Michael Pfundner
Ecstasy is mortal. We seem to have an in-built safety device that kicks in when intensity of emotion reaches a tipping point beyond which normal life would no longer be possible.
So, what about faith?
Christians have been running the risk of forsaking their ‘first love’ since John the Divine chided the New Testament church at Ephesus (Rev 2).
A new believer’s initial exuberance after they’ve embraced the Gospel will be tested – by force of habit, unanswered prayers, and the grim discovery that, in a fallen world, they will remain both victims and perpetrators beyond the point of conversion.
Jesus’ Parable of the Sower, which exposes various traps for believers, has one underlying message. Initial enthusiasm is not enough. The church of Christ is not a Jesus fan club. If faith is to last, our ‘first love’ needs to deepen and mature.
As for the Passion, it’s normal to be passionate about this supreme act of sacrifice when you realise for the very first time that it was carried out by God the Son himself – and that he had not just humanity at large, but you in mind.
But what if you’ve been hearing about and, possibly, reciting the Good Friday event week after week, for years or even decades? Can the in-built, normality-ensuring safety device be deactivated?
I’ve been running The Passion as a project for Bible Society, managing the process of the BBC Easter series being turned into an educational resource pack for schools and churches.
And I freely confess that being swamped with emails, team meetings, deadlines and budgets is not always the best way of ‘surveying the wondrous cross’ in a continuous state of worshipful awe. I’m human after all, prone to normality and routine.
But I recommend the resource as an antidote to spiritual indifference.
At Bible Society it’s our hope that The Passion will rekindle the fire among those who watch the programmes either for the first or second time. We hope people will engage with the accompanying materials we’ve produced.
The four-part series itself, broadcast last spring across BBC One’s Easter schedule, was hailed by critics as ‘intelligent and engaging drama’ (The Telegraph), with a ‘vitality and realness that you rarely find’ (The Guardian). Audience figures averaging four million per episode backed up the journalists’ verdict.
The resource pack, available exclusively from Bible Society, will be available by the end of September.
