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Barna survey reveals limited effect of 'The Passion' movie

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VENTURA, Calif. — "The Passion of the Christ" was the eighth highest-grossing domestic film of all time. Thousands of churches around the country supported the film as one of the "greatest evangelistic tools" in history. But a new national survey of more than 1,600 adults, conducted by The Barna Group, reveals no direct evangelistic impact by the movie.

Less than one-tenth of one percent of those who saw the film stated that they made a profession of faith or accepted Jesus Christ as their savior in reaction to the film’s content.

Equally surprising was the lack of impact on people’s determination to engage in evangelism. Less than one-half of one percent of the audience said they were motivated to be more active in sharing their faith in Christ with others as a result of having seen the movie.

In general, movies as a medium can initiate personal change. Four out of 10 adults said that within the past two years they had seen a movie that had caused them to think more seriously about their religious faith. For most that movie was "The Passion." Not surprisingly, it was the people who were already most inclined to think about faith matters who said this, such as evangelicals (68 percent) and people with an active personal faith (65 percent of those who pray, read the Bible and attend a church service in a typical week).

But people who saw "The Passion" were not all evangelicals. Survey data indicate that Gibson’s movie drew a broad-based audience into theaters. More singles and Hispanics attended the movie, but only half of its audience (53 percent) were born-again Christians, which is somewhat higher than their incidence in the adult population (38 percent). Also, atheists or agnostics represent about 12 percent of the national population but were just 4 percent of the "Passion" audience.

Of those who saw the movie, one in six said it affected their religious beliefs, such as how they treat others, how they behave, and how they understand and appreciate Christ’s death and resurrection. Some 18 percent of the audience also said the movie caused them to pray more (9 percent), attend church more often (8 percent) and become involved in church-related activities (3 percent).

"Immediate reaction to the movie seemed to be quite intense," said George Barna, director of the research, "but people’s memories are short and are easily redirected in a media-saturated, fast-paced culture like ours.

"In an environment in which people spend more than 40 hours each week absorbing a range of messages from multiple media, it is rare that a single media experience will radically reorient someone’s life. The greatest impact through media seems to come from constant exposure to a consistent message that is well-presented and is personally meaningful or useful."