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February 10, 2012
Lisa M. Krieger: Man with defibrillator demands access to his own heart's information
David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
February 9, 2012
Laura McMullen: 10 Least Expensive Public Schools for Out-of-State Students
Kimberly Palmer: How to actually enjoy -- relaxing, financially -- your vacation
February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Caught off-guard? President's Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer gives those who need a reason not to vote for him, a darn good one
Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
February 6, 2012
Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
March 3, 2006
/ 3 Adar, 5766
Why did conservatives ignore Emily Rose?
By
Julia Gorin
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
Standing silently in contrast to all the Oscar hoopla this week is the most underrated, untalked-about movie of the year. That
"The Exorcism of Emily Rose" didn't garner a single Academy nomination isn't surprising, but why didn't it win any notice from
conservatives?
Granted, the title suggests a horror film, but "Emily Rose" is actually a courtroom drama about faith that takes audiences on a
spiritual journey. In a departure from the cynical treatment that religion usually gets in Hollywood, the film's hero is a Roman Catholic Priest. Father Richard Moore,
played stunningly by onetime Oscar nominee Tom Wilkinson, is on trial for the death of a girl on whom he performed an
unsuccessful exorcism. In a further departure, Laura Linney — an Academy favorite who generally plays leftist heroines — is a
defense lawyer who gains a conscience over the course of the story, and who asks the jury to keep an "open mind" on behalf
of a Catholic priest.
In the film — based on events that occurred in the 1970s to a 19-year-old German co-ed named "Michel" — the charge is
negligent homicide. As Laura Linney told MovieWeb.com, the issue of the case isn't about whether or not Emily was
possessed, but whether Father Moore contributed to her death.
The prosecution's case is that Moore endangered Emily's life by persuading her to abandon her medical treatment in favor of
religious treatment. In addition to punching holes in the prosecution's medical case, the Linney character, Erin Bruner, tries to
validate the alternative — that is, the possibility of possession — in a court of law. She tells the jury, "Maybe you can't reconcile
[Moore's] beliefs with your own, [but] after the failures of the doctors, he simply tried to help Emily in a different way."
Along the way, Bruner — an agnostic and a complacent, self-obsessed attorney who became a media celebrity when she got an
accused murderer acquitted — is led not only to reevaluate her choice of profession when her former client strikes again, but
also to undergo a spiritual awakening of her own. In her closing arguments, Bruner tells the jury that she is "a woman of doubt.
Angels and demons, G-d and the Devil. These things either exist, or they do not exist…Either possibility is astonishing. I
cannot deny that it's possible. And this trial is about possibilities….Is it possible that [Emily] was beloved by G-d and that she
chose to suffer to the end so we believe in a more magical world?....That sincere belief determined her choices, and Father
Moore's."
Echoing Linney's characterization of the film as one that would be a "balanced examination of these events" rather than a movie
"that told people how to think," Belisa Silva, of Lehigh University's student paper "The Brown and White," writes, "I think the
reason this movie scared me so much was because it doesn't push to make believers out of its audience. It merely presents the
story and lets you decide for yourself whether you think Emily was truly possessed by demons or merely epileptic… Although
exorcisms and possession seem ridiculous in today's society, the movie asks that we consider the possibility of its existence."
In fact, by asking us to consider whether or not demons exist, what the film is really asking us to consider is the existence of a
spiritual world and therefore G-d. No doubt, for some audience members, it is that possibility that will be the most horrifying
aspect of this "horror" film.
As the epitaph on Emily's grave reads, "Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling." (Philippians 2:12)
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
JWR contributor Julia Gorin is a widely published op-ed writer and comedian who blogs at www.JuliaGorin.com. Comment on by clicking here.
Julia Gorin Archives
© 2005, Julia Gorin.
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