Mel Gibson's Movie, the Passion

I find it deeply disturbing that so many Americans feel so positively toward Gibson's movie. The Catholicism that Gibson practices is based almost entirely on archaic Church Doctrine -- in other words, beliefs invented by the medieval clergy based on politics and tradition, not the Gospels. It is centuries behind the doctrine of the current Vatican -- which is saying a lot, considering that among American Catholics today, the Vatican is commonly viewed to be too conservative and utterly out of touch with the times. Most orders sent down from the Vatican are simply ignored by most parishes (here in the Northeast, anyway, where most of the nation's Catholics are located).

That said, Gibson does seem well suited to his beliefs, which are based more on the image and theatrics of medieval Catholicism than on any Christian teachings. He has always been a chauvinist egomaniac, his movies more like commercials for the Mel franchise than either art OR entertainment. To prove my point: try to name a movie starring Gibson where he played neither the role of Savior or Martyr. Can you? It was only a matter of time before he gave in completely to self-indulgence and made a Passion Play.