Although there has been serious permanent damage, and however bad it looks, we should not count Mel Gibson out, not now, not yet.
A Startling Tragedy
We should not do that because he has something that those who think he is all through may not recognize: Christ, the saints, and the Virgin Mary.
No doubt he is going to them in his private moments, and if he overcomes the current crisis, it will be another example of how God can send grace that transcends any tragedy.
It may well happen here. We pray it does. A tragedy it is, with spiritual lessons.
We all have flaws and Mel Gibson admits he has deep ones.
This is not to excuse what the actor-director has done. Getting drunk in the wee hours of a Friday, speeding recklessly down Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, and hurling hateful anti-Semitic epithets at the police who rightly apprehended him was — in his own words — “despicable,” “insane,” “out of control,” “belligerent,” “horrific,” “vicious,” and “shameful.”
The reports are not pretty. Besides using extremely vulgar and arrogant language, and directly insulting a female officer, he endangered anyone else driving on that road (87 mph in a 45 mph zone).
Yes, tell it like it is: Mel Gibson acted in a startling manner.
Making It Right
But it is a time to pray for Mel, to accept his apology, to acknowledge his courageous efforts on Christianity's behalf, and to hope that he is sincere when he says that he will now try to discern a road to recovery.
Jesus forgave. It is now up to Jews and the others he besmirched to discern if they will do the same. No one can blame them for outrage. It was shocking conduct. But we must be careful to see that Gibson — however much he brought on himself, and however much he has also embarrassed Christianity — is not made into a Christian whipping boy.
There are only too many who are gleeful because Mel is an actor who dared to finance a major film on the Crucifixion and now is getting his comeuppance. Many in Hollywood simply hate Christianity.
The Passion of The Christ was galvanizing to many believers and — rare indeed — made a Christian splash on the big screen as one of the top-ten grossing movies of all time, up there with Star Wars, certainly a significant achievement.
Mel now needs a miracle and the road to a miraculous recovery is not easy. It will take sacrifice. But with sacrifice, as we all need to know, comes grace.
For one, of course, someone with an alcohol problem must purge that problem. This can come through recovery programs, but there is also the potent means of deliverance. A darkness lurks behind many addictions, and when we use alcohol or drugs to excess or have illicit sex, we open the door to infestation.
Next, and very powerful, the actor should discern how much of the money from his film he should keep and how much should be dispersed to charities or the Christian outlets — especially churches — that he used to promote the film. Money can bring spiritual baggage with it. He already has donated to several causes, which is a start.
Giving a significant portion of it away (the movie made approximately $600 million in worldwide box office receipts, exclusive of DVD sales) will loose grace from God and confound his enemies.
The director should keep what he discerns in prayer to be rightfully his, while considering that it was not wholly a work of imagination, but about Christ and from Scripture. Let us all be generous.
Thirdly, make amends with Roman Catholicism. Mel and his father belong to a splinter group of extreme traditionalists who don't believe there has been a valid pope — or a valid Mass — since Vatican II. The priest who said Mass during filming of the movie is a schismatic cleric who openly criticizes Rome and has been disciplined by his bishop in Canada. Mel and his father have also made remarks that many Roman Catholics would find hurtful.
Make amends with the Vatican, Mel. The Vatican helped your film.
A Lesson for Us All
Also, make sure there are not any occult spirits around.
Currently the actor-director is ready to release a film called Apocalypto about the end of the Mayan civilization (set for release December 8). Few people know what it's about. Initial reports said it included a prophecy about 2012 from old Indian myths and also a major scene of a blood sacrifice.
Such portrayals can carry spirits with them and may have exacerbated his current problems. When we brush up against paganism, the New Age, or the occult, grace leaves and the devil enters.
We'd stay clear of that. During filming of The Passion, Gibson said he felt the presence of Satan on many occasions and so he must be careful about the devil finding opportunities for retaliation.
All of us sin. All are flawed. Mel Gibson should atone and make things right with a number of factions. He is an intelligent man with a good heart who struggles with demons, as do we all, especially ones that are familial. We don't doubt that he is sincere about wanting to be a good Christian. And we pray that he succeeds in a way that confounds those who want to see him destroyed.
But we also hope that he takes the difficult steps in doing that, putting aside his concerns for worldliness and Hollywood and celebrity.
A lesson for us all: It's time for our culture to get off its obsession with actors and shed the idolization of mere humans (whom we build into “celebrities” due to our lack of focus on God, saints, and angels). It is also time to reassess the very nature or at least significance of acting, showmanship, and entertainment.
Meanwhile, none of us can judge: but for the grace of God can such as happened to Mel happen to anyone.
“The tenets of what I profess to believe necessitate that I exercise charity and tolerance as a way of life,” Mel said in a statement. “Every human being is God’s child, and if I wish to honor my God I have to honor His children. But please know from my heart that I am not an anti-Semite. I am not a bigot. Hatred of any kind goes against my faith.”
We will take him at his word and pray for him.
Michael H. Brown is the author of 13 Catholic books and director of www.spiritdaily.com, a daily Catholic news site.
