pp

Judaism Confronts “The Passion”: 

Judaism Confronts “The Passion” The Jewish View surrounding the death of Jesus of Nazareth

What is “The Passion”?: 

What is “The Passion”? The Passion Play is a dramatic rendition of the suffering, crucifixion, and resurrection of Jesus. Passion plays take as their source material, the Gospel narratives. There are 4 Gospels: Mark, Matthew, Luke and John. This is an essential faith story for Christianity.

Slide3: 

Earliest plays were found in the 13th Century. Grew over the next few hundreds of years in France and Germany. Became increasingly elaborate involving entire towns and the play itself would last days.

Oberamergau, Germany: 

Oberamergau, Germany Most famous of plays Involved over 800 actors The actor playing “Judas” had to move out of town for the entire run of the play. Put on every ten years except during WWII when Hitler ordered a command performance.

Why are we concerned?: 

Why are we concerned? Passion narratives and plays have been the source of seasonal anti-Semitism since the beginning of the common era. Blood libels Oberamergau, Germany Hard to distinguish fact from fiction 40 Years of Christian/Jewish coalition building can be threatened.

Slide6: 

The secretive and dishonest way in which this film was created has heightened the concerns. The lack of scholarly input and the disregard Gibson has for centuries of scholarship on the Biblical narrative.

Gospel History: 

Gospel History Timeline 37 BCE Herod the Great 0 CE. Birth of Jesus 4CE Herod Antipas 14 CE Tiberius (Emperor) Pontius Pilate (Governor) 33 Crucifixion 67-70 Destruction Gospel of Mark Gospel of Matthew Gospel of Luke 95 Gospel of John Problems Historicity of narratives Persecution and transference Elevation through denegration It took nearly 2000 years before the Christian community looked at the stories critically

Other Problems?: 

Other Problems? The details of the entire story are told in less than 700 words. Less than an op-ed piece in the Beacon Journal. Little agreement between the narratives on the details. The only fixed points in the story are:

Fixed Points: 

Fixed Points Jesus is arrested by Roman soldiers Jesus is accused of a crime by the High Priest Caiphas. The crime is threatening the Temple. Pontius Pilate examines Jesus Pilate releases Barabbas Jesus is condemned Jesus is crucified with two others who are guilty of treason. Soldiers divide Jesus’ garmets Jesus dies on a cross which is labled “King of the Jews.”

Problem Points: 

Problem Points No clarity among the stories as to the crime or who made the charge. The High Priest was powerless except as a religious functionary. No political power. The Governor, Pilate, was one of the most ruthless leaders of the province. Pilate crucified nearly 20,000 criminals during the 10 years he was Governor. Jesus is crucified between two rebels against Rome. There is no title “King of the Jews”. The messiahship of Jesus is a post-resurrection discussion.

Slide11: 

Hard to find the “Historical” Jesus Dating of “The Passion” Arrest and Trial on Pesach? Burial on Shabbat? Corruption of the Passover symbols Being “Sold” for 20 pieces of silver Jesus as Joseph Glossa Ordinaria Why is “Judah” the only contemporary with a “Jewish” name? Not too many Jews with the name “Luke”.

Gospel Parallels – The Arrest: 

Gospel Parallels – The Arrest Mark [Judas, accompanied by large armed crowd from the chief priests and elders, betrays Jesus who is then seized.] Jesus says: “Let the scriptures be fulfilled.” A young man following Jesus wearing nothing but a linen cloth escapes. He is caught, but escapes by leaving the linen cloth and running off naked. The disciples flee. Matthew [Large crowd from one chief priests and elders comes to arrest Jesus.] Slave’s ear cut off, no mention of healing. Jesus says arrest is being done “so that the scripture of the prophets may be fulfilled.” All disciples flee.

Gospel Parallels – The Arrest: 

Gospel Parallels – The Arrest Luke A crowd led by Judas comes. Slave’s ear is cut off, but Jesus heals it. Chief priest, officers of the temple and elders have come for him. Jesus says, “This is your hour and the power of darkness.” John Judas guided a detachment of soldiers and some officials from the chief priests and Pharisees. They told him they were looking for Jesus and he identified himself. Then Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s slave, cutting off his right ear. Jesus commanded Peter, “Put your sword into its sheath! Shall I not drink the cup the Father has given me?”

The Nun: 

The Nun Sister Anne Emmerich (1774-1824) The Passion is based upon the diaries of St. Anne Catherine Emmerich and the Gospel of John. She was a stigmatized nun (she inflicted the marks of crucifixion on herself). Lived only on communion wafers Mystic, Visionary

JEWISH VIEW: 

Gospels are not historical or factual accounts of events in the life of Jesus Rome was an evil persecutor of Jews and early Christians until the 3rd-4th Century. Crucifixion was a Roman punishment for rebels against the Roman empire. Jews were powerless against Rome. Temple was destroyed 40 years later. Jewish view of Jesus is that he was a faithful Jewish boy who had a “passion” (no pun intended) for Torah and thought that the corrupt Roman priesthood was creating distance between the faithful Jewish community and God. HE WAS NOT OUT TO CREATE A NEW RELIGION Christianity was created by Paul of Tarsus after the death of Jesus. JEWISH VIEW

Catholic Teaching on Passion Plays: 

Jesus must not be depicted as opposed to the Law (Torah). In fact, as the Notes describe in greater detail, "there is no doubt that he wished to submit himself to the law (Gal 4:4) . . . extolled respect for it (Mt 5:17-20), and invited obedience to it (Mt 8:4) (cf. Notes III, 21, 22). Jesus should be portrayed clearly as a pious, observant Jew of his time (Notes III, 20 and 28) The Old Testament and the Jewish tradition founded on it must not be set against the New Testament in such a way that the former seems to constitute a religion of only justice, fear, and legalism with no appeal to the love of God and neighbor. Catholic Teaching on Passion Plays

Slide17: 

Jews should not be portrayed as avaricious (e.g., in Temple money-changer scenes); blood thirsty (e.g., in certain depiction's of Jesus' appearances before the Temple priesthood or before Pilate); or implacable enemies of Christ (e.g., by changing the small "crowd" at the governor's palace into a teeming mob). 5) Jesus and his teachings should not be portrayed as opposed to or by "the Pharisees" as a group (Notes III, 24). Jesus shared important Pharisaic doctrines (Notes III, 25) that set them apart from other Jewish groups of the time, such as the Sadducees. The Pharisees, in fact, are not mentioned in accounts of the passion except once in Luke, where Pharisees attempt to warn him of a plot against him by the followers of Herod (Lk 13:31). So, too, did a respected Pharisee, Gamaliel, speak out in a later time before the Sanhedrin to save the lives of the apostles (Acts 5). The Pharisees, therefore, should not be depicted as party to the proceedings against Jesus (Notes III, 24-27).

Slide18: 

Therefore, any presentations that explicitly or implicitly seek to shift responsibility from human sin onto this or that historical group, such as the Jews, can only be said to obscure a core gospel truth. (Statement of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops, November 20, 1975).

Slide19: 

"The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America has committed itself to 'live out our faith in Jesus Christ with love and respect for the Jewish people' … Our Guidelines for Lutheran-Jewish Relations include reminders that 'the New Testament … must not be used as a justification for hostility towards present-day Jews,' and that 'blame for the death of Jesus should not be attributed to Judaism or the Jewish people.' In keeping with these commitments, we view with concern recent public reports regarding the forthcoming film on the Passion by Mr. Mel Gibson." -- Evangelical Lutheran Church in America , Department for Ecumenical Affairs

Slide20: 

"We want to assure each of you that the content of this movie will be used by us and the members of our congregations solely to tell the story of our faith and not to hold the Jewish people responsible for the death of Jesus. We believe that Jesus willingly died for all our sins and it is wrong to use this powerful and important story to foment anti-Semitism. "We are sorry for any fear or anxiety that any of you feel concerning this movie and we hope that our commitment will in some way ease your concerns. All of us value the Jewish roots of our faith and we are committed to building lasting and respectful relationships between our communities." --Open Letter to the Jewish Community of Denver, signed by 49 local Christian clergy, February 20, 2004.

Slide21: 

"Christians who saw or heard the Passion, especially during the Holy Week before Easter, have reacted violently against the nearest Jews. We even know of some Christian rulers in the Middle Ages who warned the local Jews to stay indoors on Good Friday in order to protect them from violence. That's more than just a bad review. So our response to this story is important in ways it will not be for other stories. We have a responsibility to be informed and to consider the larger picture in which the Passion is presented. Anti-Jewish images and slogans born in by-gone Passion portrayals are still used to slander Israel and the Jews. Therefore, every presenter of the story must be alert to its potential for doing 'collateral damage'". -- The Christian Scholars Group on Christian-Jewish Relations, Boston College Center for Christian-Jewish Learning

Why we oppose this film?: 

Not Historical or Factual Resurrects Anti-Semitism Gibson is a theological lightweight who doesn’t understand the Jewish community and doesn’t accept scholarly opinion.. The depiction of the Jewish characters in the story border on age old stereotypes. The “over-the-top” violence that turns a story of Christian faith into a Horror film. Turns back the clock of Christian/Jewish Relationships 50 years. The Director’s Cut DVD released for Christmas 2004 Why we oppose this film?

What’s Next?: 

What’s Next? Increase Dialogue Groups Educate ourselves about these stories Give our children a pride-filled foundation in their own faith. Encourage Biblical scholarship Continue to create partnerships with other religious communities.

The End: 

The End Prepared by Rabbi David A. Lipper Temple Israel 2004