'The Nativity Story' Movie Problematic for Catholics, "Unsuitable" for Young Children

LifeSiteNews.com ^ | 12/4/2006 | John-Henry Westen

[Pyro7480]

'The Nativity Story' Movie Problematic for Catholics, "Unsuitable" for Young Children

By John-Henry Westen

NEW YORK, December 4, 2006 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A review of New Line Cinema's The Nativity story by Fr. Angelo Mary Geiger of the Franciscans of the Immaculate in the United States, points out that the film, which opened December 1, misinterprets scripture from a Catholic perspective.

While Fr. Geiger admits that he found the film is "in general, to be a pious and reverential presentation of the Christmas mystery." He adds however, that "not only does the movie get the Virgin Birth wrong, it thoroughly Protestantizes its portrayal of Our Lady."

In Isaiah 7:14 the Bible predicts the coming of the Messiah saying: "Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign. Behold a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and his name shall be called Emmanuel." Fr. Geiger, in an video blog post, explains that the Catholic Church has taught for over 2000 years that the referenced Scripture showed that Mary would not only conceive the child miraculously, but would give birth to the child miraculously - keeping her physical virginity intact during the birth.

The film, he suggests, in portraying a natural, painful birth of Christ, thus denies the truth of the virginal and miraculous birth of Christ, which, he notes, the Fathers of the Church compared to light passing through glass without breaking it. Fr. Geiger quoted the fourth century St. Augustine on the matter saying. "That same power which brought the body of the young man through closed doors, brought the body of the infant forth from the inviolate womb of the mother."

Fr. Geiger contrasts The Nativity Story with The Passion of the Christ, noting that with the latter, Catholics and Protestants could agree to support it. He suggests, however, that the latter is "a virtual coup against Catholic Mariology".

The characterization of Mary further debases her as Fr. Geiger relates in his review. "Mary in The Nativity lacks depth and stature, and becomes the subject of a treatment on teenage psychology."

Beyond the non-miraculous birth, the biggest let-down for Catholics comes from Director Catherine Hardwicke's own words. Hardwicke explains her rationale in an interview: "We wanted her [Mary] to feel accessible to a young teenager, so she wouldn't seem so far away from their life that it had no meaning for them. I wanted them to see Mary as a girl, as a teenager at first, not perfectly pious from the very first moment. So you see Mary going through stuff with her parents where they say, 'You're going to marry this guy, and these are the rules you have to follow.' Her father is telling her that she's not to have sex with Joseph for a year-and Joseph is standing right there."

Comments Fr. Geiger, "it is rather disconcerting to see Our Blessed Mother portrayed with 'attitude;' asserting herself in a rather anachronistic rebellion against an arranged marriage, choosing her words carefully with her parents, and posing meaningful silences toward those who do not understand her."

Fr. Geiger adds that the film also contains "an overly graphic scene of St. Elizabeth giving birth," which is "just not suitable, in my opinion, for young children to view."

Despite its flaws Fr. Geiger, after viewing the film, also has some good things to say about it. "Today, one must commend any sincere attempt to put Christ back into Christmas, and this film is certainly one of them," he says. "The Nativity Story in no way compares to the masterpiece which is The Passion of the Christ, but it is at least sincere, untainted by cynicism, and a worthy effort by Hollywood to end the prejudice against Christianity in the public square."

And, in addition to a good portrait of St. Joseph, the film offers "at least one cinematic and spiritual triumph" in portraying the Visitation of Mary to St. Elizabeth. "Although the Magnificat is relegated to a kind of epilogue at the movie's end, the meeting between Mary and Elizabeth is otherwise faithful to the scriptures and quite poignant. In a separate scene, the two women experience the concurrent movement of their children in utero and share deeply in each other's joy. I can't think of another piece of celluloid that illustrates the dignity of the unborn child better than this."

See Fr. Geiger's full review here:
http://airmaria.com/

[Kolokotronis]

Thank you both for the kind words, but I only pass on what my family has believed for more than 1700 years. There is a great joy in Eastern Christianity. Kosta and Kawaii pointed to it when they wrote about those Eastern European Christians who hesitatingly enter the churches their grandparents and ancestors before them called their spiritual home; tears of joy shining in their eyes as they realize that what their grandmothers taught them, likely in secret, carries with it the way of eternal life which had sustained their people for more than 1500 years. Even for the rest of us who never knew the oppression they did, our voices choked with grief as we chanted the Lamentations on the evening of Great and Holy Friday and our eyes gleamed with the same tears, this time of joy, at the close of the Anastasi Service as we sang,

"It is the Day of Resurrection! Let us shine forth in splendor for the Festival and embrace one another. Let us say, 'O brethren, even to those who do not love us; let us forgive all things in the Resurrection and thus let us exclaim: Christ is Risen from the dead, trampling Death by death and bestowing life to those in the tombs!'"

[Alamo-Girl]

Thank you so very much for joining in this discussion! I treasure all of your insights, dearest sister in Christ!

And thank you so much for bringing Leibniz in! Jeepers, he is so important to any discussion of permanence and flux. Sorry I forgot him.

To me, to speak of "corruption" is to touch on spiritual matters, which seemingly affect only living beings, and possibly only human beings. So I wonder to what extent we can speak of galaxies as having been subject to corruption in former times; I just don't see that galaxies could be spiritual entities -- unless the entire creation is in some fashion a living being, as Plato suggested.

Indeed, I do not perceive a culpable persona being associated with inanimate things. OTOH, Scriptures do indicate in at least two places that all of Creation is "alive" - i.e. the fecundity principle:

For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected [the same] in hope, Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. - Romans 8:19-22

The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge. [There is] no speech nor language, [where] their voice is not heard. - Psalms 19:1-3

I took kosta50's concern to mean that evil existed in the physical realm before Adam's "birth" (banishment in my view) - Rosh Hashanah (5767 years ago by the Jewish calendar, 6000 years ago by the Christian calendar.)

Please correct me if I am wrong, kosta50.

Any hoot, that is why I went into the little sidebar on the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil - and the metaphor of the stage play.

BTW, the difference between the Jewish and Christian calendars is a dispute of some 240 years over the amount of time the Jews spent in exile in Babylon.

[Alamo-Girl]

What an excellent example and explanation of Plato's universals or forms!

Though some may have lost a taste for the Greek philosophers, I suspect their legacy will continue unabated by the mathematicians and physicists.

After all, every time a mathematician scribbles a variable in a formula he is attesting to the universality of it. And pi remains pi whether on earth or some distant galaxy.

And there will always be physicists like Max Tegmark and Roger Penrose who perceive "things" in space/time as mathematical structures "beyond" space/time.

[hosepipe]

[.. But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. - I Cor 2:9 ..]

Already this has happened to me multiple times..

Where I "started" is not "where" I am now.. When I started out as a christian I could not have accepted some things I KNOW to be true now.. BUT now those things seems obvious to me..

And thats WHY? I say this verse of scripture not only WILL BE TRUE but is happening NOW to some people... My favorite verse of scripture above.. IT RESONATES WITHIN ME..

[Alamo-Girl]

Thank you so very much for sharing your insights, dear hosepipe!

Indeed, I do not know what the new heaven and new earth will be like beyond what God has revealed to us in Revelation - but I'm very sure it will be thrilling.

[Kolokotronis]

BB: “To me, to speak of “corruption” is to touch on spiritual matters, which seemingly affect only living beings, and possibly only human beings. So I wonder to what extent we can speak of galaxies as having been subject to corruption in former times; I just don’t see that galaxies could be spiritual entities — unless the entire creation is in some fashion a living being, as Plato suggested.”

AG: “Indeed, I do not perceive a culpable persona being associated with inanimate things.”

I will take the risk and opine that Kosta was not speaking of decay in Creation as being the result of some culpability on the part of inanimate objects. Rather, in accord with The Fathers and the OT, what he is saying is that our sins burden all of Creation and distort it. Some have said that the natural disasters we observe in our lives are the result, generally, not of God’s “wrath” (though sometimes it may well be in a pedagogic sense)but rather distortions in the created order of the universe brought about by our sins. Through us, all creation is a slave of death. Were we to fully respond to God, however, the true created order of things would be restored and the lion would indeed lie down with the lamb.

“Creation is a slave; the Spirit sets free. Creation stands in need of life; the Spirit is the Life-Giver. Creation needs instruction; the Spirit is the Teacher. Creation is sanctified; the Spirit is the Sanctifier.” +Basil the Great

[Alamo-Girl]

Thank you so much for your beautiful essays, dear Kolokotronis!

It seems to me that Christ speaks to us through His letters to the churches in Revelation 2 and 3. All seven churches are accepted by Him with commendations and rebukes - though two of the churches are spared rebukes and both of them remind me of Orthodox Christians I am privileged to know.

The first is the much suffering church of Smyrna in which I see the perservance of many Orthodox under extreme duress:

And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write; These things saith the first and the last, which was dead, and is alive; I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and [I know] the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but [are] the synagogue of Satan. Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast [some] of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death. - Rev 2:8-11

The second is the church of Philadelphia whose very name suggests an obsession with the love of God and neighbor:

And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth; I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: for thou hast a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name. Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee. Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth. Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown. Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, [which is] new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and [I will write upon him] my new name.

He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches. - Rev 3:7-13

That is not to say I don't see these in other Christians - particularly here on the forum - but as a branch of Christianity, I see these two as further branches of those I know who say they are Orthodox.

"It is the Day of Resurrection! Let us shine forth in splendor for the Festival and embrace one another. Let us say, 'O brethren, even to those who do not love us; let us forgive all things in the Resurrection and thus let us exclaim: Christ is Risen from the dead, trampling Death by death and bestowing life to those in the tombs!'"

Amen! Praise God!

[hosepipe]

[.. The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam [was made] a quickening(moving/active) spirit. – I Cor 15:45 ..]
-------------
[.. This mortal life with all the good and evil, right and wrong, Light and darkness, is a detour wherein we build our own scales of justice by which we will be weighed. But it is just a stage play (to follow the metaphor) - what it is "about" is the next heaven and earth...]
-----------------------------------

WOO- WEE.. the metaphor adds to the truth/power of it..

[Alamo-Girl]

[.. But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. - I Cor 2:9 ..]

Already this has happened to me multiple times..

Indeed - and although I imagine some others might be quite frightened at the thought of experiencing what you have, by your testimony we know the Spirit was leading you all along.

[marron]

But we do not have completedness in creation before the final Judgment, which is where the perfection of God's creation is achieved -- not before. God created a "good," not a "perfect" creation, as He Himself says.... "Goodness" accords with His purpose; "perfection" would leave no room for development toward God's end or goal in creating. There would also be no role for man, for human free will in a "perfect" universe.

That is my sense of it, at least. "Perfect" is a mental construct. It does not exist in reality. We use it in reference to God, but it doesn't really tell us anything about him, because he defines it, rather than the other way around.

"Perfect" with reference to anything else, can not exist, because any state of "perfect" you could imagine only sets the stage for the next stage of "perfect". If you could map "perfect", it would trace a corkscrew path moving away at light speed in any of a thousand directions.

"Perfection", however, does exist, and it is the fundamental essence of creation both as an act and as a description of what occurs in natural history and human history as well, despite all the detours and crashes along the way. I'm convinced that detours and crashes (and missing links and biological dead ends) are an inevitable part of the process.

"Perfection", in fact, turns "perfect" on its head. We might imagine that for any question there is one right answer, but life shows us a million right answers, and more on the way. There isn't one tree, there are myriad species and among all the individual trees not one is like any other, not even another of the same species, and not one of them stops changing right up until the moment of death.

[Kolokotronis]

” It seems to me that Christ speaks to us through His letters to the churches in Revelation 2 and 3. All seven churches are accepted by Him with commendations and rebukes - though two of the churches are spared rebukes and both of them remind me of Orthodox Christians I am privileged to know.”

What an interesting, and kind, observation, AG, but I trust you also recognize that we Orthodoxers can be the greatest of sinners, the worst among heretics. Some of us, myself included, believe that God chose a time for the Incarnation when Greek was the lingua franca of the Mediterranean world so that the NT would be written in Greek and thus readily available to Greeks. We, more than others I’m afraid, need every advantage we can get! :)

[hosepipe]

[... There's something I'm wondering about, though, which is probably just a minor quibble, but I'd like to gain some insight into it all the same. To me, to speak of "corruption" is to touch on spiritual matters, which seemingly affect only living beings, and possibly only human beings. So I wonder to what extent we can speak of galaxies as having been subject to corruption in former times ..]

Good point.. its a matter of observation(the observer)..

A Fruit is beautiful and juicey and perfectly sweet for a time.. A fruits perfect timeline is dependant on a cycle.. A rotten fruit feeds the seed of a new tree.. completeing the larger cycle.. So-called Corruption just might be fertilizer to/In the Garden of the Universe....

[jo kus]

But Scripture as well as common sense makes a clear distinction between what we as humans say and what we as humans DO.

Yes - now read the following carefully...

And David commanded all the assembly: Bless ye the Lord our God. And all the assembly blessed the Lord the God of their fathers: and they bowed themselves and worshipped God, and then the king. And they sacrificed victims to the Lord. 1 Chron 29:20-21.

Note, I include the first half of verse 21. As I said before, that is how we know what is in the mind of others - only when we see them sacrifice. That is the only external action one takes that is DEFINITELY offered to God alone. Not kneeling. Not asking favors of. Not praising. Not even 'worshiping' in the above sense... Clearly, in the above verses, the Jews are "worshiping" David. But then they offer sacrifice to God, not David. We do the same with Mary. We praise her, consider her as "blessed among woman". A little common sense is in order here.

We don't worship Mary as God.

Can I make that any clearer?

Regards

[Alamo-Girl]

Wow! Your essay is so deep and enriching. If you aren't a professional writer, you should consider becoming one.

"Perfection", in fact, turns "perfect" on its head. We might imagine that for any question there is one right answer, but life shows us a million right answers, and more on the way. There isn't one tree, there are myriad species and among all the individual trees not one is like any other, not even another of the same species, and not one of them stops changing right up until the moment of death.

Only God could have created such a magnificent living masterpiece of artistry.

[Alamo-Girl]

LOLOL!

I will defer my never ending debate with beloved brother in Christ, kosta50, on whether the Hebrew or the Greek is to be preferred concerning the discussion of mind, soul and spirit per se.

I trust you also recognize that we Orthodoxers can be the greatest of sinners, the worst among heretics.

No fair, I thought I was the greatest of sinners and the worst of heretics!

[hosepipe]

[ that is why I went into the little sidebar on the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil - and the metaphor of the stage play. ]

The entire bible and judeo christian theology rests on the base of that metaphor.. The metaphor is much more powerful than the literal vision of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.. The metaphor of it is a spiritual engine..

Any that miss a degree/part the spiritual content of this metaphorical vision WILL miss some parts of the entire rest of scripture..

[Alamo-Girl]

Rats, I forgot to mention that I agree with you that Christ was enfleshed at the time of common Greek language and word concepts for that very purpose, to spread the Gospel to the entire civilized world.

By his conquering, Alexander the Great, a subject of Daniel's prophesy, normalized the Greek language in the civilized world. Not only that but certain word concepts going as far back as Plato became common knowledge, e.g. Logos.

Moreover, this clue from Scripture:

And there were certain Greeks among them that came up to worship at the feast: The same came therefore to Philip, which was of Bethsaida of Galilee, and desired him, saying, Sir, we would see Jesus. Philip cometh and telleth Andrew: and again Andrew and Philip tell Jesus. And Jesus answered them, saying, The hour is come, that the Son of man should be glorified. - John 12:20-23

However, ahem to Kosta50, there are certain Hebrew word concepts which, IMHO, should be better understood even by the Greek speaking Christians, e.g. nephesh, neshama, ruach, ruach Elohim

[Alamo-Girl]

Thank you so very much for your encouragements and insights! And I very strongly agree with you, one must have an understanding of that almost like a blueprint, so the other revelations of God fit together seamlessly.

[Kolokotronis]

” No fair, I thought I was the greatest of sinners and the worst of heretics!”

Nope! We’ve got a corner on those commodities, I’m afraid. :)

[Alamo-Girl]

LOLOL!