Rating: 
Summary: a great guide to the film, and much more
Review: In Part 1, "100 Questions and Answers", the authors are clear and concise in this guide book to Mel Gibson's extraordinary film "The Passion of the Christ", helping us to fully understand the many events that take place, and the symbolism sometimes hidden in the scenes; also for those not that familiar with the Bible, to know what parts are scriptural, and what represents the filmmaker's artistic license.
This slender book goes much further though, and gives insight into parts of the New Testament, how Christ's Passion relates to the Jewish Passover, and more.Part 2, "The Case for Christ", compares Jesus to other religious figures, and gives answers to the question Jesus asked his followers, "Who do you say I am ?", and lays the case for the five possibilites: "a legend, a liar, a lunatic, a light and fluffy New Ager, and the Lord"; it's a terrific little chapter.
Part 3, "And the Story Continues", is how the apostles spread the Good News.
Part 4, "Quo Vadis ?" (Where are You Going ?), on what to do if you find yourself at a spiritual crossroads. The back of the book has useful appendices, resources, and mini-bios of the five authors who contributed to this book, and they are: Tom Allen, Marcellino D'Ambrosio, Matthew Pinto, Mark Shea, and Paul Thigpen. If you found inspiration and value in Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ", you will appreciate this book, which brings to light aspects one misses even after several viewings of the film.
Rating:
Summary: Five Stars for Matt Pinto
Review: Mr. Pinto has a passion for writing outstanding Catholic Books. This book will help all Christians get to the heart of "The Passion of the Christ." As a high-school teacher, I can only praise this text for its outstanding discussion questions. Mr. Pinto, congratulations on producing such a great reference work just when it is most needed. Classroom teachers and prayer group leaders should prepare themselves for dynamic, in-depth discussions. Charles M. Rizzo
[website]
Rating: 
Summary: A Guide to the Passion: 100 Questions About The Passion of T
Review: One word crap! The belief that Jesus died for original sin was created in the 5th century by Augustine. Dogmatic Christians have been lead like a bunch of blind sheep to follow this hollow doctrine. If your a Christian why don't you do yourselves a favor a lookup Attis or Mithras and maybe you will finally see who and what you are worshiping
Rating:
Summary: Wonderfully Done!
Review: Praised be Jesus Christ! The movie "The Passion of the Christ" is perhaps the best film ever made. It has made believers believe in a more substantial way, while making non-believers ponder their lack of conviction for Christ. This book is an excellent tool to help all come to know Jesus Christ in a more profound manner. The study guide that goes along with the book can be found for free at: http://passion.catholicexchange.com/ and is an excellent tool that will enable amazing small or large group discussion on the movie as well as the Passion of our Lord. I know this as a group of folks from my church are currently doing the study. Thank you Mr. Pinto, Mr. Allen, and Dr. D'Ambrosio for an excellent resource. In Christ,
Ron Pereira
Rating:
Summary: A Great Resource
Review: Since the Passion of the Christ was released my husband and I have encountered many people willing to discuss the film. As soon as this book became available I purchased it and have found it to be an invaluable resource. In addition to answering many of our own questions, this book has helped us provide insight to a wide variety of other questions.
Rating: 
Summary: Good Catholic Summary; Lacks Biblical Insight
Review: The book is a great review of the movie the Passion of the Christ. The movie was made by a Catholic and therefore the storyline follows the traditional Catholic memory of the Passion. The book focuses far too much on the movie and not enough on what the Bible has to say about the Passion. From a Catholic perspective the book probably succeeds. But from a view, like mine, coming to the cross wanting to know what the Bible, the Word of God, has to say, it falls short.
Rating:
Summary: More Than Just A Movie Guide
Review: The intended audience for A GUIDE TO THE PASSION are primarily those seeing the movie THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST who are either Catholics or else interested in the Catholic faith.Others may also find it useful since the book answers so many specific questions about the film. The best way to read the book is to have a copy of the Bible handy for quick reference. Most Catholics get a lot of exposure to the Bible through regular readings of scripture at every Mass - but many of us have little familiarity with the Bible as a whole. We absorb it only in fragments. This book will help us to acquire a more comprehensive view of the gospels. A short section follows the main text in which general questions are answered about Christ and the beginnings of Christianity. The materials found in the appendices give special meaning to the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary, Stations of the Cross and the Seven Last Sayings of Christ. A varied list of resources appears at the end of the book.
Rating:
Summary: Great Explanation
Review: The movie is an experience and this book helps you take it in. Answers some questions that you might have about the movie.
A must for anyone with inquiring minds.
Rating:
Summary: Great Explanation
Review: The movie is an experience and this book helps you take it in. Answers some questions that you might have about the movie.
A must for anyone with inquiring minds.
Rating:
Summary: Written mostly for those not familiar with Catholicism
Review: This book does a good job at explaining the movie to non-Christians/Catholics. It also explains to them, rather breifly, the basics of the Catholic faith. However, this book did nothing for me at all, being a devout Catholic and a fan of the movie already. I expected, from the summary on the back, that the book explained the actual reasons for certain artistic choices and theological symbolisms, but it turns out that several times, I knew more about the film than did the author(s) of the book. Ex.: The book claims that Mel portrayed Jesus as carrying the entire cross to follow the tradition of Christian art, because the historical Jesus would only have carried the platibulum(the horizontal beam). While Christian art may have influenced his decision, I have heard from an audio interview with Jim and another source that Mel portrayed Jesus as carrying the entire cross for two reasons. One - theologians feel that he would have suffered more in carrying his cross than other criminals would have. Two - because Jesus' execution was not scheduled, but rather carried out to immediately pacify the demands of an angry mob, so, by Mel's reasoning, the stipis(horizontal beam of the cross) would not have been pre-fixed on Golgotha, and they were in a hurry to get it overwith before the sabbath which would have begun at nightfall. This makes a plausible scenerio for the cross being constructed before it was given him. Why not make his burden greater if the situation made it convenient to do so? After all, wasn't the point of crucifixion to make the execution cruel and torturous? Really, I was more disappointed with the brevity of the book and the simplicity of its explanations. However, I have given it three stars for the merit of its intent and accesible question and answer format. Having said all that, it's still the best book for an explanation of the movie that you'll find. Also recommended are 'The Passion: Photography from the Movie the Passion of the Christ' and Paul Thigpen's 'The Passion' with reflections on the passion from the scriptures and the writings of the two mystics used for the film, AND a behind-the-scenes look at the movie.
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