The Young Messiah

“The Young Messiah” is another clarion call for why Christians must study their faith more seriously in order to defend against misleading books and movies. Hollywood is a very poor witness of the Gospel! .                                              While the Arian heresy outright denies the divinity of Jesus Christ, “The Young Messiah” is more discreet and subtle in deceiving its audience into accepting the same premise. For background, the movie is an adaptation of Anne Rice’s 2005 fictional novel, “Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt.” It is by NO MEANS supported by Scripture. It’s important to remember that fact going forward. .                                               To begin, very little is actually known of Christ’s adolescence. What is known is that Christ's divine and human natures exist in hypostasis. He is entirely aware of Himself as the Son of God and His relation to God the Father and the Holy Spirit, before and after His Immaculate Conception. He always knew Himself, His Father, and His purpose on earth – another important fact to remember. .                                              The “Christ” portrayed in “The Young Messiah”, however, is unaware of himself and of God the Father. We’re presented with a scared and insecure boy, uncertain of his place and confused by the adult world. In short, he is a human child, NOT Christ the Messiah recorded in Biblical Scripture and defined in Doctrine. .                                               In an early scene, St. Joseph asks St. Mary, “How do we explain God to his own son?” This is where the Arian tinge of “The Young Messiah” is revealed to the studious, Catechised Christian. Although there are many, this scene alone is perhaps the best to expose the movie’s Arian premise. .                                               First, let’s get something straight: Christ came to explain God to us! .                                               The Holy Trinity was revealed to us by Christ Himself, and not by the Rabbi’s of the Pre-Messianic Era. The Life of Christ is God choosing to become man, arriving as Christ the Son through the Intersession of the Holy Spirit. Remember, Christ is aware of Himself and His Father. He arrived with a purpose! .                                               Yet the aforementioned scene portrays a young Christ asking questions to the nature of God and of man, while other scenes portray a young Christ totally unaware of himself or his purpose on earth. A devout Christian must ask: How is this oblivious young boy the Christ that exists “consubstantial with the Father”? .                                                Besides playing with the fire of heresy, there’s more to be argued in why “The Young Messiah” is a poor, even harmful, movie for Christian audiences. Its’ unwarranted, fictional speculation into the childhood of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, is enough to avoid the movie altogether. .                                                PAX et BONUM / PEACE and GOOD!