''The Great Commandment'' is a 1939 American

Christian film The Christian film industry is an aspect of Christian media for films containing a Christian-themed message or moral. They are often interdenominational films, but can also be films targeting a specific denomination of Christianity. Criteria Pop ...

directed by

Irving Pichel Irving Pichel (June 24, 1891 – July 13, 1954) was an American actor and film director, who won acclaim both as an actor and director in his Hollywood career. Career Pichel was born to a American Jews, Jewish family in Pittsburgh. He attended ...

, which portrays the

conversion Conversion or convert may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''The Convert'', a 2023 film produced by Jump Film & Television and Brouhaha Entertainment * "Conversion" (''Doctor Who'' audio), an episode of the audio drama ''Cyberman'' * ...

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

of a young

Zealot The Zealots were members of a Jewish political movement during the Second Temple period who sought to incite the people of Judaea to rebel against the Roman Empire and expel it from the Land of Israel by force of arms, most notably during the ...

, Joel, and the

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

soldier

Longinus Longinus (Greek: Λογγίνος) is the name of the Roman soldier who pierced the side of Jesus with a lance, who in apostolic and some modern Christian traditions is described as a convert to Christianity. His name first appeared in the apoc ...

through the teachings of

Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

in his

Parable of the Good Samaritan The parable of the Good Samaritan is told by Jesus in the Gospel of Luke. It is about a traveler (implicitly understood to be Jewish) who is stripped of clothing, beaten, and left half dead alongside the road. A Jewish priest and then a Levite ...

. It was co-produced by Rev. James K. Friedrich and released by Cathedral Films in 1939. Its theatrical release was in 1941 by

Twentieth Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc., formerly 20th Century Fox, is an American film studio, film production and Film distributor, distribution company owned by the Walt Disney Studios (division), Walt Disney Studios, the film studios division of the ...

. Releasing information from the Internet Movie Database
/ref>

Plot

The film takes place in 30 A.D.

Judea Judea or Judaea (; ; , ; ) is a mountainous region of the Levant. Traditionally dominated by the city of Jerusalem, it is now part of Palestine and Israel. The name's usage is historic, having been used in antiquity and still into the pres ...

in a fictional village near Jerusalem. The protagonist is Joel, the elder son of the village rabbi Lamech. Lamech wants Joel to follow in his footsteps as a scribe and rabbi, but Joel is secretly a

zealot The Zealots were members of a Jewish political movement during the Second Temple period who sought to incite the people of Judaea to rebel against the Roman Empire and expel it from the Land of Israel by force of arms, most notably during the ...

leader, believing that more must be done to help his nation than studying the Scriptures. He is also secretly in love with Tamar, the daughter of the carpet merchant Jemuel, and he overhears his father and Jemuel arranging a marriage between Tamar and one of Lamech's sons. Unfortunately for Joel it turns out to be his younger brother Zadok, an impetuous zealot, whom Joel has to protect from his own recklessness. A crisis is brought about by the arrival of a troop of soldiers led by a centurion, Longinus, who issues the demand for a special tax to be collected by a tax collector traveling with them. Zadok and other zealots organize the release of prisoners taken by the soldiers, which moves Longinus to plan a massacre of the men of the village. Zadok wants to attack the Romans right away, but Joel feels that a larger resistance is needed through someone reputed to be the coming

Messiah In Abrahamic religions, a messiah or messias (; , ; , ; ) is a saviour or liberator of a group of people. The concepts of '' mashiach'', messianism, and of a Messianic Age originated in Judaism, and in the Hebrew Bible, in which a ''mashiach ...

of the Jewish people, Jesus Christ. Joel runs afoul of his father in declaring his love for Tamar, whom his father wants wedded to Zadok, and in revealing that he is a zealot leader. With the sword of the zealots entrusted to him, Joel goes out to find Jesus in order to enlist His leadership of their cause. esus is not presented directly in this film, but only as a reflection in water, as the glow of light on His listeners, and by way of the voice of Irving Pichel, the director.Joel meets Jesus' disciples,

Andrew Andrew is the English form of the given name, common in many countries. The word is derived from the , ''Andreas'', itself related to ''aner/andros'', "man" (as opposed to "woman"), thus meaning "manly" and, as consequence, "brave", "strong", "c ...

and

Judas Iscariot Judas Iscariot (; ; died AD) was, according to Christianity's four canonical gospels, one of the original Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ. Judas betrayed Jesus to the Sanhedrin in the Garden of Gethsemane, in exchange for thirty pieces of sil ...

, who have two different ideas about Jesus' mission. Judas, like the zealots, thinks that Jesus should be a military and political leader who would lead his people against the Romans. Joel confronts Jesus with the sword of the zealots, and Jesus declines his invitation with the words of

Matthew Matthew may refer to: * Matthew (given name) * Matthew (surname) * ''Matthew'' (album), a 2000 album by rapper Kool Keith * Matthew (elm cultivar), a cultivar of the Chinese Elm ''Ulmus parvifolia'' Christianity * Matthew the Apostle, one of ...

26:52 "all who take up the sword will perish by the sword." Joel disappointedly returns to his village just in time for the wedding feast of his brother Zadok and his beloved Tamar. He comes up with the idea that he and the zealots would kidnap Jesus and force His hand to support them. This is forestalled by Jesus' appearance at the village gate where Joel's father is presented as the scribe who asks Jesus, "What is the greatest commandment in the

Law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the ar ...

? (

Luke Luke may refer to: People and fictional characters * Luke (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the name * Luke (surname), including a list of people with the name * Luke the Evangelist, author of the Gospel of Luk ...

10:25-37). Jesus replies with His

. Jesus' exhortation at the end to, "Go and do thou likewise", moves Joel to abandon his plan to kidnap Jesus. Zadok is told by Nathan the innkeeper that Longinus is vulnerably asleep at his inn, and he gives up going to his bridal bed in order to kill Longinus. Nathan calls Joel and Lamech to the inn because Longinus repulsed Zadok's attack by killing him. The effect of Jesus' words on Joel moves him to keep from killing the unconscious Longinus and standing as a buffer between him and the men of the village, who are thirsting for his blood. When they ask Joel why he is protecting Longinus, he replies that he too is his brother. Longinus sends word for his soldiers to meet him at the inn, and he has the soldiers arrest Joel and take him to prison in Jerusalem. In prison Joel misses the Passion of Jesus. Tamar is allowed to visit him. They are met by Longinus, who tells Joel that he had him arrested for his own protection from the village mob. He tells him of another wonder: he was a witness of Jesus' crucifixion, and he was the soldier who thrust the

spear A spear is a polearm consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a pointed head. The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with Fire hardening, fire hardened spears, or it may be made of a more durable materia ...

in His side to make sure He was dead. Longinus throws down the spear, and he, Joel, and Tamar return to the village to witness their Christian faith.

Cast

* John Beal as Joel * Irving Pichel providing the voice of Jesus *

Maurice Moscovitch Maurice Moscovich (born Morris Maaskov; November 23, 1871 – June 18, 1940) was a Russian American actor who was well-known for his roles in Yiddish theatre. His 14 films, which he made at the end of his life, include Charlie Chaplin's ''The Gr ...

as Rabbi Lamech, Joel's father * Albert Dekker as

* Marjorie Cooley as Tamar * Warren McCollum as Zadok, Joel's brother *

Lloyd Corrigan Lloyd Corrigan (October 16, 1900 – November 5, 1969) was an American film and television actor, producer, screenwriter, and director who began working in films in the 1920s. The son of actress Lillian Elliott, Corrigan directed films, usually ...

as Jemuel *

Olaf Hytten Olaf Hytten (3 March 1888 – 11 March 1955) was a Scottish actor. He appeared in more than 280 films between 1921 and 1955. He was born in Glasgow, Scotland, and died in Los Angeles, California from a heart attack, while sitting in his car ...

as Nathan *

Ian Wolfe Ian Marcus Wolfe (November 4, 1896 – January 23, 1992) was an American character actor with around 400 film and television credits. Until 1934, he worked in the theatre. That year, he appeared in his first film role and later television, as ...

as tax collector * Anthony Marlowe as wedding singer * Lester Scharff as first zealot * Marc Lobell as

* Harold Minjir as

* Earl Gunn as wounded man * Albert Spehr as second zealot *

George Rosener George Michael Rosener (May 26, 1884 – March 29, 1945) was an American film actor and writer. He also wrote and acted in the Frank Buck (animal collector), Frank Buck serial ''Jungle Menace''. Career Rosener began his acting career at ag ...

as a merchant *

John Merton John Merton (born Myrtland F. LaVarre; February 18, 1901 – September 19, 1959) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 250 films between 1927 and 1959, mostly as a villain. He was the brother of filmmakers André de la Varre an ...

as Roman officer under Longinus * Perry Ivins as first elder *

D'Arcy Corrigan D'Arcy Corrigan (2 January 1870 – 25 December 1945) was an Irish lawyer who became an American film character actor. Life and career D'Arcy Corrigan was born in County Cork, playing over 50 film roles from 1925–1945. His early career inc ...

as the blind man *

Max Davidson Max Davidson (May 23, 1875 – September 4, 1950) was a German-American film actor known for his comedic Jewish persona during the silent film era. With a career spanning over thirty years, Davidson appeared in over 180 films. Career Born i ...

as the old man *

Stanley Price Stanley Price (December 31, 1892July 13, 1955) was an American film supporting actor who appeared in over 200 films between 1922 and 1956. He was a charter member of the Screen Actors Guild. Career Price was an actor whose artistic career s ...

as second elder *

Belle Mitchell Belle Mitchell (September 24, 1889 – February 12, 1979) was an American stage and film actress. She appeared in more than 100 films between 1915 and 1978. She was born in Croswell, Michigan and died in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles. Parti ...

as Jemuel's wife

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Great Commandment, The American black-and-white films Films about Christianity Films about religion Portrayals of Jesus in film 20th Century Fox films American drama films 1939 drama films 1939 films 1930s American films