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53 °F Forecast | Road Cams Wednesday, February 25, 2004 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find a Rental Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Email Story to a Friend February 8, 2004 Gibson stirs up passions over Christ’s crucifixion By JOHN DARLING for the Mail Tribune Religious leaders throughout the country accuse "The Passion of the Christ" of anti-Semitism because the new Mel Gibson movie lays the blame for Christ’s death on the Jews. But local clergy hope the film will launch a dialogue reminding people that all of humanity is responsible for the death of Jesus Christ. Bear Creek Church of Medford ran a full-page advertisement in the Mail Tribune Tempo Friday written by a "Jew for Jesus" and calling for an end to the "blame game" against Jews. The ad reminds readers that Christ’s death was foreordained by himself and God. The film, tracing the last hours of Christ’s life and based literally on New Testament accounts, has been attacked by Jews for pointing the finger at Jewish high priests who conspired to have Jesus arrested and crucified. "The hatred and persecution we’ve endured as a result is tragic, and that’s made some Jews very defensive when it comes to the subject of the Passion," wrote Susan Perlman of Jews for Jesus in San Francisco. Advertisement The ad also suggests Christ was the divine messiah predicted in the Hebrew scriptures. The ad was paid for by a group of Rogue Valley business people and the Bear Creek Church of Medford, a non-denominational fellowship, said its pastor, Dale Meador. "If we just focus on who was responsible for the crucifixion, we miss the point — that he came as the savior of both Jew and Gentile," Meador said. "We ran the ad to remind people that Christ’s life, death and resurrection were anticipated in the Hebrew scriptures." Meador added that some people will react to the film with "renewed enmity" toward Jews. But Meador hopes the movie will spur a dialogue that helps people see Jews have been "unjustly blamed" for the crucifixion. The Rev. Bill Larsen of Lozier Lane Baptist Church in Medford said that, since the film is based strictly on scripture, it is "as close to the real story as you can get." "I don’t blame all Jews," Larsen said, "but the Jewish religious leaders of the time are the ones who insisted on the crucifixion and did everything they could to have the Romans carry out the execution, because they felt he was a phony" — not the prophesied messiah. The Rev. Caren Caldwell of Ashland Congregational United Church of Christ disagreed, noting the New Testament gospels describing the crucifixion were written decades after the event by people who weren’t there. "The Jews had no authority under Roman rule to execute anyone," said Caldwell. "It was a Roman-style execution of a Jew. The Jews bear absolutely no blame for it. The idea is ridiculous. Using the Bible as an excuse to cause Jews persecution and suffering is absolutely unjust." Assisting Priest Harvey Ray of Ashland’s Trinity Episcopal Church said, "The Jews bear no more responsibility than anyone else. It’s humanity that does this. We will always try to kill God if given a chance. Why? Because we want God to be in our image, not us in his. We want to be in control and have our way. It’s humanity’s desire to not want God to be what he is, which is inside us and in all creation." After a screening of the film to religious leaders, director Gibson was reported to have cut the most objectionable scenes, which portrayed Jewish complicity in the crucifixion. Scheduled for release Feb. 25, the picture was said in a New Yorker article to feature "relentless violence." Rabbi David Zaslow of Havurah Shir Hadash in Ashland called for viewing the crucifixion at a "higher level" in which the death of Jesus was caused by all humanity, since he "died for everyone." The Roman occupation of the Near East was a tragedy for Jews and resulted in the crucifixion of 50,000 of them, including Jesus, he noted, "so blaming Jews for the crucifixion is like blaming Jews for the Holocaust." The film, he added, has the potential to open or to heal old wounds but will certainly open up a dialogue that can serve noble ends. Rabbi Marc Sirinsky of Temple Emek Shalom in Ashland said, "There’s been plenty of pain about this subject and it’s time to turn to compassion. Maybe this generation will get it right. We have a choice (in response to the film) to use it to stir up hatred or to stir up love, and I’d always rather stir up love." John Darling is a free-lance writer living in Ashland. E-mail him at [email protected]. Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2004 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback 3 WEEKS FREE! 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