UNM's Jewish and Catholic communities are joining forces to extinguish any possible flames of hate that may be sparked by the opening of the highly controversial film on Wednesday depicting Jesus' last days on Earth.
"The Passion of the Christ" is the anticipated film version of the Passion play - the theatrical depiction of Jesus' supposed last hours alive. The film has caused a rift of anxiety nationwide from people of both religions fearing the repercussions of how their ancestors are portrayed in the movie.
Students from UNM's Hillel House, the University's Jewish organization, and members of the Thomas Aquinas Newman Center's Catholic congregation, sensed the possibility of emotions boiling over as a result of the movie's content and decided to take some pre-emptive steps, said Simon Goldfine, co-chairman of Hillel.
"We wanted to use this situation to encourage people from both religions to come together and discuss the controversial and volatile topics that have made up our pasts for hundreds of years," he said.
Goldfine said many members from both UNM organizations plan on seeing the movie within the week and will then come together to discuss it.
"Instead of allowing this movie to impact us negatively, we want to use it to open the lines of communication to discern what it means for each group," he said.
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Bob Keller, a preacher at the Newman Center, said the best-case scenario is that people will be in awe at the incredible amount of violence that was inflicted on Jesus.
"However, I have a feeling that the movie is over-hyped," said Keller, who has yet to see the movie. "Ultimately, we have to judge the film on its level of accurately depicting what we see as the truth. I would guess that the amount of violence is over-exaggerated."
Keller said Newman Center parishioners wanted to see "Passion" with their Jewish counterparts to help each other understand their points of view on the issue of Jesus' death.
Keller said he plans on sponsoring an open session at the center to discuss the movie afterward.
Many people have addressed the possibility of anti-Semitic themes in the movie, and Jews and Catholics are divided on their opinion.
"People of different religions are going to see this movie differently," said Joseph Black, a rabbi at the Jewish Federation of Albuquerque. "Catholics are going to see it as a beautiful thing, but Jews are going to be reminded of the persecution and fear their ancestors faced."
Black said he understands that everyone feels very strongly about their individual religions, but said it's important to be sensitive about everyone's point of view.
The controversy surrounds the question of who was responsible for Jesus' death. Some believe it was the Romans, forced to follow the orders of a brutal leader and others think he died at the hands of the Jews, saying they feared his radical beliefs.
Keller said he is not worried about the movie causing a rise in anti-Semitic activities because he said it was the Romans who killed Jesus, not the Jews.
He said the entire situation is a moot point, that Catholics the world over have embraced Jews and see them as their equals.
Goldfine, however, basing his opinions on movie reviews and what he's heard through the media, said from what he's seen, the movie places sole responsibility for Jesus' death on the Jews.
"From what I've seen, there are historical inaccuracies that put Jews in a very bad light," he said.
Still, despite their differences in opinions and expectations for the movie, members of both religious communities at UNM say they are willing to work together to understand what it means to them.
"We can either use the movie to bring us closer or drive us apart," Goldfine said. "I think both groups want this situation to be a positive one."
