Who truly launched what we now know as the Christian religion -- and were its beginnings inspired by a bribe? A Polite Bribe, a groundbreaking new feature-length documentary, sheds new light on Christianity’s earliest days and a long overlooked episode involving a collection of gold of biblical proportions. The film, featuring 28 of the world’s top Pauline and New Testament scholars with stunning original graphic illustrations, will be screened for ONE NIGHT ONLY in Philadelphia on June 26, 2012 at the Ritz East.
Filmmaker and New Testament scholar Robert Orlando explores the life and teachings of Paul in this groundbreaking documentary, which synthesizes his research of over 20 years . As the subtitle “The Paul Story” makes clear, Orlando comes to the conclusion that Paul should be considered not only Christianity's most influential apostle, but the founder of the religion that supposedly originated with Jesus of Nazareth.
Though other scholars have previously made the point that Paul's interpretation of the Christian message distorted the original teachings of Jesus, Orlando goes further. His detailed historical research and explicit storytelling demonstrate that Paul created the major tenets of the Christianity we know today and that his theology – a synthesis of Hebrew and Greek thought – differs significantly from what we now know the historical Jesus to have preached.
All based on a life-changing vision of the risen Christ, Paul's belief in the resurrection of the crucified Jesus naturally became the focus of his interpretation of this new religion. But Orlando contends that however sincerely motivated he was we must in the final analysis judge Paul's belief – at least in part – as self-deception. Paul never knew Jesus, and he had a hostile relationship with Jesus' immediate disciples. As a result, he was not in a position to give an accurate representation of Jesus' teachings.
It was only the combination of his resilient passion and several fortuitous historical factors led to the success of his efforts to evangelize the non-Jewish population of the Roman Empire, whereas the mission of the other leading apostles like James and Peter to a mainly Jewish audience failed.
As a result, Paul's version of Christianity, not Jesus', captured the public imagination and eventually became the dominant religion of the West.
For more information about the film and to reserve tickets to the June 26th screening, email politebribe@gmail.com
