When any of us makes a mistake, big though it may be, what makes it more of a mistake is to not forgive when approached in a sincere effort to be forgiven. Mel Gibson isn’t any different than anyone else, to shun him for a comment, however hurtful, makes the ‘jewish community’ seem petty. I have always admired those of the Jewish faith for their dedication, knowledge, and values. I cannot ‘shun’ them for this lack of forgiveness but I will surely look at them as a little closer to the ground.>

Mel Gibson’s situation is dreadful. He has confessed what he did to the public, and he will deal with the consequences of this action, albeit caused by the disease of alcoholism. As a Christian man, I believe his contrite apology is valid to the public, and more importantly, to God. Christians believe that if sins are confessed, God forgives those sins. I am more than apalled by the gracelessness of society in general and the Jews and Christians alike. Where is the teaching of Scripture regarding forgiveness here? To Christians, where is the Jesus you profess in the way Mel Gibson is being vilified? Where is the grace that you, as Jews and Christians alike, are called to show? Mel Gibson, for as much as it matters compared to God’s forgiveness and restoration, I also forgive you and pray that you will experience the fullness of God’s grace, and that you continue in your recovery, and any further attacks upon your person and character cease. God bless you.>

You said it so much better than I….I agree….to the letter.>

On a global level it is imperative for us all to graduate from the kindergarden of trespassing and bear false witness against our sisters and brothers. It’s not about apologies nor is it about shutting Mel Gibson out…It is about all of us waking up to the pure divine fact that we are all God’s Children and not one of us is better or deserves more or less than the other. Our true purpose on this planet is Divine it is to Love God and Love One Another…That’s It…That is All!>

Poor Mel Gibson, a product of an intolerant upbringing who, aparently cannot accept the concept of Jesus being a Jew. The only one to forgive Mr. Gibson is himself. The omnipiotent god he embraces (were it real) would be laughing up his sleeve, had he need of one.>

Mel Gibson made a mistake and appologized for it.Lets not forget that he is only human.Sometimes we as humans forget about the affect that our words or actions might have on others.It just so happens that he is a star.Does this mean that he is not capable of making a mistake? I am not defending his actions by all means,just pointing out that he is only human. In my opinion it would not be a humanly thing to do, to not forgive this man for a brief moment of insanity. Lets face it there is no one human on this earth that is perfect. So I don’t think that it is fair of us to shun or “turn our backs” on him for one mistake. If this would have been said by a non famous person would it be as big of a deal? As for those that choose not to watch any more of Mel Gibson’s movies, that is your loss. The man is a wonderful actor, and a brilliant man(when he is not having a moment of insanity). So lets not be to harsh on him.>

As The Bible Says, “Where Much Is Given, Much Is Required.” There is nothing wrong with requiring decency and sobriety of someone who is in the limelight, or for that matter, in every day life. We do make mistakes, but Mel Gibson went way over the line. Not to mention, that he could have injured someone badly, or even killed them while under the influence of alchohol. Even himself. I do hope he beats his addiction. It is up to him. I hope he will ask God to give him the strength to do this, and follows through. I am disappointed in Mel Gibson. However, that is the nature of mankind: They will disappoint us, and let us down. Sometimes big time, as in this case. Jesus never lets us down, we can always count of Him to do the right thing. We need to put our confidence in Jesus, not Mel Gibson or others.>

I pray that Mel Gibson will beat this alcholism, he has a disease. I pray for his family to be next to him as he goes in rehab. I as a human have made many mistakes, have putten my shoe in my mouth, have hurt others by words. I have asked for forgiveness and have been forgiven. This is what we have to do, forgive Mel Gibson for his mistake, his words, and know it was the alcohol that was talking. I pray for all people that have an addiction to alcohol and to drugs, this is a disease. Just because actors and actresses are suppose to be our idols, they are just human as we are.>

This reminds me of that lady who drowned her kids and said her vehicle was stolen by a African American, only later to find out it was herself that did the horrible crime. In a picture of the river or lake that the lives of the beautiful children where taken from, there lay a bucket of stones…That memory has stayed with me, to give me grace when one wants to judge. Also to remember true Christians stand by each other through tough times and good times, we need to stand together not divided. Remember to love you is to love me. For no one is perfect, but in his grace we can show his love. blessings~>

Has this world got so evil, that people have forgotten how evil they have been, in this world. Jesus forgave the ones who caused his death. Now, can’t we forgive Mel for falling from Grace. I knew, when I seen the Passion Of Christ that sooner later Satan would try to get Mel to fall from Grace and Satan won this one.>

The first thing we have to come to terms here is that we are not the judge and the juror , there is only one God. Mel obviously has apologized and seen the error of his ways and has asked forgiveness and I am sure has repented of this act.Not one of us Jew or Gentile -Gods children are perfect and we must strive to behave like jesus and pick each other up and teach the Godly way.Not one of us is with out sin and it is an everyday battle , but with out forgiveness in this world it will be doomed to hell and I for one will not want to be here.Pray for Mel he is just a man who has human weaknesses and gives in to temptations like we all do no matter how little they are remember to lift each other up everyday and plant forgiveness and love with each little act this world will be more bearable to live in.>

Let he who is without sin (Jew or Gentile) cast the first stone.>

As a person who has 15 years clean and sober I remember that I too said alot of hurtful things. Mel is ill and needs forgiveness and Prayers. Most of all he needs not to be judged by anyone unless they are without sin!!!>

23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. Romans 3:23-24 Who is anyone on this planet to put himself above God? If God can forgive any sin through sincere and contrite apology, we put ourselves above God to not do the same. Whoever does not forgive is in danger of not being forgiven. To judge an entire career or to ostracize a person for a careless, drunken rage is to become a pharisee. In the course of human history, two wrongs have never made a “right”. In my humble opinion, those who are unforigiving when sober are WORSE than those who are bigoted while drunk. “The omnipiotent god he embraces(were it real) would be laughing up his sleeve, had he need of one.>

Mel Gibson made some malicious statements regarding a visual minority group. These were hurtful remarks that can not go unchallenged. However I wonder if he had made these same strong remarks against Hispanics, or Oriental Americans if the resounding negative feedback would have been as loud. I do not have the answer – I just wonder when some groups can openly be made fun of as Americans from the South, Hispanics, or Polish-Americans, while others as African-Americans, and people of the Jewish faith seem to be immune to such humor. No one likes to be belitttled, no matter their faith, or where they came from.>

While drunkenness doesn’t excuwe foul language, it can explain it. This would have gone nowhere had not the police made public the statements of a man who was under the influence. I’m certain that there are many others who make similar statememts under similar conditions yet our world chooses to use this occasion to destroy one very popular, but obviously sick man. Drunken alcoholics say and do many things that they would not do sober. Should they be responsible? Yes. Should they be taken out of context? Should statements made by a drunken person be taken as their core beliefs? Anyone who does so cannot really understand alcoholism. One sin is not corrected by another. –Dee>

Mike, I wonder if negative comments were made about Christians by some famous person, would there be such an uproar? I am not supporting in any way what Mel Gibson said but it is for those without sin to throw the first stone. Thank God we all don’t have to have our words made public. Would anyone survive the scrutiny?>

Couldnt agree more RA, I was wondering if there would of been an uproar if Mel had metioned even one other ethnic group. I think the reaction is unkind, rude, self-righteous and ungodly.]]> 2006-08-01T23:58:55-05:00 Wendy 71.109.239.164

Wendy:Nobody is saying “he’s a good Christian let’s forgive and forget”. We are saying let’s forgive and forget because he is a sinner in need of forgiveness and so are we.>

I must say I’m amazed how many people in our community are willing to take Mr. Gibson at his career-salvaging word and forgive him without a second thought, without considering the hollowness of the apology. After all, this kind of bigotry is not an isolated incident in Mr. Gibson’s career. Witness his refusal to remove the blood-libel language from the Passion of the Christ (only to doctor the subtitles!) and his answer to questions about his father’s Holocaust denials: “The man never lied to me in his life.” In the mad dash to forgive for the sake of forgiveness, it seems people here are missing the point: Mr. Gibson is “apologizing” for his drunken “moment of insanity” the other night, NOT for his anti-Semitism, which he flatly denies on every level. “I am in the process of understanding where those vicious words came from…”? I can’t think of a more prototypical way of refusing to “own” one’s feelings. And it’s not the alcohol that those words “come from,” either. In response to Dee’s comment about Gibson’s rants–”Should they be taken out of context? Should statements made by a drunken person be taken as their core beliefs? Anyone who does so cannot really understand alcoholism”–I would say I’m not sure what your understanding of alcoholism or “out of context” is, but I would encourage you to check out the words of a real expert on this matter, an addiction specialist who has written what many consider the preeminent addiction book in the field, “The Heart of Addiction,” who was on CNN tonight talking about the Gibson situation: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ovDPwTcps4 Don’t get me wrong. I know that people in this community mean well when they say they wish to forgive Mr. Gibson, and I’d like to believe he can change, too. But acting as if the words he said were not fundamentally his own (“where those vicious words came from,” “a moment of insanity,” etc.) is not a good start.>

oy vey…first, we need to ask ourselves if this overwhelming outpouring of defense AND disgust towards Mel’s actions is because we as a society crown celebrities? your next door neighbor is probably a drunken bigot and while we have a deluge of anonymous internet vigilantes on the scene now, i’m willing to bet very few would confront and rebuke a more tangible subject. the man, and yes he is just a man-is ill. he has apologized, turn off your tvs and radios and pray for him and his family during this very difficult time. and, when you’re done many of you might find a moment or two to focus on your uh…shall we say “creative” use of the english language. namaste. looneybird>

I blame it all on Mel’s bigoted father who brought him up hating Jews. Mel loved his father and the mindset he inherited is one that will resurface again and again to haunt him, until he allows the Holy Spirit to set him completely free – free from drink, and free from bigotry. Mel is a good guy at heart, his father is the one who has a lot to answer for. But Mel still has to take accountability for what happened. As for forgiveness, that is a decision for God to make. For Christians, there is no question that we should always forgive, no matter how much we have been hurt.>

I sure would not say poor Mel Gibson, but I know the fight well, with alcoholism and the fight with the devil. As Christians, most of us realize the closer we get to the Lord the fiercer are opposition needs to be towards the devil. Unfortunately, most of us find it hard to stay on the right track. I am sure Mel had a few bad moments that led him into this position. I believe Mel is remorseful for his vocal outbursts and I also believe that forgiveness has already been given to him from Jesus who was a Jew himself. As a Christian community, we all need to realize the power of forgiveness and how the Lord also forgives us daily. I will pray for Mel’s alcohol addiction recovery daily and pray for the Lord to give him strenght to recieve the help he needs.>

To all of you who think Mel wouldn’t be in such hot water if he was criticizing any other group: Can you possible be serious?? Have you no memory for how many public figures and celebrities have had their careers damaged or ruined by disparaging remarks about African Americans, Latinos, etc. And if anyone criticizes Christians publicly, they’re in for a barrage of accusations of being anti-Christian. So let’s not perpetuate Mel’s bigotry by accusing Jews of undue influence. Thankfully, our culture more often than not punishes bigotry, regardless of whom it’s aimed at.>

Like Father Like Son……….. I was proudly born a Jew, as was Jesus. I became a born again Christian 20 years ago, but will all-ways be a JEW IN MY HEART.THEIR IS NO EXCUSE FOR MEL GIBSON’S WORDS,DRUNK OR NOT. HE IS ONLY APOLOGIZING FOR HIS FEAR OF LOSING ANY MONEY FROM ANY OF HIS UPCOMING FILMS. EVEN IF HE IS FORGIVEN ,WE WILL NEVER FORGET AS JEWS. WE SHOULD SHUN HIM IN EVERY ASPECT OF FILM & TV TO SHOW HIM HOW MANY JEWS ARE IN ARE TRULY SPECIAL IN ALL AREAS, NO MATTER HOW MANY PEOPLE TRY TO KEEP KILLING OR DISCRASING US IN ANY WAY ,WE ALLWAYS COME BACK….EVEN STRONGER.WHEN MEL LAY’S HIS HEAD DOWN TONIGHT AT REHAB ,HE CAN THANK OUR ISREAL’S SOLDIERS FOR KEEPING AMERICA SAFE & FIGHTING THEIR BATTLE & EVERYONE’S WITH HEZBOLA. THE JEWS ARE KEEPING US ALL SAFE & SHOULD BE PRAISED. MEL IS BORN ON MY BIRTHDAY & I NOW WISH I COULD CHANGE IT. BUT JESUS SEE’S & KNOW’S ALL ,ESPECIALY A PERSON’S TRUE HEART & MEL IS LIKE HIS DAD A BIGIT…. BYE MEL ,YOU ARE A TRUE LOSER & DISGRACE. I AM A JEW & ABORN AGAIN CHRISTIAN FOR 20 YEARS. ASK JESUS FOR FORGIVENESS,HE SAAID IT ALL AS YOU MEL….” FORGIVE THEM THEY KNOW NOT WHAT THEY DO..” STOP BEING LIKE YOUR DAD THAT TAUGHT YOU THIS HORRIBLE ANTI- JEW CONCEPTS. JESUS IS & WAS A JEW YOU PHONY HIPPOCRIT. GET SOBER FIRST,AS A TRUE ALCHOLIC,THEN LEARN HOW TO NOT HATE, & BE A REAL HUSBAND & FATHER. YOU ALSO DISGRACED YOUR WIFE & CHILDREN. IT IS NOT ABOUT MEL’S ACTING ABILITY, THIS IS ABOUT HIS ANTI-SEMITISM ..ALL JEWS SHOULD BAN HIM AT LEAST TILL HE TRULY LEARNS HIS LESSON ,NOT IN A DAY OF I AM SORRY BULLSHIT,PLEASE, ALL HIS SEE’S IS HIS MONEY. WE MUST TEACH HIM WHAT LIFE IS ABOUT. MONEY GOES TO THOSE THAT PLEASE, GOD. GET YOUR SHIT TOGETHER MEL. …….SEE YA…….>

Doesn’t matter if the person is “worthy” of forgiveness, if you are a Christian you know that you yourself don’t deserve forgiveness, yet you are forgiven by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. (That’s why there really is no such thing as a “good” Christian) Therefore, it behooves us to forgive all.>

Robin, If you’re a born again Christian, as you profess, then you must know what Jesus endured at YOUR behest. He paid for YOUR sins with HIS blood. And you are unwilling to forgive Mel Gibson for some stupid, drunken words? Far be it for me to try to discern what is in your heart. Maybe this will help: Mat 6:14-15 (NIV) “For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But, if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.”>

It is sad that all those so call friends of his profession are so quick to cast stones. They should not forget we are all humans and we are not without fault and imperfections. He admits he was wrong and wants to make amends, yes it is easier said than done but doing something about it makes him a better person than the person he was before the incident.>

It just absolutely amazes me how many Christians will excuse this man for what he did. Any other ethnic group, and there would be a huge uproar here – and rightly so. Nothing much has really changed between Jews and CHristians in this country. We still need to fear you>

This is hilarious. If it was some lefty like Susan Sarandon that got caught putting a hateful foot in a drunken mouth, I surmise the very same posters would be calling for her head and saying that asking for forgiveness was less plea and more ploy.>

As a previous writer said we can never be sure if we were as insulting as Mel when we were drunk and/or in a blackout. I wish him well on his trip of recovery and hope that he has the common sense/humility to use AA or another program to undue the damage his disease has done to him. I suspect from what I read that his childhood qualifies him to join the Adult Child Movement AFTER he has a handle on real recovery in the halls. I also am puzzeled by the response to his initial apology. Who of is is so gifted to know what is in the heart and mind of another? I wouln’t dare assume that he lacked sincerity. Oh well–to each his own.>

In response to Gerald’s post above: “We can never be sure if we were as insulting as Mel when we were drunk and/or in a blackout”? What are you talking about? First of all, drinking to the point of not being able to remember what you said is a problem in and of itself, and if you have such a problem, you should probably address it. Second of all, to paraphrase a writer on Slate.com, a person who is not anti-Semitic does not become drunk and inexplicably embrace the Protocols of the Elders of Zion! You have to feel those “insulting” things to have them come out when you’re drunk. It does not always require being gifted to “know what is in the heart and mind of another”; it often requires simply knowing what he or she says when he is not afraid of the consequences (such as in private or in a drunken stupor). Mr. Gibson told that cop *exactly* what was in his heart and mind: that he hates the Jews and blames them for every war in the world. (And not even instigated in an argument about Jews or wars–this stuff came spewing out of him when he was pulled over for a traffic violation!) As for questioning the motivation for his mea culpa, do the math: he said he hated the Jews (something he’s demonstrated before, mind you) when he felt like he had nothing to lose, and he said, “oops, didn’t mean it,” when he realized he suddenly had everything to lose. Once again, I know that people here who are falling over themselves to forgive Mr. Gibson mean well. But your faith in the absolute righteousness of immediate forgiveness (and your lack of faith in your own ability to use your God-given powers of discernment) is blinding you to some obvious things here. I wish Mr. Gibson well too, but it’s simply foolish to pretend he’s not a real anti-Semite and nearly as foolish to “accept” his apology if he’s acting like the hateful words he said came from without him (“I am in the process of understanding where those vicious words came from…,” “a moment of insanity,” etc.).>

Obviously, the people who say they will not forgive Mel Gibson are better than everyone else. However, I thought only God could forgive. It doesn’t matter if anyone else forgives him. It’s between Mel Gibson and God now.>

Sadie, there is a difference between considering people less important than God and considering people unimportant. It “doesn’t matter” how Jews and their supporters react to anti-Semitic remarks? That kind of thinking–”well, the offender will have to answer to God eventually”–has been used by people to justify turning a blind eye to injustices for centuries. I know it’s easier to leave all issues of accountability for a hoped-for Judgment Day, but that doesn’t make it right.>

What Mel Gibson has shown us from the point of the Passion of the Christ to his most recent escapade is that he is a first rate anti-Semite, a drunk and verbally abusive. As a Roman Catholic, these things are not only sins, they are appalling things to inflict on humanity. To the fundamentalists out there who would say pluck the plank from your own eye, I say this: Mr. Gibson has been criticized, arrested, and questioned. Now that he’s garnered more attention than he needs, the best thing that could happen to him is that he could fade into oblivian. It’s what a good Catholic would do, while his life is in such turmoil. I, for one, will never support a batterer, an anti-Semite, or a drunk.>

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….>