Replies

After the man who helped Jesus carry the cross was told to leave the scene, there is an interaction between him and one of the Roman soldiers, where the soldier spits the epithet:"...Jew!"

That is the one instance of antisemitism I saw in the film.

I am sorry to affirm that the description of Jewish attitudes toward Jesus and Christians is accurate. It has taken me until the past decade or so to unlearn what I thought I knew of this. Hopefully, other Jews are experiencing something similar. For me, it took the reaction of Leftist Jews toward my Evangelical Christian friends to force me to begin to reevaluate everything I thought I knew.

My husband is a moderate Protestant and nothing prejudicial was ever apparent in his attitudes over the past 30 years, despite his mother being convinced that getting a bargain was a tenet of Judaism. She is gone now and I must add that this was an innocent error on her part, something she had somehow absorbed and never thought about. She was otherwise a sweet woman and a lady in all things.

40 years ago I would have been amazed if someone had told me that in the future I would count Christians as closer trusted friends than my fellow Jews, but it is true.

I have to add that this troubles me deeply and I have no way to change the minds of the Jews and the secularists I know, so, unfortunately, I see less of them and do not discuss much of any depth when I do.

It's sad that these attitudes are still around today. The Passion depicted a sign of the times. The Roman guard who spit the epithet Jew was a product of his time. It was just the way it was. Antisemitism was normal during those times. Many Jews and Romans alike disliked Jesus and did not trust him. There are many among us today who feel the same way. Too bad that we all aren't more enlightened as Jesus was.