Rerum Novarum Temporarily Out of Commission

Blogger makes simple things way too difficult to accomplish. Dale Price has an incisive blog on some recent defamation opinions directed towards Mel Gibson and his upcoming movie, The Passion. The permalink above, though, won't work because Blogger hasn't updated his archive. The entry is "All Mel. All The Time." Wednesday, June 25, 2003, 9:39 AM.

I. Shawn McElhinney wanted to chime in. But Blogger isn't letting him do anything right now. Here is his intended reply.

In response to Dale's note "An unnamed 'leading Catholic theologian' called the script 'one of the more anti-Semitic documents most of us have seen in a long time'", my guess is that it is based on a theological review done by some people affiliated with the ADL. (And the theologian was probably affiliated with the USCCB.) Which brings up the next point which is IMHO crucial.

The claim that "The Anti-Defamation League and U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops reviewed the script and we wrote a report that was sent to Mr. Gibson's company" is actually not true. I heard literally thirty minutes ago on the radio program of Michael Medved{1} that he contacted the ADL about the issue of their "review" sent to Icon Productions (Mel's company) and (i) the theologians are criticizing a movie they have not seen yet and (ii) they have criticized a script that Mel Gibson did not even use in shooting the film.

Thus, the ADL, the USCCB, and the media are thus is in serious error here and are advancing a position that is seriously erroneous. (It is also - in light of the nature of the accusation - defamatory.) The same sources apparently sought to appropriate some quotes to Mel Gibson's father - the sedevacantist Hutton Gibson - that Mel and officials of his company claim that Hutton never said.{2} ....

Notes:

{1} Fellow Seattle resident, major Hollywood movie reviewer, and devout Orthodox Jew. Medved is supporting Mel on this.

{2} The quotes attributed to him were antisemitic. I am certain that Hutton Gibson is an antisemite. However, that does not make appropriating statements to him that he did not say an okay thing to do - as the end does not justify the means. Further still, just because Hutton is antisemitic, that does not mean that Mel is. It is ironic that those who would (righfully) decry the age old "deicide" error are doing a version of the same thing themselves. (Tarring Mel for the sins of his father: the very nature of the supposed "curse of the Jews.") But since Mel is Catholic, that is okay since we all know that Catholicism is to world religions what the white male is to the "race/gender" categorization. But I digress...

Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Wed. 06/25/03 07:36:38 PM
Categorized as Religious.