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 Why Did Jesus Die?
Mel Gibson's movie has thrust this powerful question back at the center of Holy Week
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| Why Jesus Died |
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The Paying-A-Debt Theory |
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Originally formulated by Anselm of Canterbury in the 11th century, the substitutionary theory posited that the debt of sin was so great that humanity could not possibly pay it. Only God, in the person of Christ, could do so by undergoing the agony of the Crucifixion.
Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ, right, includes touches of other interpretations, but its graphic depiction of how Christ was killed is dramatic testimony of the director's fervent belief in this theory of atonement.
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