Pondering the Passion
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Pondering the Passion explores how the story of the death of Jesus has been imagined and portrayed over the centuries. In the shadow of the Holocaust and under the eye of contemporary scrutiny, the varied and often conflicting depictions of the Passion of Christ raise questions lying at the heart of both the Jewish and the Christian faiths. Publishers Weekly Scholars and practitioners of Christian-Jewish dialogue found themselves thrust into the spotlight in 2004 with the release of Mel Gibson's film The Passion of the Christ. The Center for Christian-Jewish Learning at Boston College, which Cunningham directs, rose to the occasion with a lecture series that led to this collection of essays. Its greatest strength is the way it resists the temptation to comment on Gibson's film until theological and historical groundwork has been laid. The first four sections treat first-century history (including crucial questions about the exact nature of Jesus' trial and sentencing), the historical nature of the gospel accounts, the Passion in the arts and the meaning of salvation and redemption in Christian theology. Only after this context has been established, generally in well-crafted essays that represent mainstream Catholic thought, do the book's final contributors weigh in on the film itself. Among these essays, Cunningham's stands out for its enumeration of the ways he says that Gibson flouted Catholic teaching and flirted with anti-Semitism in his artistic choices. Catholic educator Mary Boys also contributes a thoughtful reflection on the hostile responses she encountered when critiquing the film in public and on television. With few exceptions, these contributors bring substance to a conversation that deserves to continue after the glare of publicity has faded. (Dec.) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.
Introduction : the Passion - what's at stake for Christians and Jews?Ch. 1The Jews under Roman rule3Ch. 2The problem of Jewish jurisprudence and the trial of Jesus13Ch. 3Why was Jesus executed? : history and faith27Ch. 4Protestant understandings of the Passion43Ch. 5Separating the true from the historical : a Catholic approach to the Passion narratives55Ch. 6The depiction of Jews in early Passion iconography67Ch. 7The Passion in music : Bach's settings of the Matthew and John Passions87Ch. 8Oberammergau : a case study of Passion plays97Ch. 9Celluloid Passions109Ch. 10What does it mean to be saved?119Ch. 11Why is the death of Jesus redemptive?129Ch. 12A challenge to Catholic teaching143Ch. 13Gibson's Passion in the face of the Shoah's ethical considerations157Ch. 14Were you there when they crucified my Lord? : the psychological risks of "witnessing" the Passion169Ch. 15Educating for a faith that feels and thinks181
