movies about Jesus – Lee Duigon

Why We Love 'The Chosen' So Much | Christianity Today

Jesus with His disciples, in The Chosen

Many of us are waiting for the next season of The Chosen to be finished and put on the air. But in the meantime, there are rumors floating around that seem intended to alienate Christian viewers.

Here’s a Reddit report that says Dallas Jenkins, the creator, director, and producer of The Chosen, says he’s decided not to cover the Transfiguration… because “it’s not important.” There’s also a rumor that half the cast of The Chosen actively supported “Pride Month.” And another rumor about truckloads of Mormon cash flowing in.

I’ve watched any number of “Bible movies” over the years, and never yet saw one that ventured to depict the Transfiguration. I dunno. If Cecil B. DeMille could part the Red Sea, surely someone could’ve re-created the Transfiguration.

(Did somebody just say “Transfiguration? What’s that?” I’m afraid I’d better include a reference: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Transfiguration-Christianity )

Just going by the ferocity with which they’ve lit into The Sound of Freedom, we won’t be far off if we speculate that globalists, Democrats, teachers’ unions, et al would be equally “un-welcoming” to The Chosen. Sound of Freedom attacks child sex trafficking; by attacking the movie, Far Left Crazy defends child sex trafficking. Which doesn’t surprise me at all.

These people find “Christian movies” (I’m not sure there is such a thing, but you know what I mean) deeply threatening and would very much like to suppress them. Failing that, they might try spreading rumors that keep Christians away from the screen.

We ought not, ever, to rely on movies for our religious instruction. Our authoritative source must always be the Bible. But “Bible movies” are not incapable of doing good. Sometimes they fall short of all the good they might have done.

Let’s give The Chosen the benefit of the doubt–which it has earned, so far!–and see what the next season brings.

If you like “Bible movies,” Risen is a good one. And let me tell you the best thing about it.

It’s a single scene, starring an actor in a small part. Richard Atwill plays one of the Roman guards who was on duty at Jesus’ tomb when He rose from the dead, and he tries to tell you what is was like. It would be wrong of me to reveal any of the details. I highly recommend seeing it for yourself.

Risen is the story of a Roman army officer, Clavius–played with stern conviction by Joseph Fiennes–who is ordered by Pilate (Peter Firth) to track down Jesus’ body, arrest the disciples, and prove that the Resurrection was a hoax. And this without drawing a single paycheck from a modern teachers’ union.

There’s a lot of grim and even gruesome detail in this movie; but on the plus side, it’s a loving and realistic rendering of Jesus and His disciples. I would have liked to see more of Pilate’s inner conflict that the Scripture suggests, but you can’t have everything. Fiennes is really good, and so are all the actors playing the apostles. There’s a trace of Catholic bias in it, but that really shouldn’t be a major problem for the viewer.

On the whole, though, the screenplay sticks fairly close to Scripture. No movie can be a substitute for the Bible. But a good one might draw a viewer nearer to it.