[net.religion] Cheeses of Nazareth

rlr@pyuxd.UUCP (Professor Wagstaff) (03/13/85)

>>Incidentally, I didn't think LIFE OF BRIAN was sacrilegious at all.
>>It wasn't Jesus being mocked, only peoples' response to him. [LEW MAMMEL]

> Not to be picky or over zealous, but in the movie, Brian (the character
> representing Jesus) was portrayed as a normal guy who was simply (and
> literally) picked up by the masses without any reason.  He fell on the
> ledge where he "preached his first sermon" and his miracles and actions
> were those of a normal, everyday person.  He tried to avoid the large
> groups of people and he continually told them that he was nothing
> special, but they wouldn't listen.  The movie gave me the definite
> impression that they were making the statement that Christ was probably
> just a normal guy whom the masses, through ignorance and misconception
> vaulted into the spotlight.  [RICK FREY]
 
That should probably read "who, through ignorance and misconception, WAS
vaulted into the spotlight by the masses".  Brian certainly represented someone
who was vaulted rather than someone who vaulted himself.

It should be pointed out that the original working title of "Life of Brian"
was "Jesus Christ:  Lust for Glory".  For some inexplicable reason, they were
unable to find a backer for a film with that title.  George Harrison came
through, and for doing so he was forced to appear in the film.  Definitely
required viewing for people of all religious and non-religious persuasions.
Anyway, the notion of using a fictitious Jewish kid who was mistaken for the
messiah was a toning down from the original premise of using the other Jewish
kid who was...  [AHEM]  Some interesting trivia regarding the film:  it was
filmed in Tunisia using the sets from a Biblical epic (?) that had previously
been shot there.  Graham Chapman, a qualified medical doctor, was in fact the
medical doctor for the film troupe.  (Chapman is also Jewish and an outspoken
homosexual.)

> p.s. All I said was that piece of halibut was good enough for Jehovah :-)
        ^
(From the stoning scene:  Anyone want to buy a beard?)  Some people seem to
think that the ridicule heaped upon Jewish ritual and religious law here
represents anti-Semitism of a sort, but I don't see it that way.  The Jewish
"clergy"/religious elders represent *any* manufacturers of dairy products...
I mean *any* religious oligarchy.  Thus, the Jewish elders are analogous to
the Christian "elders" (or the Islamic elders, or ...) of today.  Of course,
the Jewish elders of that time were misguided and got it all wrong, while
modern religious believers are more enlightened and know the real truth. 
(Does anyone actually believe that statement?)

> Christ, however, claimed to be a Teacher from God and while many dispute
> it, He claimed to be God.  He certainly never avoided teaching the
> masses and the _B_i_b_l_e__t_r_i_e_s__t_o__m_a_k_e__i_t__v_e_r_y__c_l_e_a_r that the miracles
> atributed to Him were not ignorant people's dumb mistakes (i.e. the man
> in the whole who hadn't spoken for 40 some odd years being healed by
> Brian stepping on his foot and making him scream.)  _T_h_e__B_i_b_l_e__t_e_a_c_h_e_s
> that Christ was NOT just a popular teacher whose reputation was based
> rumors and stories, _t_h_e__B_i_b_l_e__c_l_a_i_m_s that He had authority from God,
> that He came from God, and that He was God. [RICK FREY]

It's a good thing you prefaced some of these statements with "The Bible
teaches", "The Bible says", "The Bible claims".  The Brianist Gospels,
had they been written, would surely have "made very clear" that the miracles
attributed to Brian were not ignorant people's dumb (wishful thinking?)
mistakes, but real miracles, just as the Christian Gospels did.  Which is the
major reason why such accounts cannot be taken at face value.

> While I must admit that many of the scenes in the movie were excellent
> in their critique of people and their dealings with religion, the
> underlying statement about Christ is definitely not in line with
> Biblical teaching.  Forgive me if I'm being a kill joy.  [RICK FREY]

It so often amazes me that the Bible is so full of good wisdom such as
"Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools", that no one seems
to pay attention to (except in applying it to OTHER people).  You're forgiven.

>> were making a parody of Christians who don't really understand their faith)
>> and then - with the mob on the crosses (Brian included) singing "Life is
>> Shitty" - they skillfully stick the knife in the audience!!!!!   [ARNDT]

> The song at the end of "Life of Brian" is "Always Look on the
> Bright Side of Life". It has a catchy tune, and no scatological
> references that I can recall.  [JODY PATILLA]

The line Ken is referring to (the only one he apparently remembered) was
"For life's a piece of shit, when you look at it..." .  "Life of Brian" was
the first (and only) Python film to have a *real* ending---and it's Eric Idle
singing the song that actually makes it work.  ("Always look on the bright side
of death :-*, just before you draw your terminal breath :-*"  :-* = WHISTLING)

"Now, is there any hard evidence for the existence of Cheeses?"
"Yes."
"Now, I'm going to ask you that question again and if you say no I'm going to
	shoot you.  Is there any hard evidence for the existence of Cheeses?"
"No, I was deliberately wasting your time."
<BANG>						[ineptly derived from the
"What a senseless waste of human life..."	  Cheese Shop sketch]

[Time to revive an old signature line or two:  the last time I tried this I
 broke my signature generator... ]
-- 
BRIAN: "No, you've got it all wrong!  You don't have to follow me!  You don't
        have to follow ANYONE!  You've got to think for yourselves! You are
	all individuals!"
CROWD: "YES, WE ARE ALL INDIVIDUALS!"
BRIAN: "You're all different!"
CROWD: "YES, WE'RE ALL DIFFERENT!"			Rich Rosen
MAN:   "I'm not ... "			     {ihnp4 | harpo}!pyuxd!rlr