Mel Gibson: The Truth Shall Set You Free

by Michele Cheplic | More from this Blogger

29 May 2009 04:19 AM

He may be the ultimate hypocrite, but at least he's honest. Not that telling the truth will save him from eternal damnation... but who am I to judge?

If you watched Mel Gibson's "performance" on NBC's "Tonight Show" earlier this week, there's one thing you can't deny the Hollywood mega-star--he's one heck of an actor.

The 53-year-old "Lethal Weapon" star showed up clean-shaven, looking relaxed in jeans, a white shirt and a blue jacket. However, it didn't take long before he became a fidgety, sweat-drenched mess.

And well he should have been. After all, acting takes effort.

Gibson's performance began by him gamely answering questions about his relationship with Oksana Grigorieva, the woman he entered into an adulterous affair with and subsequently impregnated, despite their 14-year age difference.

"Tonight Show" host Jay Leno then prodded Gibson about his split with Robyn, his wife of 28 years, at which point the actor responded: "My wife and I, our marriage ended three years ago and we've been separated ever since then."

Gibson then took the blame for the demise of his nearly 30-year union saying, "Look. When it's all said and done, I did a pretty good hatchet job on my marriage myself. I'm to blame. If you're inclined to judge, put it here."

Unfortunately, he followed up with flippant remarks, including:

"These things happen. It's unfortunate, it's sad, but you know she is an admirable woman - we still got kids together. We're friends."

And this one about his ever-expanding brood of children:

Leno joked, "So that will make 29? " Quickly, Gibson responded, "Well, actually eight. I guess I'm Octo-Mel."

Can you see why this guy is considered one of the finest actors of all time?

His comedic timing and ability to rationalize his recklessly selfish behavior in front of millions of viewers... that's no easy task, people.

Think about how hard it must be for a self-proclaimed uber Catholic like Gibson to make himself look pious after forsaking his faith and family, breaking numerous commandments by hooking up and impregnating a woman other than his wife, and then joking about it on national TV.

Yes, Gibson truly has talent... or something.

To be unfaithful and break his martial vows through mortal sin, and then to be able to find a way to transform it into material for a late-night talk show... WOW! Just WOW.

To cap off his appearance, Gibson, who made a name for himself in conservative Catholic circles for directing the controversial film "The Passion of the Christ," added that he does not intend to marry Grigorieva.

"Who would do it twice?" Gibson asked.

Certainly not a Roman Catholic, who describes the Vatican as "a wolf in sheep's clothing," and who does not believe in the Church as "an institution."

Boy, what a difference five years makes.

Gibson, who spent much of his "Passion of the Christ" promotional tour touting his strong views on divorce, abortion and contraception (ones that appealed mightily to conservatives) is now in the midst of one of the hottest scandals of the year.

So, how does one go from promoting the sanctity of marriage to embracing the modern divorce mentality of moving on and never looking back? In my opinion, Gibson personifies the essence of pop culture: You want what you want; you want it now, take it, and be happy.

Ironically, in 2004, shortly after "Passion of the Christ" became a box-office phenomenon, Gibson noted that happiness was not of this world, and that if a person has a lot of good luck it is often viewed as the "worst thing ever."

Leaders in the Catholic Church say Gibson was right in saying that God, who is just, rewards any good done, but that it's done mostly in the after-life. According to Catholics, when God foresees that He will not be able to reward a person in the after-life, since He already knows them lost and damned, He gives them worldly, natural rewards.

I wonder what that means for a guy who is worth nearly one billion dollars, and who continues to cheat on his wife, scandalize his children, and make a mockery of a religion he claims to hold near and dear to his heart?

Learn more about Michele Cheplic

Michele Cheplic was born and raised in Hilo, Hawaii, but now lives in Wisconsin. Michele graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in Journalism.

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Libby Pelham (12866) 29 May 2009 03:50 PM

Hum, I once agreed that Mel was the Sexiest Man in the World, but now, he just gives me the creeps :-(

Michele Cheplic (37236) 02 Jun 2009 11:35 AM

I think Mel is cracking. See: http://parenting.families.com/blog/sins-of-the-fathermel-has-a-meltdown

Pam Connell (2658) 19 Jun 2009 08:05 PM

As a lifelong Catholic and parish lay minister (Master's degree in Pastoral Ministry at a Catholic university), I've never heard anything like the notion that God gives material goods in this life to those he knows won't be with him in the afterlife.

It may be that some Catholics (a few out of millions) hold that theory, but that's not the same as saying "Catholics believe" as if it were a church teaching.

In fact, we are taught that God never despairs of any of his children--as long as we live, everyone has the chance to sincerely repent and be forgiven.

I'm not sure how much God has to do with the distribution of wealth in this world, but I definitely don't think he gives it as a kind of consolation prize to the damned. God is a loving parent hoping for our growth and conversion every moment of our lives.

Michele Cheplic (37236) 19 Jun 2009 09:16 PM

I appreciate the opportunity to clarify, Pam. I take the blame if my last two sentences were somewhat confusing or incomplete. Perhaps, what I should have written was this:

MANY (perhaps, not all) Catholics believe (myself included) that even bad people do some good on a human level... sometimes. God, who is just, rewards any good done, but mostly in the after-life. When He foreknows that He will not have an opportunity to reward after death He sends some temporal reward in this life.

I believe this is a reasonable explanation as to why some truly evil individuals enjoy worldly success.

Sinners, who are God's enemies, but enjoy material prosperity, really need our prayers, especially since their success often makes them blinder in their self-righteousness. Sinners, who will be saved, God always treats harshly. Everything fails, goes wrong and causes much pain. To save them God must break them of their pride and get their attention.

You're right; everyone has the chance to "sincerely repent and be forgiven," but not everyone chooses to do so. In fact, I would guess that most damned individuals don't give a damn about whether or not they will be saved or that "God is a loving parent hoping for our growth and conversion every moment of our lives." As a result, they certainly aren't going to be repenting, and therefore in the end it proves that there's nothing worse than getting just what you WANT instead of what you NEED.