It is a sin to Blame Jews for the Death of Christ
The Universe
(March 07, 2004)
SOON showing in a cinema near you will be the most-watched Passion play the world has ever seen.
The Passion of Christ, a movie by conservative Catholic Mel Gibson, presents the story of the suffering and death of Jesus. It is told in such graphic detail that it is bound to change the minds and hearts of many. It is a film that comes from the pages of the Gospel but also the depth of Gibson’s personal meditations on the Passion after he rediscovered his faith about 12 years ago.
It is a dramatic and powerful film and it is not without controversy. His critics say it is anti-Semitic.
Passion plays throughout the centuries have been blamed for fanning the flames of hatred against the Jewish people and a literal interpretation of the Gospels has wrongly blamed the Jews for the death of Christ for all times. Gibson has emphasized the teaching of the Church that all humans who have sinned are the ones responsible for the death of Jesus.
He told the Global Catholic Network that it is not the sin of the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem that led to the death of Jesus but the wickedness of all mankind. “It’s not singling them out and saying ‘they did it.’ That’s not so so, we’re all culpable. I don’t ant to lynch any Jews – I Love them, I pray for them.”
Vatican II stated: “True, the Jewish authorities and those who followed their lead pressed for the death of Jesus. Still, what happened in His Passion cannot be charged against all the Jews without distinction, then alive or against the Jews of today. In her rejection of every persecution against any person, the Church, mindful of the patrimony she shared with the Jews and moved… by the Gospel’s spiritual love, decries hatred, prosecution, displays of anti-Semitism directed against the Jews at any time and by anyone.”
The Church has also said that Jesus died because of the sins of the world not the sins of a handful temple leaders. We can’t take every word of the Bible literally. The Gospels were written by early Christians out to justify their faith and take potshots at the Jews who viewed Christians as an unwelcome sect.
It is a sin, and a contradiction, for Christians to blame the Jews for the actions of a few. Jesus asked God to forgive the latter because “they know not what they do.”
There are lessons for us to learn in today’s world
where injustice still abounds and innocent people are executed simply
because they call for reform. We should see this powerful film but with
the eyes of faith and a heart of love and understanding.
