Stephen Prothero in the WSJ

In one striking scene, the Virgin Mary and Mary Magdalene sop onto linens the blood left behind after Jesus’ scourging at the hands of sadistic Roman centurions. Odd that these women care more about Jesus’ blood than Mr. Gibson seems to care about his character. Plainly this is not the American way. But for Mr. Gibson, one suspects, that is the point. To be a Christian, he seems to be saying, is not to enter into a personal relationship with Jesus but to enter through the ordinances of the Church into the mystery of the sacrifice of Christ’s body and blood. It is not to love a lovely Jesus but to worship a battered Christ.