Die Bibel

As a Christian who was born and raised in China, I find it fairly difficult to hold fast to my faith when the majority of people here still take Christianity as superstition or a series of fairy tales. So I was more than thrilled to have this opportunity to revisit these thought- provoking stories that could help to strengthen my faith in God.

The narrative style and visual effect on the first couple of episodes was stunning enough to draw me into the age of Genesis and Exodus.Both of the actors did an amazing job in conveying the steadfastness and faithfulness of Abraham and Moses. To top it off, from episode 6 onward, the depiction of Jesus Christ is the best I've ever seen compared to other titles with the similar theme. I was also glad to notice that the script includes some of the most memorable and inspiring verses like Psalms 23 ("The Lord is my shepherd") and Matthew 5:3-10 (The Sermon on the Mount).

The drawback of this TV production is that it has neglected many great events in the Old Testament. For instance, the detail of some of the ancient prophets like Samuel, Nathan, and Jeremiah and one of my favorite stories --Jonah's disobedience to God's command. (In fact it left out the entire book of Jonah). I understand that due to its limited length and budget, it is impossible to include every detail, yet to look at the show in a bigger picture, I still feel that it's lacking something important. It most probably could be the omission of the Holy Spirit which makes every heart submit to the Lord and leads our way, proclaims the truth, and restores our lives. In other words, I think this production only explains 2/3 of the Trinity.

But in general, this is a very truthful rendering of the Bible and I would strongly recommend it to people who are still searching for God and those who wish to get an outline of important events in the Holy Bible.

I got this gift as a Christmas present in 2013. It took me nearly half a year to get into. I had heard some middling reviews and wasn't overly impressed by the "Son of God" theater spin-off. When I finally gave it go, however, I discovered that each episode kept building and left me wanting more.

"The Bible" is pretty much split into two halves: The first half tells a number of Old Testament stories (Abraham, David, Daniel, Samson, etc.), while the second half transitions into the New Testament, telling of the ministry of Jesus Christ and his subsequent crucifixion/resurrection.

The first couple of episodes of this series are "just okay". I felt they made too big of a point to showcase the brutal violence of the Old Testament era. As such, I kind of dragged myself into those early episodes. They aren't terrible (I could still appreciate the stories being told), but just not entirely focused.

Once I was about 3-4 episodes in, however, the drama/stories/characters really started to pick up and I watched the final few episodes over the span of hours, not days. Whatever you do, PLEASE DO NOT compare this to "Son of God" that was patched-together and released into theaters to capitalize on the success of this show. "Son of God" isn't bad...just bland. "The Bible", on the other hand, is filled with emotion, especially during the "passion" scenes involving Jesus. It was that emotion that kept me watching.

In terms of accurateness, I had no problems with "The Bible". I'm not a huge biblical scholar, but I did attend Sunday School and thus know my basic bible stories (!). Besides a few tiny little nit- picks here and there, I found nothing major to criticize here.

Finally, "The Bible" can also serve as a great history of the Jewish religion. Creator/producer Mark Burnett does a great job of telling a coherent, structural history of the Jews, complete with narration to "fill in the gaps".

Overall, then, I feel "The Bible" to be one of the best Biblical works of film ever produced. Once you get through the first couple of episodes that focus a bit too much on the violence, you'll find yourself getting sucked into the history and emotion of the stories being told.

Please disregard all my arrogant Christian brothers. They somehow feel that the Bible itself is a screenplay and thus should be treated as one. As a bible student for 23 years and possessing All Bible films ever made from silent films until today I can clearly say what is good and what is bad. This mniseries is fantastic to spark interest in the good Book. While the miniseries takes many dramatic licence, the emotion and heart of it is clearly felt. It makes no claim to authenticity yet many scenes actually feel more authentic and not forced to look holier than thou but instead makes you think how hard those times were and thus these people did not know they would be in the bible one day. Many may mention omissions of many storeys which it does skip,however it spends a great deal in Christ. Acting us excellent as well as the score. For my all my Christians brothers who criticise this series I say to you then what would you produce. Those word for word Visual Bible Videos "Matthew, Acts, John?" That although literal word for word and nothing more and honest, nevertheless are completely dull boring and without emotion whatsoever. Even I who know the bible and enjoy it have had a hard time getting through those videos and if i knew not the material with those productions i would turn it off. Sad but true. Those videos are for Christians and Christians alone. You say you want to reach people well with those videos Christianity would have never gotten of the ground per say. In 2004 every Christian complained about "The Passion of the Christ" including scenes not in the gospels or out of order yet it was so power full no one could not say they weren't moved and it reached to millions. This miniseries is great if you are curious about the Bible and and recommend it as a great start up tool. As I mentioned I have seen every film and have every film so I can say what is blasphemous or not. Please forgive my Christian arrogant brothers who act more like Pharisees all righteous and knowing. Times like this I love saying I am an Anti Christian,,,Christian. God bless and enjoy the series.

The one thing I was instantly pleasantly surprised with when I watched the first episode of The Bible was the scale of this production, especially for a TV Mini-Series. Unlike most of its predecessors this classic story has been made into a Hollywood epic, both in terms of proportion and the style in which it has been filmed. The visual effects are very impressive and the score, composed by the brilliant Hans Zimmer is beautiful. Perhaps some might argue that it is more of an "entertainment" series rather than an "educational" one, but all the key points of the Bible have been respected.

It's well scripted and the actors did an excellent job in portraying very believable characters, and how great to see the beautiful Roma Downey play the part of Mary!

Being about the Bible, I don't want to spoil the end. (Joke.) But, I must say this was very well done aside from a few inaccuracies. This is to be expected seeing as it is a mini-series rather than a gigantic series.

Now, the only complaint I would have is the actual crucification of Jesus. Many believe it was a cross (though it was a stake if you do the research into it) and since it is a minor matter and to be expected that should be no matter here. But, the nail in the hand instead of wrist is still happening even knowing the truth behind it.

Aside from that little fact, the show was great. I do hope it opens up people to reading the Bible and to their God. The show portrayed things in a very good way, aside from a few things with Jesus and after Jesus.

If you have not read the Bible read Luke then read Acts. Though, you can always start with this show for a start. I do recommend it as a start before reading or to those who know the Bible.

I will say, as a Jehovah's Witness I really expected to be even more disappointed with the portrayal of Jesus, I didn't expect God's name to be used since it may offend some or confuse even more but a few lines not from the Bible got me but that in itself did is not a problem, only implying Jesus as God without Biblical support. But, overall, I liked it.