Michael J. Cook: Some Jewish Reactions

Thanks to Dalen Jackson for drawing my attention to some material from Michael J. Cook of Hebrew Union in Cincinnati, USA. He was one of those who was on the famous "ad hoc committee" that reported on the script of The Passion of the Christ last year (along with Paula Fredriksen, Mary Boys, Amy-Jill Levine, Gene Fisher and Eugene Korn. Any others?). This is his public statement on the Reform Judaism web site:

Commission On Interreligious Affairs of Reform Judaism:
Some Jewish Reactions to Mel Gibson's, "The Passion of the Christ"
by Michael J. Cook, Ph.D

There is then a more recent update which is pretty cynical about the whole Icon spin-machine. It is undated but is clearly issued before Cook has seen the film:

Commission On Interreligious Affairs of Reform Judaism
Update on Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ"
by Michael J. Cook, Ph.D

On the same site, Cook has made available a long PDF document made up of excerpts from correspondence he has had with colleagues about how to tackle the reactions to the film. The document was prepared before he had seen the film and there is a long checklist at the end to see how far the final version differed from the script that was so criticised by the ad hoc committee:

Excerpts from Postings Concerning:
“OUR GIBSON STRATEGY” ©
including a “Checklist” of 48 critical motifs to look for in the Mel Gibson film, The Passion of the Christ
by Michael J. Cook, Ph.D.

If you've followed the controversy surrounding the film, it makes interesting reading.