The Harvard Divinity School didn\u2019t hide its feelings about \u201cThe Passion of the Christ.\u201d<\/p>\n\n
Mel Gibson\u2019s hit is \u201cdeeply sadistic\u201d and \u201cmilitaristic,\u201d said history professor Robert Orsi, during a panel discussion.<\/p>\n\n
\u201cPornographic,\u201d added New Testament scholar Ellen Aitken, speaking with what a press release called \u201cbiting contempt.\u201d The always outspoken Harvey Cox called it a \u201ccelebration of apocalyptic violence.\u201d Make that \u201cobscene\u201d and \u201cblasphemous,\u201d according to writer James Carroll. <\/p>\n\n
The room was packed but, apparently, there were no dissenting viewpoints. Which is interesting, if you think about it. I have found legions of intelligent, articulate people whose views of Gibson\u2019s work are all over the map, from ecstatic praise to incisive damnation. <\/p>\n\n
Perhaps it\u2019s hard to find such diversity at Harvard. Perhaps there were some people present who liked the film \u2014 even parts of it \u2014 but didn\u2019t feel free to speak. It might have taken courage to speak up in such a \u201ctolerant\u201d setting.<\/p>\n\n
Which is quite sad, I think. Every year, I mark this column\u2019s anniversary \u2014 this is No. 16 \u2014 by sharing some of the year\u2019s offbeat anecdotes that didn\u2019t fit into any particular column. If I have learned anything on the religion beat it is that sometimes you have to let people say what they really want to say and then just quote them saying it.<\/p>\n\n
This gets wild, when people start opening up on matters of faith. <\/p>\n\n
Trust me. Here are some recent examples.<\/p>\n\n
* Speaking of the Passion phenomenon, the Glassport (Pa.) Assembly of God caused a stir with its civic Easter program that included the mock scourging of a youth minister in a bunny suit. The goal was to show that Easter is not about a bunny, but the suffering, death and resurrection of Jesus. The Associated Press reported that some viewers were confused. Melissa Salzmann said her 4-year-old son J.T. was \u201ccrying and asking me why the bunny was being whipped.\u201d<\/p>\n\n
Clearly, the AP showed restraint. Obvious questions remained. Was the bunny in chains? And with what was the wabbit whipped?<\/p>\n\n
* Yes, it\u2019s a cheap shot. Addressing the election of gay Bishop Gene Robinson, the Los Angeles Times opined: \u201cThe actions taken by the New Hampshire Episcopalians are an affront to Christians everywhere. I am just thankful that the church\u2019s founder, Henry VIII, and his wife Catherine of Aragon, his wife Anne Boleyn, his wife Jane Seymour, his wife Anne of Cleves, his wife Katherine Howard and his wife Catherine Parr are no longer here to suffer through this assault on our traditional Christian marriage.\u201d<\/p>\n\n
What\u2019s next on that story? Keep in mind these words from Karl Marx: \u201cThe English established church will more readily pardon an attack on 38 of its 39 Articles (of Religion) than on 1\/39th of its income.\u201d<\/p>\n\n
* Speaking of the Los Angeles Times, critic Mark Swed called the opera \u201cDie Frau Ohne Schatten\u201d a \u201cglorious and goofy pro-life paean.\u201d But some someone changed \u201cpro-life\u201d to \u201canti-abortion,\u201d which would have been a different opera. Or did the editing software do that?<\/p>\n\n
* The British edition of Cosmopolitan has decided there may be more to life than sex and credit cards. The magazine\u2019s new \u201cspirituality editor,\u201d Hannah Borno, wrote: \u201cI\u2019ve come to the painful realization that men and shoes are not enough to make me happy. The key to true contentment lies elsewhere.\u201d <\/p>\n\n
But not in a pew, she said. \u201cWe\u2019re looking at spirituality rather than organized religion, because that\u2019s where there seems to be a demand from our readers. They want something a bit more alternative.\u201d<\/p>\n\n
*A reader sent this: Gilligan equals sloth and the skipper represents anger. Then Thurston Howell III equals greed, Lovey Howell is gluttony, Ginger is lust, the professor is pride and, finally, Mary Ann represents envy. Who knew?<\/p>\n\n
* The interfaith scribes at Beliefnet.com asked religious leaders to complete this statement: \u201cIf I were God for a day I would\u2026\u201d Phil \u201cBob the Tomato\u201d Vischer of the VeggieTales offered this: \u201cI would, with the noblest of intentions, make a monumental mess. Having seen the sort of messes I can create in my personal and professional life with my tiny little powers, I can only imagine what horrific catastrophe I could engineer with omnipotence. I\u2019ll leave God right where he is, thank you.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Harvard Divinity School didn\u2019t hide its feelings about \u201cThe Passion of the Christ.\u201d Mel Gibson\u2019s hit is \u201cdeeply sadistic\u201d and \u201cmilitaristic,\u201d said history professor Robert Orsi, during a panel discussion. \u201cPornographic,\u201d added New Testament scholar Ellen Aitken, speaking with what a press release called \u201cbiting contempt.\u201d The always outspoken Harvey Cox called it a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":610,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[60,444,642,720],"class_list":["post-1276","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-anglicans","tag-humor","tag-passion","tag-religion-news"],"yoast_head":"\n