wfn.org | NCC Offers Reflection Guide for "Passion of the Christ" Film

["Carol Fouke" <cfouke@ncccusa.org>]

For Immediate Release

NCC Offers Reflection Guide for "Passion of the Christ" Film

February 13, 2004, New York City - A reflection guide to Mel Gibson's movie
"The Passion of the Christ" is being offered by the National Council of
Churches USA to help Christians think through the issues raised by this
controversial film.

The guide is available on the NCC's Web Site (www.ncccusa.org).

"The Passion of the Christ," set to open Ash Wednesday (February 25), already
has generated both rave reviews and controversy.  The NCC Interfaith
Relations Commission, which issued the guide, does not comment on the film
but rather offers Christian viewers a framework in which to see the film and
to discuss it in their families and congregations.

The guide recognizes that the story of Christ's Passion is deeply meaningful
to Christians and that dramatic depictions of the Passion story can be a
powerful experience of faith -- but that such depictions also have a tragic
history, sometimes leading to labeling of Jews as "Christ-killers" and to
acts of violence against Jews.	

"Many Christian and Jewish leaders are concerned that this movie might set
back decades of Jewish-Christian relations," the guide notes.  The NCC
Interfaith Relations Commission expresses its concern about the possible rise
in anti-semitism and its desire to foster genuine and constructive
Christian-Jewish dialogue.

The guide addresses the question "Who killed Jesus?" and reminds its readers
that Jesus was born a Jew and lived as a Jew to the end.  It encourages
Christians to read at least two Gospel accounts of the Passion along with
commentary on the religious and political context of the gospel writers.  

When Jesus prayed from the cross, "Father, forgive them, they know not what
they do," what did he mean?, the guide asks.  Movie viewers are asked to
discuss how the movie portrays Jews, and to consider specific steps to build
or strengthen relationships with Jewish people and institutions.

The National Council of Churches USA is the nation's leading ecumenical
organization.  Its 36 Protestant, Orthodox and Anglican member denominations
count 50 million members in 140,000 local congregations nationwide.  The Rev.
Dr. Shanta D. Premawardhana leads the NCC's interfaith relations work.

-end-

NCC Media Contact: 212-870-2252; news@ncccusa.org

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