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The Passion of the Christ
Today was not one of my better cooking days. I got a phone call from my mother during the broiling phase of my tomato sauce, and it left me completely agitated, and just as I announced that dinner was ready (and believe me, I'm embarrassed to admit this) I realized that I had completely forgotten to cook the pasta. So, sure. The sauce was ready, but there wasn't anything to put it on. Of course, we were starving already and then we had to wait until the water came to a boil and then the spaghetti cooked. I had another moment of panic when I realized that I had forgotten about the bread.. I had put it under the broiler as well. As it turns out, it was just perfectly done and on the good side of brown, but I still had that initial panic. And of course, with the broiler on for so long and several burners going, it was 160 degrees in the kitchen, and no less so because of my mood.
And what has gotten me so frustrated? The Passion of the Christ.
It was brought to my attention tonight that M and I are anti-Christian all of a sudden. I had no idea that this was the case, but apparently that came out loud and clear to her/them yesterday afternoon during a discussion about the movie. And just so you know--it's not uncommon that I read way too much into things. I know that--but in this case, she came right out and said it, so as a matter of fact--no, I'm not imagining things. M and I are the lone people in the family who are not fully interested in watching the movie. As a matter of fact, we're (almost) the only people in the family not at the movies right now watching it. Considering how seldom my family goes to the movies, that's saying something.. and never in my lifetime have such a large group of them gone to see any movie at the same time.
Here's the thing. I don't really have a problem with them or anyone else watching the movie. I do have a conceptual problem with the commercialization of religion--and I think that this movie is a prime example of that. I don't need to see the violence to appreciate that it happened. I don't need to witness the Hollywood representation of Jesus' cruxifiction to know that it happened. As it happens, I am a Christian, and I do believe in Jesus dying for my sins, and believe me when I say that I'm eternally grateful. Maybe I'm just not a visual learner. I don't really have this strong urge to see a movie that Ebert called the most violent he had ever seen. I scare easily--I still have nightmares occasionally about something I once saw on cable. And I strongly feel that it's extremely unfair to hear insinuations that I'm a bad Christian because of it. If I had lied about it (although that is, of course, a Commandment and all..) and said that I didn't want to see it just because of the violence being done to Jesus, they would have been fine with it--others have said that and they've been fine with it. But I told the truth--that I'm not entirely sure I want to watch a movie that depicts that much blood and gore AND that I think religion is a private matter and it bothers me that it's so far made $330 million dollars, that there is nothing inherently holy about it just because it's a movie about Jesus. What the movie depicts was a horrible, horrible thing. I'm not making light of it in any way--but I don't think I want to see it, and I heartily resent being told that I should or my devotion is in question.
And furthermore, did not Jesus himself say "make not my Father's house an house of merchandise."? Honestly, I think there's enough difference in this passage and the scenario of this movie to not claim that it's anti-Christian to see the movie or anything like that--but at the same time, I think there's enough of a similarity for them to leave me alone about my honest opinions regarding the commercialization of religion. What they took to be my anti-Christian reason for not wanting to see the movie, I meant in the exact opposite--I just don't like the idea of the crucial backbone of my faith being a money-maker. If everyone else is comfortable with it, I'm happy for them. I'm happy that this is having an effect on so many people--but I have a perfect right to feel hesitant about watching this (for whatever reason!), and it doesn't mean that I've abandoned my belief in God when I developed opinions of my own that don't come out of the dark ages (which was also suggested, although not in those words.) I can't even believe they entertained the notion, and to tell the truth, my feelings are hurt that they did. It's a movie. It's not scripture.
And what has gotten me so frustrated? The Passion of the Christ.
It was brought to my attention tonight that M and I are anti-Christian all of a sudden. I had no idea that this was the case, but apparently that came out loud and clear to her/them yesterday afternoon during a discussion about the movie. And just so you know--it's not uncommon that I read way too much into things. I know that--but in this case, she came right out and said it, so as a matter of fact--no, I'm not imagining things. M and I are the lone people in the family who are not fully interested in watching the movie. As a matter of fact, we're (almost) the only people in the family not at the movies right now watching it. Considering how seldom my family goes to the movies, that's saying something.. and never in my lifetime have such a large group of them gone to see any movie at the same time.
Here's the thing. I don't really have a problem with them or anyone else watching the movie. I do have a conceptual problem with the commercialization of religion--and I think that this movie is a prime example of that. I don't need to see the violence to appreciate that it happened. I don't need to witness the Hollywood representation of Jesus' cruxifiction to know that it happened. As it happens, I am a Christian, and I do believe in Jesus dying for my sins, and believe me when I say that I'm eternally grateful. Maybe I'm just not a visual learner. I don't really have this strong urge to see a movie that Ebert called the most violent he had ever seen. I scare easily--I still have nightmares occasionally about something I once saw on cable. And I strongly feel that it's extremely unfair to hear insinuations that I'm a bad Christian because of it. If I had lied about it (although that is, of course, a Commandment and all..) and said that I didn't want to see it just because of the violence being done to Jesus, they would have been fine with it--others have said that and they've been fine with it. But I told the truth--that I'm not entirely sure I want to watch a movie that depicts that much blood and gore AND that I think religion is a private matter and it bothers me that it's so far made $330 million dollars, that there is nothing inherently holy about it just because it's a movie about Jesus. What the movie depicts was a horrible, horrible thing. I'm not making light of it in any way--but I don't think I want to see it, and I heartily resent being told that I should or my devotion is in question.
And furthermore, did not Jesus himself say "make not my Father's house an house of merchandise."? Honestly, I think there's enough difference in this passage and the scenario of this movie to not claim that it's anti-Christian to see the movie or anything like that--but at the same time, I think there's enough of a similarity for them to leave me alone about my honest opinions regarding the commercialization of religion. What they took to be my anti-Christian reason for not wanting to see the movie, I meant in the exact opposite--I just don't like the idea of the crucial backbone of my faith being a money-maker. If everyone else is comfortable with it, I'm happy for them. I'm happy that this is having an effect on so many people--but I have a perfect right to feel hesitant about watching this (for whatever reason!), and it doesn't mean that I've abandoned my belief in God when I developed opinions of my own that don't come out of the dark ages (which was also suggested, although not in those words.) I can't even believe they entertained the notion, and to tell the truth, my feelings are hurt that they did. It's a movie. It's not scripture.
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