Crucifying Mel Gibson - a film called "The Passion"

Radiofree West Hartford ^ | August 23, 2003 | Alan Caruba

[CtPoliticsGuy]

Recently the Anti-Defamation League's national director, Abraham Foxman, had some unkind words for Mel Gibson's movie, "The Passion", a film that depicts the last twelve hours of the life of Jesus. This movie won't even be released until 2004, but Gibson is showing it in rough cut to various audiences. Latin and Aramaic are the languages of the film, but my guess is that, thanks to some judicious dubbing, Jesus will be speaking English by the time it hits the big screen.

Latin dominated the era in which Jesus lived because it was the language of the Romans whose empire practiced extortion, i.e., taxation, once its legions had conquered someplace like Israel. Being a Roman citizen was a privilege reserved to a few and most people in their empire were slaves. They didn't like the Romans, nor did indigenous folk like the Jews.

Some historians, while acknowledging the fine work of barbarian tribes like the Visogoths and Vandals, attribute part of the downfall of Rome to the enormous expense and effort required to keep the Jews under their iron grip. Pontius Pilate was not sent to rule Israel because he was Mr. Nice Guy. He routinely crucified anyone who disputed Rome's rule. Nobody debated capital punishment in those days.

Israel was such a pain the emperor Hadrian tried to erase its name by changing it to Palestine, referencing the Philistines. The forefathers of today's Arabs who currently lay claim to the land were busy worshipping a Moon god called Allah hundreds of years before Mohammed came along and picked him out of the crowd of local pagan gods.

Gibson, a devout Catholic who belongs to a group within the Church that adheres to strict Biblical interpretation and rejects many of the changes that have taken place in recent times, has poured his own money and talent into the film. In an August 11 statement, the ADL states that it "unambiguously portrays Jewish authorities and the Jewish mob as the ones responsible for the decision to crucify Jesus." This, worries the ADL, will unleash anti-Semitism.

In the interest of full disclosure, way back in the days of the Civil Rights struggle, I briefly worked for the ADL. And I do mean briefly. Even as a callow youth, I found myself disenchanted with the organization, though it must be said it did keep track of some very unpleasant people who gratuitously hated not only Jews, but Blacks, Catholics and probably people who were not their immediate kinfolk.

There are, I'm told, some people who still speak ill of the Jews, but I suspect that only the Hebrew knights of the ADL really care any more. The truth is American Jews have melted into the vast tapestry of the population. Their children are quite likely to marry out of the faith and, for many, explaining why their kids get gifts Christmas morning is mostly answered with a shrug.

Continued

[ultima ratio]

"Jesus will be speaking English by the time it hits the big screen."

The writer is thinking in the box about this movie. One of the reasons for the film's impact, according to those who have seen the film, is that it uses Aramaic and Latin, ancient languages which powerfully transmit the illusion that what is happening is real. This was Gibson's whole point in making The Passion--a spiritually motivated one. It is not a commercial enterprise in the usual sense and there will be no compromises on this for the sake of better box office.

[ultima ratio]

Pilate was from Spain and would have spoken Latin. So too, the Roman soldiers who were from the Italian peninsula. The cultural language of the empire was Greek, but Latin was also spoken as well as the various indigenous languages.

[Lion in Winter]

I read in a textbook many years ago when I was in a college Theology course, that Greek( Koine)was the language of commerce and in some instances, culture, at the time of Christ.

[ultima ratio]

It was. But Pilate and his men spoke Latin. It was the official language of government. This is why the official inscription ordered on the Cross was in Hebrew, Latin and Greek.