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Magdalena: Released from Shame

The story of Jesus through the eyes of Mary Magdalene

Women were treated as second-class citizens or property in many ancient cultures and nations. They lived in the bonds of low self-esteem, shame, and depression. Unfortunately, this reality is still happening in today’s world.

Women in every culture share common needs, concerns, hopes, and fears—as well as the sad truth that many have felt the sting of being devalued because of their gender. They don’t know that God loves and values them. Many have not heard the gospel, or know who Jesus is. This is why an international consortium has produced a new version of JESUS especially for women—Magdalena: Released From Shame. This film speaks to these core issues in a way no other has done.

Released by Nardine Productions in association with Inspirational Films, Magdalena: Released From Shame portrays the story of Jesus as seen through the eyes of Mary Magdalene, and demonstrates how He values women by focusing on historical accounts of His interactions with them. One woman caught in the scandalous act of adultery; another, rejected and ignored because of her promiscuous lifestyle; another, shunned for 12 years because of a shameful condition; a widow, cast out from society, mourning the loss of her only son. An ugly thread of shame, sorrow and hopelessness painfully weaves its way through the lives of each of these women.

Mary Magdalene acts as both narrator and participant in Magdalena: Released From Shame. After following Jesus for three years, Mary Magdalene recounts her own deliverance from demon-possession, and the transformation, miracles, and the results of restored hope that she herself experienced and witnessed in other women who have come into contact with this man, Jesus, and have been powerfully released from shame.

Newly recorded scenes and storylines from Scripture are folded seamlessly into the classic JESUS film, remaining faithful to the biblical account. Every word that Jesus speaks is taken directly from Scripture. The core of this new version of JESUS remains—the birth, ministry, miracles, death and resurrection of Jesus—and most importantly, the Word of God, but with an emphasis on His ministry to women.

According to Jill Schrag, producer of Magdalena: Released From Shame, “this film was created in collaboration with hundreds of women and men from around the world…{it} was written, produced and directed by women. The women who helped create this film share a common passion--to reach out to the women of the world with the message that God values them…. This film says to women, ‘God cares about you. You are significant. And you have more value than you can imagine.’”

 

The JESUS film surpasses 1,000th language translation!

Most translated film in history reaches another major milestone in July 2007

Take some of the biggest box office hits of all time, blockbuster films like Gone with the Wind, The Wizard of Oz, Star Wars, Titanic, and The Lion King – all have been translated into multiple languages and shown to audiences around the world. But all of these combined wouldn’t reach even half the number of translations of the JESUS film.

“When the JESUS film was produced in 1979, no one could have imagined that 28 years later, it would be available in 1,000 languages,” said Jack Robertson, National Director of The JESUS Film Project, Canada. “Now it’s the most translated, most viewed film in motion picture history. Even more astounding, it has become one of, if not the most effective tool for evangelism ever created. God has blessed this work and is using it to increase His Kingdom from every nation, tribe, language and people. It will be thrilling to see what the Lord will accomplish in the future through this ministry.”

 “Lanka Kol” is our 1,000th translation of the JESUS film,” said Robertson. “It’s a language many Canadians have probably never heard of, but there are more than one million people in northeast India who speak Lanka Kol – and now we have the opportunity to begin sharing the gospel story with them in their own language.” 

When Bill Bright, founder of Campus Crusade for Christ, gathered a team of 500 scholars and leaders to determine how best to portray Jesus on the motion picture screen, the team agreed that the film must be artistically excellent, biblically accurate, appealing to all ages and could be translated and distributed globally. Hence, the JESUS film.

Since the original JESUS film debuted in U.S. theaters in 1979, it has been translated into multiple languages and distributed around the world often in remote Third World countries where movies are unheard of, especially one in their own language. Shown on a makeshift screen with a portable projector, the JESUS film has achieved more than 5 billion viewings. It is used by more than 1,500 mission agencies and denominations around the world for the same goal of bringing people to Christ. And indeed, more than 201 million decisions for Christ have been made at JESUS film showings.

While the 1,000th translation is a major milestone, it’s not the end of the story. The JESUS Film Project plans to continue translating the film into 500 new languages which includes every language with more than 100,000 speakers. 

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