Leave Left Behind Behind

I'm a big fan of Christian films and have watched all three films of the Left Behind series. Last night I watched the latest film, Left Behind: World at War and it is the best of the series so far. The budget for the film is the largest and it shows up on the screen with better directing, cinematography, actors and action.

Kirk Cameron continues on as Buck, the intrepid reporter who must hide his Christianity in order to keep in close proximity to the Nicolae, the anti-Christ. The story revolves around the President of the United States manipulation by Nicolae and a sup-plot of Nicolae's attempts to spread biological weapons through the Christian community.

The film moves along very well until the end, when a dying preacher, played by Arnold Pinnock celebrates a "communion" which is vastly different from the Gospel, to say the least. There are two main differences between Catholicism and Protestantism: 1) Protestants believe faith alone can save you, Catholics believe faith and works are required. 2) Protestants believe that the Communion celebration is symbolic in nature and Catholics believe the Eucharist is actually the body and blood of the Lamb of God, or Jesus.

This difference was never more obvious than in the Left Behind's treatment of the last supper. As a preacher lays dying he asks to celebrate communion one last time. Instead of quoting the words of Jesus in the last supper from Mark 26:14-17...

While they were eating, Jesus took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and giving it to his disciples said, "Take and eat; this is my body." Then he took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, "Drink from it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed on behalf of many for the forgiveness of sins."

The Left Behind version went something like this "Eat this bread. Seek forgiveness and have faith and you will receive salvation." That's not the exact lines in the film... I'm paraphrasing, but it was something like that. I do know that it was not even close to the actual lines Jesus spoke in the bible. I was dumbfounded that a preacher, who knows the bible backwards and forwards, would not actually quote it accurately on his death bed. Instead, it was a misrepresentation of the last supper.

As a Catholic, I'm more sensitive to these obvious omissions than most others may be, but since it is the core of the Catholic church, I found myself offended. And, because of this selective use of the last supper that I cannot recommend this film.

The foundation of the Catholic belief in the Eucharist begins in Exodus and the first Passover, Exodus 12:6-10...

You shall keep it (unblemished lamb) until the fourteenth day of this month, and then, with the whole assembly of Israel present, it shall be slaughtered during the evening twilight. They shall take some of its blood and apply it to the two doorposts and the lintel of every house in which they partake of the lamb.

That same night they shall eat its roasted flesh with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. It shall not be eaten raw or boiled, but roasted whole, with its head and shanks and inner organs. None of it must be kept beyond the next morning; whatever is left over in the morning shall be burned up.

An unblemished lamb will be sacrificed. If you only put the blood on the door and did not eat the lamb, your firstborn would die. You had to eat the lamb in order to complete the sacrifice... in order for your firstborn to escape death.

Jesus understood this. Jesus understood that, as the Lamb of God, his sacrifice to save ALL of us from death required that his blood would have to be shed, that his body and blood would have to be consumed. That's what he was saying in the last supper.

That is also why, in John 6:53-58, prior the last supper, Jesus was preaching to thousands of followers and said...

Jesus said to them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink.

Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I have life because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your ancestors who ate and still died, whoever eats this bread will live forever."

Its as if the original lamb of the first Passover was speaking... "the one who feeds on me will have life because of me."

Jesus lost a lot of followers that day. Some argue that it was figurative, not literal, like the many of his other parables, yet Jesus did not explain this "parable" to his apostles.

John 6:66-69...

As a result of this, many (of) his disciples returned to their former way of life and no longer accompanied him.

Jesus then said to the Twelve, "Do you also want to leave?"

Simon Peter answered him, "Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God."

Jesus offered no other explanation to his statement that he was the true blood and flesh of the sacrificial lamb to be sacrificed for our sins. That's why Catholics believe that our Eucharistic celebration is a re-presentation of that last supper, that we are partaking with Jesus, along with the 12 apostles, his flesh and his blood so that his sacrifice would be complete and so we would be freed from death.

The original twelve obviously interpreted it this way because the celebration, which is basically the same Mass we celelbrate today, was in place and documented as early as 155 A.D. In a letter to pagan emperor Antoninius Pius, St. Justin Martyr explained how Christians celebrated...

On the day we call the day of the sun (Sunday), all who dwell in the city or country gather in the same place. (church)

The memoirs of the apostles and the writings of the prophets are read, as much as time permits. (Old and New Testament Readings)

When the reader has finished, he who presides over those gathered admonishes and challenges them to imitate these beautiful things. (The homily)

Then we all rise together and offer prayers for ourselves . . .and for all others, wherever they may be, so that we may be found righteous by our life and actions, and faithful to the commandments, so as to obtain eternal salvation.

When the prayers are concluded we exchange the kiss. (The Kiss of Peace, i.e., May the Peace of Christ be with you)

Then someone brings bread and a cup of water and wine mixed together to him who presides over the brethren.

He takes them and offers praise and glory to the Father of the universe, through the name of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and for a considerable time he gives thanks (in Greek: eucharistian) that we have been judged worthy of these gifts.

When he has concluded the prayers and thanksgivings, all present give voice to an acclamation by saying: 'Amen.'

When he who presides has given thanks and the people have responded, those whom we call deacons give to those present the "eucharisted" bread, wine and water and take them to those who are absent. (communion and the delivery of the eucharist by Eucharistic Ministers).

Think about what that means... It means that, since within about a generation of Jesus' life and death, the formation of what is our current Mass was decided, implemented and practiced every Sunday. Unlike the fiction that is the Da Vinci Code, the Mass was not held on Sunday when Constantine, a pagan Sun God follower, was converted in the 400s. Instead, as early as 155 it was already in place because Sunday was the day Jesus resurrected from the dead.

So, I'm a little sensitive when the celebration of the last supper is converted into something far less than it was originally intended and obviously interpreted by the apostles that walked with Christ and their subsequent followers.

Granted, the filmmakers of the Left Behind film series are strong, believing Protestants and are only using the film medium to expound on their faith. Its exactly what they should do.

However, its time Catholics make entertaining films that represent their beliefs where things such as the Eucharist are held up as the holy communional event that occurs every time a Mass is held, including on the day of the sun.