Further, this doctrine allows moral slackers to excuse their failing by saying, "I'm only human."īut in any hour or issue we each are responsible for our own actions-and only those actions. But this doctrine of inherent and collective guilt means that morally upstanding individuals are culpable for evils that they did not create. One of the messages in Gibson's film is that since we are all sinners, we all killed Christ. Original sin means that we are all evil not just in any given thought or deed but by our very nature, that we can't help ourselves, that we must act immorally. But the problems with this message-as well as a way to a better moral vision-can be found by examining three themes that are central in Gibson's film: sin, sacrifice, and suffering. In our secular society, many individuals who reject this theology still accept the moral message of Christianity.
To avoid hell, we must accept Christ's sacrifice. The Passion of the Christ graphically depicts Jesus's cruel torture and crucifixion-penalties that we all deserve. But because of his love for us, God sent Christ to our sins upon himself. Gibson and many Christians believe that human beings are born with original sin and worthy of nothing but death and damnation. (It doesn't after all Jesus, his mother, and disciples, and not just the religious elites and their supporters who condemned him, were all Jews.)īut neither moral relativism nor religious faith will sustain a free, flourishing society. The film's critics worry that intolerance is encouraged when a society is based on religious dogma, and many have claimed that the movie itself promotes anti-Semitism.
The film's supporters maintain that freedom is threatened when a society loses the moral compass traditionally supplied by religion and drifts into moral relativism.
Ma- The controversy surrounding Mel Gibson's film The Passion of the Christ reflects a deep divide concerning the moral foundations of our society.
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