it for granted. The early Christians were more acquainted with such violence, and therefore what Jesus did resonated more keenly with them.

 

[tomspug]

Overall, I thought it was a great film. Definitely brutal, though----there were parts where I had to turn away and close my eyes (mainly the scourging). But as graphic as it was, I'm sure it wasn't as graphic as the real thing, and seeing with my own eyes what Jesus had to go through made me appreciate more His sacrifice for me. In this more civilized day and age where most of us rarely see such brutality, it's easy to gloss over Jesus' suffering and totally take it for granted. The early Christians were more acquainted with such violence, and therefore what Jesus did resonated more keenly with them.

I think it's a cultural thing. In America, we're somehow more tolerant of violence, while in the UK they are much more tolerant of sex. I can easily see how people could consider the Passion to be far too violent for film. Perhaps it should have gotten an AO rating because of it.

 

[Father Heathen]

Bah. This is much more constructive. If you're going to peddle a youtube video, it should at least be a good one.

How about this one, then?

 

[blackout]

I think it's a cultural thing. In America, we're somehow more tolerant of violence, while in the UK they are much more tolerant of sex. I can easily see how people could consider the Passion to be far too violent for film. Perhaps it should have gotten an AO rating because of it.

That's it. I am definately moving to the UK.