Jesus of Nazareth

Iconic images of Christ abound. Sallman's Christ has surely become the most prolific image in the last 75 years. There are also lots of movies that make a faithful attempt at depicting the life of Christ. Purists love The Jesus Film for its faithfulness to the Scriptures. Its hard to disagree with that logic. My wife was really moved by The Passion of the Christ because of its depiction of Christ's suffering on our behalf.

But the enduring movie in my mind was once a TV mini-series simply titled: Jesus of Nazareth. It was a late '70s Franco Zeffirelli motion picture that--for me personally--left lasting visual imprints that helped shape the way I think of people, places, and events in the Gospels: the Galilean fishing boats, the demeanor of Peter both before and after his conversion, Pilate, the Roman centurions, the Judean crowds in Jerusalem. There were so many images that added a depth, breadth, and scope to what I had read two-dimensionally as a child. It's my favorite movie of all time. Always has been; always will be. :-)