evel. If it contributed little that was new, chances are that the reviewers 'passionately' dislike the film. However, if in some way, the film gave them a deeper and more profound understanding of Christianity's notion of Jesus dying for sin, then they were moved by the film and most likely going to advocate the public seeing it despite concerns about violence, anti-Semitism, and other problematic elements of the movie.
Religious Studies and Its Contribution to Understanding the Debate
Bowker (2006:1-6) states that while theology attempts to understand God, the field of Religious Studies attempts to understand religious behavior, beliefs, and institutions. It looks for historical and descriptive accuracy to religious claims and examines all manner of religious behavior from the standpoint of multiple disciplines, e.g., anthropology, sociology, psychology, philosophy, and history of religion. Therefore, what Religious Studies could bring to the debate involving "The Passion of Christ" would be clarity. Specifically, this discipline could help to determine the accuracy of all claims made about the religious elements of the film.
For example, are the parts of the Gospels recounting the last 12 hours of Jesus' life, as Edelstein suggests, truly those reflective of maximal tension between the Jews and Christians? The field of Religious Studies could examine whether this claim is historically valid.
Since Christianity is an outgrowth of Judaism, Religious Studies could also help Jews and Christians engaging in debate about the film understand how many elements are common to both religions in the Gospels in general and in these particular parts of the Gospel in particular. This would be important because seeing commonalities can often smooth over differences and foster better communication and understanding.
Further, all of the reviews make claims, and quite different ones, about the various characters, like Pilate...