''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 P ...

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 Jewish family in Pittsburgh. He attended Pittsburgh Cent ...

, which portrays the

conversion Conversion or convert may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * "Conversion" (''Doctor Who'' audio), an episode of the audio drama ''Cyberman'' * "Conversion" (''Stargate Atlantis''), an episode of the television series * "The Conversion" ...

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

of a young

Zealot The Zealots were a political movement in 1st-century Second Temple Judaism which sought to incite the people of Judea Province to rebel against the Roman Empire and expel it from the Holy Land by force of arms, most notably during the First Je ...

, 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 ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

soldier

Longinus Longinus () is the name given to the unnamed Roman soldier who pierced the side of Jesus with a lance and who in medieval and some modern Christian traditions is described as a convert to Christianity. His name first appeared in the apocryphal G ...

through the teachings of

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

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. First, a Jewish priest and then a ...

. 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. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film studio, film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm o ...

. Releasing information from the Internet Movie Database
/ref>

Plot

The film takes place in 30 A.D.

Judea Judea or Judaea ( or ; from he, יהודה, Hebrew language#Modern Hebrew, Standard ''Yəhūda'', Tiberian vocalization, Tiberian ''Yehūḏā''; el, Ἰουδαία, ; la, Iūdaea) is an ancient, historic, Biblical Hebrew, contemporaneous L ...

in a fictional village near Jerusalem. The

protagonist A protagonist () is the main character of a story. The protagonist makes key decisions that affect the plot, primarily influencing the story and propelling it forward, and is often the character who faces the most significant obstacles. If a st ...

is Joel, the elder son of the village

rabbi A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...

Lamech. Lamech wants Joel to follow in his footsteps as a scribe and rabbi, but Joel is secretly a

zealot The Zealots were a political movement in 1st-century Second Temple Judaism which sought to incite the people of Judea Province to rebel against the Roman Empire and expel it from the Holy Land by force of arms, most notably during the First Je ...

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 A merchant is a person who trades in commodities produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Historically, a merchant is anyone who is involved in business or trade. Merchants have operated for as long as indust ...

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 a given name common in many countries. In the 1990s, it was among the top ten most popular names given to boys in List of countries where English is an official language, English-speaking countries. "Andrew" is freq ...

and

Judas Iscariot Judas Iscariot (; grc-x-biblical, Ἰούδας Ἰσκαριώτης; syc, ܝܗܘܕܐ ܣܟܪܝܘܛܐ; died AD) was a disciple and one of the original Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ. According to all four canonical gospels, Judas betraye ...

, 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'' (ship), the replica of the ship sailed by John Cabot in 1497 * ''Matthew'' (album), a 2000 album by rapper Kool Keith * Matthew (elm cultivar), a cultivar of the Ch ...

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,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...

? (

Luke People *Luke (given name), a masculine given name (including a list of people and characters with the name) *Luke (surname) (including a list of people and characters with the name) *Luke the Evangelist, author of the Gospel of Luke. Also known as ...

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 pole weapon 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 hardened spears, or it may be made of a more durable material fasten ...

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 ...

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 filmmaker André de la Varre an ...

as Roman officer under Longinus *

Perry Ivins Perry, also known as pear cider, is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented pears, traditionally the perry pear. It has been common for centuries in England, particularly in Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, and Worcestershire. It is also mad ...

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 incl ...

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 sp ...

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. Partia ...

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