Criticized yesterday for an apology that was deemed "insufficient" and "unremorseful" by Abraham H. Foxman, the national director of the Anti-Defamation League, actor Mel Gibson released a full statement today asking for the forgiveness of the Jewish community for his anti-Semitic tirade during an arrest on DUI charges.
"There is no excuse, nor should there be any tolerance, for anyone who thinks or expresses any kind of anti-Semitic remark. I want to apologize specifically to everyone in the Jewish community for the vitriolic and harmful words that I said to a law enforcement officer the night I was arrested on a DUI charge."
"I am a public person, and when I say something, either articulated and thought out, or blurted out in a moment of insanity, my words carry weight in the public arena. As a result, I must assume personal responsibility for my words and apologize directly to those who have been hurt and offended by those words."
The Academy Award-winning director--who has battled with alcoholism, and is heading back into rehab--goes one step further, asking for the assistance of the Jewish community in his recovery process. "I am asking the Jewish community, whom I have personally offended, to help me on my journey through recovery," said Gibson. "I know there will be many in that community who will want nothing to do with me, and that would be understandable. But I pray that that door is not forever closed."
Gibson may be waiting a long while for that door to open, as many big-name Jewish Hollywood personalities have spoken out against the star, including screenwriter director Nora Ephron and agent Ari Emanuel, the real-life inspiration for HBO's "Entourage" agent Ari Gold. "People in the entertainment community, whether Jew or gentile, need to demonstrate that they understand how much is at stake in this by professionally shunning Mel Gibson and refusing to work with him, even if it means a sacrifice to their bottom line," Gold wrote on HuffingtonPost.com.
In fact, the ostracization of Mel is already underway: The Wall Street Journal reports today that ABC is pulling the plug on a Holocaust miniseries that the network has been developing with Gibson. Apparently the Mouse House doesn't deal with rats. Meanwhile, ABC's grande dame Barbara Walters remarked on "The View" Monday morning that she didn't think she'd be watching any more Mel Gibson films; but I'm sure she'd love to have the first interview with him after his stint in rehab.
Mel's Mea Culpa: Help Me, Jews!
Tuesday August 1, 2006
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Regarding Mel Gibson, there are several things to be said of his situation:
Mel Gibson's father is known to be an anti-Semite, to the extreme that he believes that the Holocaust is a hoax. There were also reports that Mel Gibson took heat from his father for the making of The Passion. I wonder if Mel's vitriolic anti-Semitic insults were the result of what he heard growing up from his own father. Many of us grew up hearing things we swore to ourselves that we would never say, only to hear those words from our own mouths. This is not to excuse what he said, but he has acknowledged it was wrong and apologized.
In addition and more importantly, Mel Gibson is a Christian, and has shown that he is repentant for what he did. Jews and Christians believe that God forgives those who repent and confess their sins, there is no room for them to condemn the man. Mel Gibson has repented, confessed, and asked for forgiveness. Jews and Christians are called to forgive him because God has forgiven him. God alone has the right to judge his heart. We are called to forgive the sin and not to judge the sinner. We all fall short of being perfect, we are all sinners whom God redeems through grace.
The graceless way the media has treated Mel Gibson is inexcusable. If others are excused for saying even worse things and the media does not report it or glosses over it , the vile way Mel Gibson has been treated is an attack on Mel Gibson's personality and his spirituality. God help Mel Gibson and restore him, but we also need to pray for those who have been graceless for they will be judged in the same way they have judged. I am especially appalled by ABC for dropping his miniseries on the Holocaust. How wrong is it that the opportunity to tell the truth about the Holocaust is dropped, and how ironic that the reason for dropping it is the very reason this story needs to be told.
Pat>
as per the pulling of the Holocaust Mini-series after Mr. Gibson's alleged remarks a question! Chicken or egg? Which is horse and which is cart? Were Mr. Gibson's alleged remarks a response to lack of support for his work? Was this true anti_Semitism or an artist acting out against censorship?>
Since the project was pulled after he made the remarks, where exactly did the censorship come in? He seemed to have adequate support for the Holocaust miniseries before the incident. Unless he possesses some precognitive abilities the world is unaware of...>
Mel Gibson is an anti-Semite. People who are not anti-Semitic would have condemned their fathers for anti-Semitism when their fathers start denying the occurrence of the Holocaust.
People who are not anti-Semitic do not make movies that pick the most anti-Semitic parts of the New Testament and render those parts (and not the others) in a movie.
Mel Gibson should be shunned and ostracized.>
I guess Mel forgot that Jesus was a Jew. I guess he just was too drunk to remember that the slur focused on his Messiah. I guess....>
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