The Passion- No flames please

[Philothea]

Philothea. I'm not an expert on the "whys" of life. I've experienced many bad things (as I'm sure many of us have), and have even questioned God.. "WHY? GOD, IM MAD !!"... but in moments of reflection and repentence, I come to terms that these bad things that happen are often the very things that refine me, give me character, and remind me that there is a better time coming.

I know I have gone off -topic, but I can't ignore someone who seems to be yearning for a relationship with God, but can't because something is holding them back.

I won't tell you the usual "Let Go, and Let God", that's an easy answer and one that is overy used.

The one thing that helps me through anger is prayer. Its not a bad thing to ask God "why".. it's not a bad thing to be honest with him and say, "God, I'm angry at you, but I don't want to be.. speak to me, and give me understanding".

He'll answer. Believe me, He will. Maybe not when you are looking for either, but when you least expect it, in the most unexpected way.

God bless you, and I admire your honesty and candor!!

It definitely added character...hehe. I thank you for your response. I don't get many of those and when I do it's usually hellfire and brimstone. I suppose I do talk to him quite often, though sometimes I don't say the best of things. Most of the time we have nice conversations. It use to be my favorite thing to do just to sit outside under a tree and talk to whatever wanted to listen, be it god or not. Yes we do all have bad things happen to us and we all take it a different way. I didn't take it well, but I feel it's gotten better. *knock on wood* I won't go into detail about it, but let's just say people who want to be crazy and say it all the time don't know what they're wishing for. You feel as if you're up a creek without a paddle when the meds just make it worse. I've found lately though that the strength and control is in myself. Not some worthless pill that gives the illusion of wellness. I am not well. I just know how to deal with it now. Guess that's why I search. I feel better. He's like a best friend. We joke around and get mad at each other and play pranks. I think he's got a sense of humor to be honest with you. Even gods can laugh. Otherwise...we wouldn't know how.
Many blessings to you...in whatever fashion.

 

[Lbiagm]

amen sista.

 

[sad astronaut]

I do have one question though. Does anyone know what the symbolism was of when Satan was holding a very ugly baby when the Romans where flogging Jesus? My wife and I could only come up with this symbolism; that Satan thought it was coming to be a new beginning with Jesus being dead soon.

Steve

Steve, I'm sorry if this has already been answered, but my friend gave the following explanation which may or may not be true, but it kinda makes sense.

Satan was acting as a father to this baby because he was mocking Jesus. He was basically saying "Where is your father now?". He saw his holding the devil-baby as a sort of mockery to the relationship of Christ with his father.

 

[Knight]

I saw the movie this past Thursday. It was moving, riveting, and all together powerful. No question about that. I did not cry during the move. (It's simply not my nature) However, the scene where the first nail is driven in was the most powerful for me. It always has been wether I see this in a movie or a Passion play.

I walked away from the theater feeling two things:

1) A sense of deep gratitude for what Christ did for me. He took the punnishment and separation from God that I deserve and placed it upon himself. In fact, this did not fully click until sometime the next day.

2) A sense of victory. This hit me immediately. Christ defeated sin and death. Praise Him! This is the reason for our joy. Christ died and rose again to bring us back into a relationship with Him.

No guilt, and definately no pity.

I am glad that this movie is prompting people to ask questions about Jesus. If this leads people to share the Gospel unto salvation then Praise the Lord. I also think it's important for Christians who have grown complacent in their walk to understand what He did to "buy them at a price."

That said, there were some things that I did not like about this movie:

1) The beginning makes you feel as though you've walked in during the middle of the story. There is little chance to see the actors established in their roles before the action starts. I found it difficult to make the connection early on in the film. IMO, if the movie had started at the Last Supper this would have been done better.

2) There were elements in the movie that were not in the Bible. Historical context is one thing but adding material that the Gospel writers themselves did not include is entirely different. Is it wrong? Not as long as it dosen't take away from the message. (Which I don't think it did.) Is it accurate? No, it's an interpretation. I could go on here but I trust that my point is made.

3) The symbolism of the baby. This has been described by Mel's publicist as symbolic of sin. How it looks good from afar but when you focus in on it you see how ugly it really is. No offence to Mel but if it required an email to his publicist to figure this out then it might as well have not been in the movie. (Again, this is my opinion.)

4) The resurrection scene was WAY too short. 12 seconds does not do justice to this event. I understand that the intent of this movie was to describe Christ's Passion (suffering). However, you cannot separate these events. Christ suffered for our sins, died, and rose again. In a two hour movie I would have liked to have seen at least 5 or 10 minutes devoted to the resurrection rather than a transition into the credits.

The movie was good and very well made. I would recomend it to all believers and to those who have questions about Christ. However, we need to understand that this is still a movie. It depicts the most significant events in human history but it is still a movie. It should never be a substitute for the Biblical accounts. Nor should it be considered infallable.