NOTE: March 26, 2004 - This movie inspired a person who murdered his girlfriend to confess when everyone thought she committed suicide! See article below:
The Passion of the Christ
A Mel Gibson Film
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"Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends." John 15:13, KJV
"No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends." John 15:13, New Revised Standard
Although I've not even seen this movie, I wish to promote it and help others realize that if they do not see any other movie this year, they should see this movie. You do not view this movie, you experience it. You will forever be changed by this film if you see it.
The movie is done by Mel Gibson of "Road Warrior" and "Lethal Weapon" fame, his first film. I am deeply disturbed by the calls of some that the film is "anti-Semitic." I am deeply sympathetic with the Jewish people over the suffering they experienced at the hands of Adolph Hitler. Those atrocities can never be changed. We can only learn from them. I was deeply touched as a student by the book "The Diary of Anne Frank."
There are rumors that when the Pope himself viewed this film in a special screening for the Vatican, he uttered the words "It is as it was." Very profound, coming from the Pope.
It must be understood that the Jewish faith takes issue with the sheer claim of Jesus Christ, that He was the Only Begotten Son of God. Jesus claimed to be the Christ, the Messiah, and the Jews of that time took great offense at His claims. Particularly the Jewish leaders of that time. The Jewish people must accept that they were almost entirely responsible for the death of Jesus Christ. That is ok though, as it could not have happened without God allowing it to happen. And, it had to happen to complete Gods perfect plan. It would not matter who killed Jesus Christ, it had to be done to complete the prophecies, the scriptures and Gods Perfect Plan.
The part of this that is deeply disturbing is that there are claims that this amazing film is anti-Semitic. It is absolutely, unequivocally not. It is the fact that respected, informed leaders of the Jewish faith and Israeli nation are claiming that it is anti-Semitic. I equate this to someone calling me a racist. That would be so painful and hurtful to me personally, having striven my entire life not to be prejudice or racist nor to be perceived as such. Being from the southern United States, it has been imperative to me that I be seen as a human being and not a bigot, as some stereotypes of southerners have held. The problem with the Jewish people of faith believing that Jesus Christ is who He claimed to be is that they were responsible for Christ's death. The Jewish faith teaches that there will be a Christ, and that He will come to earth and will be the Savior of the world. To this day they are awaiting His arrival. The problem is that they did not believe it was Jesus Christ, and they were so offended that He claimed He was the Christ that they killed Him. Again though, this could not have happened without God allowing it to happen. It was Gods perfect plan.
I am not sure, but I am beginning to believe that this is being called something as horrible as "anti-Semitic" for two reasons. One, those stating this are concerned that their will be repercussions from individuals who would blame the Jews for Christ's death. Secondly, the purported mistake made by the Jewish people of that time will be clearly demonstrated, and the basis of their faith will be brought into question. They killed the one they've been waiting on for centuries. On the most simplistic level, you could almost equate this with someone telling others about something very stupid you did. You'd like to forget about it, to not have it brought to others attention, to finally live it down. But hopefully you wouldn't try to destroy the person telling the story or make them out to be a monster. This is a feeble comparison, because the importance of the story being told is a matter of life and death, eternal life and eternal death, it is the story of Jesus Christ, and to attack this particular story in such a way speaks volumes about those making these accusations.
And my final message for those that have accused Mel Gibson and/or this movie of being anti-Semitic, are the words that Christ Himself spoke shortly before His Spirit left His body while on the cross:
''Forgive them, Father, for they do not know what they are doing.''
Finally, and appropriately, Jesus had the last words. And those living words and that forgiveness extends to us today, including those who would criticize this film.
Learn more about this amazing film by visiting the web site for it:
For those of you who did not know it, the shortest verse in the Bible is this:
"Jesus wept." (St. John 11:35)
Amazing how even the shortest verse in the Bible speaks volumes.
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Another Case of Mistaken Suicide Ruling - 12/2004
| Neighbors mourn young mother's death Friend says he saw husband hours before wife was shot By NIKKI YOUNG |
A close friend of a Buford woman found dead Saturday said he saw her estranged husband leave her house earlier that morning. Steve Comeau said Wednesday that he saw Jennifer Barber-Corbin's husband, Barton Corbin, pull into the couple's driveway at around 2 a.m. Saturday morning. He left 25 minutes later. "I said to myself, 'I hope he didn't do anything stupid,'" Steve Comeau said in a news conference from his home. "It just seemed odd that he was there for such a short amount of time." Jennifer Barber-Corbin, 33, was found dead in her Bogan Gates home later that morning with a single gunshot wound to her head. A revolver was lying on the bed nearby when police arrived around 8 a.m., Gwinnett Police Cpl. Dan Huggins said. Though police at first ruled the death a suicide, they now believe it to be a homicide. Corbin, a Gwinnett County dentist, is not a suspect in the case, though he is wanted for questioning, Huggins said. "We are in contact with his attorney, but he has yet to provide a statement," Huggins said. Attempts to reach Corbin were unsuccessful. Steve Comeau's wife, Kelly, said Corbin likely is staying with his family. Corbin's dental office in Dacula will be closed for the rest of the week due to a death in the family, a recorded message said. It added that Corbin will return to work Monday. An office spokeswoman for Lakeshore Mall Dental Group in Gainesville said Corbin worked there part-time until October. The Corbins' 7-year-old son found her body and woke up Comeau and his wife, Kelly, the Corbins' neighbors and best friends, at 7:30 a.m. Saturday, the couple said. Kelly Comeau found her best friend's body and carried the Corbins' 5-year-old son back to the Comeaus' house. "There was nothing I could do," Kelly Comeau said. She and her husband were so close to the Corbins that the Comeaus named their neighbors the legal guardians of their only child. But they were not aware of a similar incident in 1990 that left a Wilkes County woman dead. Corbin also was a "person of interest" in that unsolved homicide in Augusta. Dorothy Hearn was found dead with a single gunshot wound to her head, Sgt. Scott Peeples of the Richmond County Sheriff's Office said Tuesday. Like Barber-Corbin, police also thought Hearn killed herself but later thought the death was homicide. Authorities have not determined why Hearn died, Peeples said Tuesday. Peeples would not comment on the relationship between Hearn and Corbin, who were both students at the Medical College of Georgia. Corbin graduated in 1990, according to his dentist office's Web site. "With this other information coming out, I don't know what to think," Steve Comeau said. The Corbins' sons are with Barber-Corbins' parents and nearly 40 relatives who are in town for funeral services, Kelly Comeau said. The family has setup a memorial page for Jennifer can be found at: Jennifer Corbin Staff writer Rick Lavender contributed to this story. |
I may have to start a new page for this phenomenon of homicides disguised as suicides. It is my belief that anyone who murders someone and makes it look like a suicide should also qualify for penalties more severe than normal, because of the hurt and pain it causes the family members of someone whose death is ruled a suicide. A doctor who used to work for the U.S. Government died as a result of an experiment by fellow agents. His death was covered up and labeled a suicide as a result. Only many years later did the truth come out and the family was informed of this ill-planned experiment by his government co-workers. Dr. Frank Olson died a horrible death and his family suffered for years as a result. See more information about Dr. Olson, his family and the incident that occurred, as well as the continuing work of his son to share his Dads story with the world through a website dedicated to his Dad, on my "Favorite People" page. Very intriguing story.
