Quoted message said:From: "Nana Weedkiller" [email hidden]
Date: 2/20/2004 7:59 PM Pacific Standard Time
Message-id: <[email hidden]>
Quoted message said:Please discard your hatred;
http://nazigirl.jandrew.wasarrested.com/S-IN/Bloomington/prostitute/F
http://ilena.rose.wasarrested.com/San+Jose/crack/F
That's not only hatred, it is lies.
Quoted message said:stop using your bible to bash and bait others.
I haven't, that is just another one of your lies. Very timely example of an
atheist
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The focus is not to place blame, but rather to show what Jesus Christ, son of
God, was willing to go through to save us all from our sins.
...........................................
Paul Harvey Comments on "The Passion" by Mel Gibson
Paul Harvey's words:
I really did not know what to expect. I was thrilled to have been
Invited to a private viewing of Mel Gibson's film "The Passion," but I
had also read all the cautious articles and spin. I grew up in a Jewish town
and Owe much of my own faith journey to the influence. I have a life
long, deeply held aversion to anything that might even indirectly encourage
any formof anti-Semitic thought, language or actions.
I arrived at the private viewing for "The Passion," held in Washington, DC and
greeted some familiar faces. The environment was typically Washingtonian, with
people greeting you with a smile but seeming to look beyond you, having an
agenda beyond the words. The film was very briefly ntroduced,without fanfare,
and then the room darkened. From the gripping opening scene in the
Garden of Gethsemane, to the very human and tender portrayal of theearthly
Ministry of Jesus, through the betrayal, the arrest, the scourging, theway of
the cross, the encounter with the thieves, the surrender on the Cross, until
the final scene in the empty tomb, this was not simply a movie; it was an
encounter, unlike anything I have ever experienced.
In addition to being a masterpiece of film-making and an artistic triumph, "The
Passion" evoked more deep reflection, sorrow and emotional reaction within me
than anything since my wedding, my ordination or the birth of my children.
Frankly, I will never be the same.
When the film concluded, this "invitation only" gathering of "movers and
shakers" in Washington, DC were shaking indeed, but this time from sobbing. I
am not sure there was a dry eye in the place. The crowd that had been
glad-handing before the film was now eerily silent. No one could speak because
words were woefully inadequate. We had experienced a kind of art that is a
rarity in life, the kind that makes heaven touch earth.
One scene in the film has now been forever etched in my mind. A brutalized,
wounded Jesus was soon to fall again under the weight of the cross. His mother
had made her way along the Via Della Rosa. As she ran to him, she flashed back
to a memory of Jesus as a child, falling in the dirt road outside of their
home. Just as she reached to protect him from the fall, she was now reaching
to touch his wounded adult face. Jesus looked at her with intensely probing and
passionately loving eyes (and at all of us through the screen) and said
"Behold I make all things new." These are words taken from the last Book Of
the New Testament,t he Book of Revelations. Suddenly, the purpose of the pain
was so clear and the wounds, that earlier in the film had been too difficult to
see in His face, His back, indeed all over His body, became intensely
beautiful.
They had been borne voluntarily for love. At the end of the film, after
we had all had a chance to recover, a question and answer period ensued.
The unanimous praise for the film, from a rather diverse crowd, was as
astounding as the compliments were effusive. The questions included the
one question that seems to follow this film, even though it has not yet
even been released. "Why is this film considered by some to be 'anti-Semitic?'
" Frankly, having now experienced (you do not "view" this film) "the Passion"
it is a question that is impossible to answer. A law professor whom I admire
sat in front of me. He raised his hand and responded "After watching this film,
I do not understand how anyone can insinuate that it even remotely presents
that the Jews killed Jesus. It doesn't." He continued "It made me realize that
my sins killed Jesus"
I agree. There is not a scintilla of anti-Semitism to be found anywhere in
this
powerful film. If there were, I would be among the first to decry it. It
faithfully tells the Gospel story in a dramatically beautiful, sensitive and
profoundly engaging way. Those who are alleging otherwise have either not seen
the film or have another agenda behind their protestations.
This is not a "Christian" film, in the sense that It will appeal only to those
who identify themselves as followers of Jesus Christ. It is a deeply human,
beautiful story that will deeply touch all men and women.
It is a profound work of art. Yes, its producer is a Catholic Christian and
thankfully has remained faithful to the Gospel text; if that is no longer
acceptable behavior then we are all in trouble. History demands that we remain
faithful to the story and Christians have a right to tell it. After all, we
believe that It is the greatest story ever told and that its message is for all
men and women.
The greatest right is the right to hear the truth.
We would all be well advised to remember that the Gospel narratives to
which "The Passion" is so faithful were written by Jewish men who
followed a Jewish Rabbi whose life and teaching have forever changed the
history of the world. The problem is not the message but those who have
distorted it and used it for hate rather than love. The solution is not to
censor the message, but rather to promote the kind of gift of love that is Mel
Gibson's film making masterpiece, "The Passion." It should be seen by as many
people as possible. I intend to do everything I can to make sure that is the
case. I am passionate about "The Passion."
Please copy this and send it on to all your friends to let them know
about this film so that all go see it when it comes out.
P.S. From Julie: My daughter, Kristin, tells me they learned at her
church Youth Group that Mel Gibson stated he did not appear in his own
movie, by his choice, with one exception: It is Gibson's hands seen
nailing Jesus to the cross. Gibson said he wanted to do that because it
was indeed his own hands that nailed Jesus to the cross (along with all
of ours.)
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God works Miracles /Trust in Him
Jan