In the History Channel’s new 10-hour docu-drama “The Bible,” showing at 8 p.m. Sundays, stories from Genesis to Revelation are told through live action and computer-generated imagery.
Producer Mark Burnett and his wife, actress Roma Downey, described the miniseries as a "labor of love" and, for the most part, present a literal interpretation of the Bible.
But the show does take a few creative liberties, as in these three scenes from the first episode:
- An angel helps Lot escape from Sodom by grabbing two swords, one in each hand, and stabbing and slashing the Sodomites who get in the way. There is no warrior angel in scriptural accounts of Sodom’s demise, which describes the destruction of Sodom (and Gomorrah) as being carried out by burning sulfur that rained down on the wicked cities (Genesis 19).
- When Moses ascends Mount Sinai, “The Bible” shows stone tablets engraved with the Ten Commandments emerging out of grinding, shifting rock. The Bible says God inscribed the stone tablets and gave them to Moses (Exodus 31:18 and Exodus 34:1).
- When Joshua sends spies into Jericho in the docudrama, the spies get into a swordfight with the locals before they are aided by Rahab. There is no swordplay between the spies and the men of Jericho men in the Bible (Joshua 2).
The Viewpoints question is this:
Is it OK for filmmakers to take creative liberties in telling Bible stories for TV or in movies? Or do you feel that filmmakers should follow the Bible literally? And in either case, why?
PastorLuke | Mar 12, 2013 | 10:16am
In this context, no. There’s little to no history on the History Channel anymore. I wonder if “The Bible” is scheduled between a Hitler Biography and a UFO cover up story?
We have all this historical scholarship and contextual anthropology data and not a single mention is used. It is repackaged literalism and a huge turn off.
zappa912 | May 9, 2013 | 6:36pm
We must always keep in mind that what appears on television or in the movies is entertainment first. If the facts happen to be included along the way, then that may make ithe story more interesting but not necessarily true or correct. I did not see The Bible series on TV, but I do remember a movie that has always caused me a great amount of concern because it was offered to the viewing public by the movie’s director as the truth. My family and I watched the movie “JFK” by Oliver Stone without any cautionary explanation that it was based on a disproven account of the assassination of President Kennedy. I was concerned then, and remain so today, that for some members of our society, that is their only experience with his assassination, without the benefit of reading of or learning the “real or true” history of that event. I spent much time telling my two sons after we saw the movie of the true, documented facts of that event. I was really pretty upset about that movie and Oliver Stone’s fictionalization of President Kennedy’s death. That is just one of many purportedly historical events that have been significantly fictionalized by Hollywood to make an actual historical story more entertaining. Enough ranting. Bottom line: The creators of TV shows and movies should have the freedom to tell their stories, but each of us need to take the time to inform ourselves of the true history of the event. Do not rely on the creators or directors of these pieces of entertainment to do it for you. As we should all realize, the real history or truth of The Bible is a whole different situation. Different Bibles, different religions, different stories, etc. Amen!!
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