“Risen”, in theaters February 19th, is the unofficial sequel to the movie “The Passion of the Christ” and it begins with the crucifixion of Christ. It tells the story of a Roman centurion who is charged with guarding the body of the crucified Christ and his investigation to locate the body of Christ after it goes “missing” in order to disprove that the resurrection occurred.
There are a couple of things that set this film apart from what is seen as the “norm” in the stories of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection. This story is not told from the point of view of a disciple of Jesus or an all-knowing point of view. This story is told from the point of view of a person who represents the forces (Roman Empire) responsible for crucifying Jesus in their attempt to snuff out Christianity. It is the story of a non-believer who sets out to disprove that Christ is risen, but during the course of the movie, he discovers the truth of Christ through his interactions with Christ’s disciples and followers.
This sounds like the kind of story that will engage its audience, believers and non-believers alike. My hope is this film will provide a starting point for non-believers to begin a relationship with Christ. For believers, I hope this movie provides an opportunity to reflect on how we relate the Good News of Christ to non-believers and people that are not firm in their belief. I can’t wait to catch this one in theaters.