Posted on 02/27/2004 5:02:22 AM PST by sakic
Staff Writer Major excerpts of telephone Interview on Monday, Feb. 16, 2004, 8 p.m. between Hutton Gibson, father of Mel Gibson, and Steve Feuerstein, executive producer and talk show host, "Speak Your Piece!" WSNR-620AM. The two-part feature on The Gibson Family: Offspring of Hate? will air on "Speak Your Piece!" on Monday, Feb. 23 and Wednesday, Feb. 25 from 10 p.m. to midnight on WSNR-620AM and live on the Internet at SpeakYourPiece.net.
(Excerpt) Read more at newsday.com ...
In light of the fact that some do feel the movie is anti-Semitic it seems relevant to me that Mel was raised by someone who flat out hates Jews. It's certainly worth addressing.
"Concerning the issue of anti-Semitism, the Jewish people are at no time blamed collectively for Jesus' death," said a review by Gerri Pare, David DiCerto and Anne Navarro. "Rather, Christ freely embraces his destiny."
The reviewers went on to call the movie "an artistic achievement in terms of its textured cinematography, haunting atmospherics, lyrical editing, detailed production and soulful score."
Hollywood film company Dreamworks also backed away from remarks published in yesterday's New York Times suggesting that Hollywood producers will blacklist Mr. Gibson.
You do know that this one has been talked about quite a bit already.
Also, since this has been a much discussed issue, you might've added that Mel Gibson has contradicted his father with respect to the Holocaust, as opposed to just presenting a naked "apple and tree" comment.
In light of how some Jews are reacting to Mel's film, this seems entirelly appropriate to talk about, especially because Mel refuses to denounce his father's very public opinions.
I am so glad that [he] made this film. If nothing else it raises the issue of "Who is Jesus?" I had to deal with that issue years ago.
I was raised in a religious Jewish family and was taught that Jesus was not our Messiah. When someone first told me that Jesus was my Messiah, I reacted angrily. However they challenged me to read the Bible, which I had never done.
Through reading the Bible, I saw that Jesus was the promised Messiah, that He was the Son of God, that He was the Lord who came to earth to redeem all mankind. I accepted Yeshua /Jesus as my Messiah, Savior and Lord, and have never regretted it.
My wife, Janet, and I will continue to pray for [Mel Gibson and his] family, and that God will use "The Passion" to bring many people to an understanding of who Jesus is, and to faith in Jesus as Savior and Lord.
Abraham Sandler
Twenty-first century anti-Semitism is almost exclusively a creature of the left, whose boundless hatred of all things American has spilled over into bizarre conspiracies about cabals of neocon Jews controlling everything from the war on terror to the global economy. Some of this talk has leached into mainstream Democratic circles such as the Congressional Black Caucus and pro-Democrat Arab-American groups.
Predictably, according to recent polling data (which has attracted considerable attention in ethnic Jewish papers like the Forward), younger Jews especially are no longer automatically self-identifying as liberals – and older Jewish voters have high favorables for George W. Bush.
This has Democrats frightened. What better way to drive a wedge between Jews, evangelicals and Republicans than to use "The Passion" to stimulate age-old (and historically justifiable) fears among Jews that hatred is a product of the right.
Richard F. Miller
They have made "Judaism" a front for political liberalism that it was never intended to be. Look at some examples:
1. RAC (the Religious Action Committee), the political arm of the Reform Jewish movement, is helping to organize a "pro-choice" march on Washington, despite the fact that there is no Jewish tenant that advocates unregulated abortion.
2) The ADL wrote several amicus briefs to support the Federal Court decision in Alabama to remove the ten commandments from the courthouse. It is a sad day when "advocacy" for Jews means making sure that no one is "unduly" exposed to the Ten Commandments.
There are many more examples as well. Indeed, the recent protests of "The Passion of the Christ" have shown that the organized Jewish community seems to not realize who its friends are. Should we really be focusing our energy on making sure that a movie (which, as far as I have heard, is very true to the gospels) will cause anti-Semitism among our strongest advocates in the world (fundamentalist Christians), or should we be focusing it on the campaign of murder and terror being carried out by our true enemies, the Islamic fundamentalists?
The answer seems quite clear to me. In response to Prelutsky's point that Jews are offended by the Christian belief that those Jews who, at the Second Coming, remain unbelievers will be killed, I will only say as a religious Jew, that if Jesus actually comes back and brings with Him the messianic age, very few of us will remain "unbelievers."
Michael Spiro
You're being coy again.
If you grew up with Hutton as your father do you think that it would be possible for you to also hate Jews?
A simple condemnation by Mel as someone has pointed out exists would certainly help.
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