J.D. Hall Rips ‘The Passion of the Christ’ Sequel In Newsweek Interview -by Dustin Germain

Found here. Our comments in bold.
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It is interesting to see the manner in which the Doctrinal Police get twisted up. Mel Gibson, a man of questionable personal character, is making another movie about Jesus. The author notes the J.D. Hall objects; he apparently does not want people to be exposed to Jesus. We say this because the first movie was seen by 59,625,500 people in the US and was the seventh-highest grossing film at that time.

Apart from a somewhat minor doctrinal difference regarding Jesus' activities between His death and His resurrection, J.D. Hall is particularly piqued about the violation of the Second Commandment. We quote the last paragraph of the article:

“There may be other objections, too. J.D. Hall was among the faith leaders who pre-screened Passion. His response was mostly positive, but he says he now views artistic portrayals of Jesus as violations of the Second Commandment’s ban on the worship of “graven images.” He’s not planning to see Resurrection when it comes out. “Jesus is the most famous and interesting person who ever lived, so there will be a sizable market for Resurrection,” Hall says. “But idolatry includes Jim Caviezel playing Christ. They’re commercializing the Son of God. If Jesus returned and walked into a theater playing this movie, he’d turn over the tables of the money changers.”

So let's actually quote the Second Commandment:

Ex. 20:4 “You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below.

The Hebrew word for "idol" ("graven image") is pesel, which is quite simply an idol, an image. Despite Bible translations containing the word "idolatry," there appears to be no actual Hebrew word for it. Every occurrence of the word is simply "idol." The word encompasses the entire concept.

This is not true in the NT. While there is a Greek word for "idol" is eidólon [an image for worship, by implication a false god], there is also one for "idolatry." That is eidólolatria, which is service (worship) of an image (an idol). Here there is a distinction between having the idol itself vs. the activity of idolatry.

We say all this to bring us to the point of considering J.D. Hall's assertions.

First, Mr. Hall claims that portraying Jesus in a movie violates the Second Commandment. In order for this to be true, the image would need to be constructed for the purpose of worshiping it. So the Mel Gibson's specific intent must be for the purpose of worshiping the movie, that is, the image Christ portrayed by the actor, and the response of people watching the movie is to worship it. However, there is no evidence at all that Mr. Gibson made the movie for the purpose of his image of Jesus to be worshiped, and likewise there is no evidence that people are worshiping the first movie or will worship the second one.

"Worship" is proskuneó, I go down on my knees to, do obeisance to, worship. Portraying Jesus in a movie is not worship.

Second, Mr. Hall claims they are money changers, intending to profit from the Son of God. This is probably true, they do intend to make a profit. However, being a money changer is not synonymous with making a profit. In fact, we don't know that it is unholy or sinful to gain a profit from telling a story about Jesus. Rather, we would think that making the movie is more about honoring Jesus.

If profiting from telling the story of Jesus is sinful, then Zondervan is sinful for selling Bibles. Construction companies owned by Christians are evil for charging to build church buildings. Church staff are unholy for accepting a salary. Christian colleges are money changers for charging tuition.

As is typical for the Doctrinal Police, J.D. Hall is hyperventilating over inconsequential, tangential issues. He can identify no specific evil being perpetrated, therefore he comes off as kooky and irrelevant.

As an aside, the author does quote 1 Peter 3:18-20, but leaves out

Ep. 4:8-9 This is why it says: “When he ascended on high, he led captives in his train and gave gifts to men.” [Psalm 68:18] 9 (What does “he ascended” mean except that he also descended to the depths of the earth? 10 He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.)

If the author is going to mock the idea that Jesus descended to the lower regions, he might want to consider all the relevant Scriptures. 

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The Passion Of The Christ has a sequel on the way, and Newsweek Chief Correspondent Paul Bond reached out to our publisher, J.D. Hall, to get his perspective. In an article titled Mel Gibson’s Passion of the Christ sequel could alienate evangelicals, Bond gives the history of the 2004 international blockbuster, describes how the director courted evangelicals and Roman Catholics when the movie was first released, and describes what challenges the new movie may have that it did not 15 years ago.
Tentatively titled “The Ressurection (sic) of the Christ‘ and currently in pre-production, the film brings back director Mel Gibson and Jesus actor Jim Caviezel for a script that is rumored to take place directly after the death of Christ, and is to depict at some point the “the harrowing of hell.”

The “harrowing,” a medieval term used to describe the plundering and ravaging that takes place during times of war, is a theological riff on the line “he descended into hell” in the Apostles’ Creed. It’s the doctrinal belief that Christ triumphantly descended into hell (or hades) between the time of his crucifixion and his resurrection, and that it is during this time he is alleged to have brought salvation to the souls held captive there since the beginning of the world – in effect plundering and rescuing them. The belief is that it wasn’t just Jesus’ death on the cross that accomplished all it did, but rather he had to put it in the work in hell as well in order to bring about full salvation.

Proponents of it, particularly Roman Catholics, point to the scripture in 1 Peter 3:18-20 as the prooftext for such a belief, though it’s pretty evident it’s a bit of a stretch.

“For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, in order that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; in which also He went and made proclamation to the spirits now in prison, who once were disobedient, when the patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through the water.”

As one might imagine, the imagery in such a film would be particularly vivid. The article goes on to quote J.D. Hall on the veracity of the doctrine as described, a belief he flatly rejects.

“J.D. Hall, for instance, a controversial Baptist preacher who runs Pulpit & Pen, a website visited by about one million Christians a month says, “The concept of Christ descending into hell is less scripture and more a manufacturing of the Roman Catholic Church.”

The author goes on to point out other problems the movie may encounter, apart from the uncomfortable relationship evangelicals may have with “the harrowing of hell.” This includes Gibson’s personal life, which has taken a beating since he was held in much higher esteem 15 years ago. His divorce, DUI, children out of wedlock, skirt-chasing, violent temper, and racist rants all tend to do that to a person.

Other objections include the fact that the entire film is a second commandment violation. Bond writes:

“There may be other objections, too. J.D. Hall was among the faith leaders who pre-screened Passion. His response was mostly positive, but he says he now views artistic portrayals of Jesus as violations of the Second Commandment’s ban on the worship of “graven images.” He’s not planning to see Resurrection when it comes out. “Jesus is the most famous and interesting person who ever lived, so there will be a sizable market for Resurrection,” Hall says. “But idolatry includes Jim Caviezel playing Christ. They’re commercializing the Son of God. If Jesus returned and walked into a theater playing this movie, he’d turn over the tables of the money changers.”