“The advent of Mel Gibson’s Passion of the Christ has brought with it a controversy that seems, at least at first glance, familiar, even ritualistic. Once again a filmmaker has brought his interpretation of Scripture to the screen and once again, before most audiences have had a chance to see the picture, there are expressions of outrage, accusations of bigotry and bad taste, and an outpouring of contentious publicity.” But this time, the pious are standing with the Hollywood elite, and the protesters are those who view the film’s pro-Christian message as narrow-minded at best, and anti-Semitic at worst. We’ve come a long way from the era when religious blockbusters were at the core of Hollywood’s popular appeal.