The Passion - the power and the agony - CFN Newsletter Week 118

CHRISTIAN FAMILY NETWORK NEWSLETTER 116

> The Passion of The Christ - Russ Bravo gives his view on an astonishing but brutal film
> News:
> Young Christians pray and protest in 'war trench'
> Make The Passion film a 15 says church leader
> Singer blasts pop stars' 'trashy' dress sense
> Sites:
> New online enquirers course
> Wanted: web pastor for new CofE web church
> Does your churchyard deserve an award?
> Marriage MOT: Know yourself
> You've got to laugh: Sinking ship?
> Members' Zone latest

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Dear All

I'm still processing my experience of viewing The Passion of The Christ, which features heavily in this latest newsletter and our updated website material.

It is both an awesome opportunity for God's people, and a harrowing experience, so ask God for wisdom on whether you go, and if you do, who you could ask to come with you.

Also in this update - what's it like to go on retreat?, fresh marriage advice from Kate, up to the minute news, plenty of funnies and much more. And stay tuned for our latest Families Together magazine, which you'll receive early next month (check out the contents in our next update).

God bless

Russ Bravo
Christian Family Network
info@cfnetwork.co.uk
http://www.cfnetwork.co.uk

PS Christian Family Network is here to direct you to the best in parenting, marriage and family resources; to link you up with other Christian families up and down the UK; and to help you make the most of life as a follower of Christ - at home, at work, at school and college, at play and online.

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THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST - OUR REVIEW

The power and the agony

• RUSS BRAVO gives his verdict on the film of the moment, following a press preview last week in London’s Leicester Square (see below for resources your church can use)
  

The Passion of The Christ (18)

This astonishing film is a landmark in cinema history. Whether it marks a turning point in the history of the Church remains to be seen.

Mel Gibson has managed to put together more than two hours of absolutely gripping cinema which is both tremendously powerful – and extremely brutal. The way the story of Jesus’ last 12 hours is portrayed – moving from trial scenes and harrowing violence to flashbacks of his early life and later ministry – brings Jesus to life on the big screen in an intensity no other film has ever managed.

Yet the extended scenes of flogging, scourging and torture are more than I could bear to watch at times. From a cinematic point of view, Gibson could have shortened these sequences by a good 10 minutes and not lost the impact. That said, I took a fresh look at Isaiah 53 the day after the screening, and it made me think that perhaps the film had it right – is there any way Christ’s suffering can be overemphasised?

The language used in Isaiah 53 (NIV) is graphic in itself: “he was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hid their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.” (verse 3). I certainly found myself hiding my face from some of the brutality and sadistic torture, and some of the language in the rest of Isaiah 53 accords with the film's portrayal: “stricken”, “smitten”, “afflicted”, “pierced”, “crushed”, “oppressed”, “afflicted”.

Maybe in that context, including so much graphic violence is understandable. As Gibson told Readers’ Digest in their current edition: “From many accounts I’ve read, I think it was actually more violent than what you’re going to see in this film. According to the psalmists, you couldn’t even recognise him as being human. That’s how bad it was.”

And he goes on to say: “I wanted to impress on viewers the enormousness of this sacrifice, the willingness – and the horror of it. I wanted to overwhelm people with it. But it has escape hatches. There are little places of respite within the film where you can escape from the violence and find lyricism and beauty.”

This device is something that works particularly well. As the scourging is taking place, the camera moves to give you Jesus’ view of the blood-splattered sandals of one of the Roman soldiers doing the whipping. The scene then changes to footage of Jesus washing his disciples’ feet as he tells them that the Son of Man came as a servant, to give his life as a ransom for many.

So you are frequently taken from the depths of suffering and brutality back into Jesus’ ministry – time spent with the disciples, sharing bread and wine at the Last Supper, teaching about loving your enemies from the Sermon on the Mount. These episodes help remind you how radical Jesus was, how his teaching of God’s ways was so diametrically opposed to the world’s ways and how the religious authorities could consider him such a threat.

One of the most moving moments comes on his journey with the cross to Golgotha – an extensive part of the film where Gibson’s Catholicism comes to the fore, including all 10 Stations of the Cross, including three falls, the part played by Simon of Cyrene in carrying the cross and the cameo of Veronica, the woman who offers him a cloth to wipe his face. Jesus falls and his mother, nearby in the crowd lining the route, rushes to help him up. The scene changes to an episode from his youth – Jesus the boy falls over and Mary rushes (in slow motion) to pick him up and comfort him.

• To read the rest of this review, go to our Resources section at http://www.cfnetwork.co.uk/members/resources.asp

> THIS WEEK'S NEWS

> Young Christians pray and protest in ‘war trench’

Hundreds of young Christians from prayer and campaign network SPEAK knelt in a massive makeshift ‘trench’ in central London to pray and protest against the arms trade.

Go to http://www.cfnetwork.co.uk/members/news.asp for the full story

> Make The Passion film a 15, says church leader

Methodist minister, broadcaster, and evangelist Rob Frost has called for the British Board of Film Censors to change the certification on Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ from 18 to 15.

Go to http://www.cfnetwork.co.uk/members/resources.asp for the full story

> Singer blasts pop stars' 'trashy' dress sense

Christian singer Stacie Orrico says revealing clothing like that worn by Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera is "degrading" and makes them poor role models for girls.

Go to http://www.cfnetwork.co.uk/members/news.asp for the full story

> MARRIAGE MOT

> Check out our archived marriage tips in the Members' Zone, plus stacks more marriage resources at http://www.2-in-2-1.co.uk

Know yourself

Another aspect of misunderstandings arises, because we don't recognise the way we react to things that happen around us. If you’re a helpful sort of person, then you may get angry and frustrated when your partner won't let you help them. If you're a perfectionist, then you may get angry when someone criticizes you, or depressed when something doesn't live up to your expectations.

It can be very easy to blame the person or the circumstances, when what's really happening is within you. On these occasions your spouse may wonder what on earth they said or did.

A little bit of introspection is not a bad thing, especially if it's guided by some wisdom.

Have you tried the www.2-in-2-1.co.uk relationship inventory or perhaps done a Myers-Briggs test together? I've found such things invaluable to help me understand my feelings and reactions. Understanding a little about what's going on inside frees us to choose how we are going to behave, instead of having knee-jerk reactions, which may leave even us as well as our partner bruised and bewildered.

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> EVENTS

• how to be a better group leader
• using the Bible creatively
• refreshing prayer and worship in your group
• your group can grow!

> YOU'VE GOT TO LAUGH ...

How well does your prayer work?

A small ship was weathering a terrible storm and taking in water. After a time, the vessel began to sink. The crew quickly herded the passengers into the lifeboats. While this was going on, the captain called out: "Does anyone here know how to pray?"

A humble clergyman stepped forward. "I can pray," he said softly.

Just then a Pentecostal minister jumped up. "I think I would do a better job!" he declared outright. "You’re so quiet that your prayer can’t even be heard across a quiet church, much less a noisy storm."

"Very well," the captain said. "You pray – we’re one life-jacket short!"

> CHRISTIAN FAMILY NETWORK THIS WEEK
(MEMBERS' ZONE) - http://www.cfnetwork.co.uk/members/default.asp

> Advice

> Kate's Marriage advice - Know yourself
> Mary Parish on the art of going on retreat

> Resources

> The Passion of The Christ - Russ Bravo's review
> Resources for churches on the back of The Passion film
> Boring sermon - some ideas for ways to pass the time
> Classic 'biblical' jokes

> News

> Young Christians pray and protest in 'war trench'
> Make the Passion film a 15 says church leader
> Singer blasts pop stars' 'trashy' dress sense

PLUS news extra: LIFE welcomes US teens' view that chastity is cool, and Children's Society chief on why random drug testing in schools could make things worse

> Top sites this week

> New online enquirers course
> Wanted: web pastor for new CofE web church
> Does your churchyard deserve an award?

> Events: Care for the Family tours and day events in 2004 plus more of what's on near you

> Webwatch Index: more than 600 sites at your fingertips

> Site Search Engine: the easy way to trawl our 1,000-page plus archives

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