The Lost Years of Jesus

Buy This Item The Lost Years of Jesus by VCI Entertainment  Available from Amazon  $12.99  on 11-29-2008     For centuries followers of the Bible have wondered where Jesus was and what he did during the so-called "silent years." Biblical writings leave gaps in the life of Jesus. Evidence points to a long pilgrimage made by Jesus between the ages of 13 and 30. This film contains controversial subject matter that is disputed by some, by nevertheless, is still fascinating. <b> Specs: </b> DVD9; Dolby Digital; 93 minutes; Color; 1.33:1 Aspect Ratio; MPAA - NR; Year - 1976; SRP - $14.99. Reader Reviews This is a film I remember seeing on the late, late show back in the days before infomercials filled those wee small hours. After watching it again on DVD, I found that this movie is actually an infomercial of sorts for that grabbag of popular Eastern spirituality often termed New Age, but packaged in an informative and engaging film reminiscent of MONDO CANE and those world-spanning documentaries of yesteryear. THE LOST YEARS, as the on-screen title reads, is a 1977 documentary of the old school jam-packed with information, fascinating location filming and professionals doing the narration. In fact, it was the arresting narration that first engaged me when I saw this film on televison years ago. I knew those voices. Rod Colbin, an underrated character actor with a wonderful voice and delivery, had around this same time appeared in a well-done biopic of the early Reformer John Hus. William Marshall, another underrated actor best remembered as Blacula or as Dr. Daystrom in "The Ultimate Computer" episode of Star Trek, is on hand to lend his vocal talents to the readings from the Legend of St. Issa. This film sets out to explore the 18 unrecorded years of Christ's life, from age 12 to 30. The film starts on a note of legitimacy, speaking with Professor John C. Trever of the Claremont School of Theology, who mentions that some people place Jesus' missing years in India, and while we see Trever's mouth still moving, Colbin's voiceover announces, "Our search for the missing years of Jesus Christ takes us to India!" This next and primary section of the film describes and draws from The Unknown Life of Jesus Christ, a manuscript discovered in a Tibetan monastery by the Russian Nicolas Notovich in the 1880s. "In the archives of an ancient Tibetan monastery are said to be records . . . dealing with the life of an extraordinary saint known to the Buddhists as Issa. The life story of Saint Issa closely resembles the life of Jesus Christ, revealing what may well be the lost years of Jesus." On that highly qualified premise the film recounts the Legend of Issa, following the young Jesus' sojournings to India at 14 where he lived with the ascetic Jains, then to study with Brahmin priests the Vedas and Upanishads and then north to the Himalayas where he spent six years "mastering the teachings of Buddha." At 26 Jesus left India, went to Iran and Athens ("land of the philosopher-kings") and then pressed on to Alexandria, Egypt "where he learned the secrets of the great pyramids." Finally, at age 29, Jesus "returned to Palestine to fulfill his destiny," which destiny could almost appear anticlimactic after the wisdom-gathering, globe-trotting travelogue we have jut witnessed. This first half of the film features many fascinating and beautiful scenes along the Ganges, intercut with various yogis and swamis plugging their ashrams and saying how it is well known among them that Jesus was in India. According to one, "Jesus Christ was an adept in the occult science of raja yoga . . . all the miracles he performed during his public life were the result of yogic powers which accrue to a master yogi." And that is really the message of the movie, that all these Eastern religions informed Christ and made him who he was and that instead of his being God enfleshed as the Bible declares, Jesus is a mere avatar. Why isn't this stuff about Jesus being a great yogi found in the Bible? Why haven't we heard about any of this at church? Anticipating an aspect of the DaVinci Code conspiracy theory, the film pictures Constantine and the Council of Nicaea like politicians in a smoke-filled backroom, where "deletions and additions to the church doctrine were agreed upon" and later on those documents contradicting "Constantine's Nicene Creed" were burned in an "excess of zeal." Among them, presumably, the real history and nature of Jesus' miraculous power. At this point there comes an end to the exploration of Jesus' lost years and recounting of the St. Issa Legend and the film strikes out into new territory. There is a lengthy section detailing the history and claims surrounding the Shroud of Turin, which then transitions into an especially interesting segment on the Lance of Longinus, the spear that pierced Christ's side while he hung upon the cross. (Hitler and Himmler's fascination with this object is an interesting footnote to World War II history.) A lot of names and topics are tossed into this film, such as Edgar Cayce, Kirlian photography of auras and halos; St. Thomas' bringing Christianity to India in AD 52 and a look inside the church in Madras which claims to contain his body; the ablutions of the Hindu faithful along the Ganges, rituals in a Tibetan monastery and scores of paintings and illustrations that are all beautiful to behold. It's a packed 88 minutes. The film only bogged down for me in its last segment, an extended puff piece on Satya Sai Baba, a "man of miracles" whom some say is a "reincarnation of Krishna." Nothing in the movie will lead you to that conclusion; the only "miracle" filmed is his supposedly manifesting and sprinkling ashes on people. As for the DVD itself, it features a letterboxed print that shows its age with a little grain. I admit I was nervous about ordering this DVD because the case misspelled Rod Colbin's name as "Colen." The case also says the film runs 93 minutes, but I clocked it at 88, and that it was released in 1976 when the end credits state it's a 1977 Aura Production. Blame the errors on the packagers; Richard Bock's film stands as a well-done, wide ranging and engaging documentary that is certain to provoke thought and maybe some further research. (A good place to start would be with The Jesus Mystery by Janet Bock, one of the film's writers and wife to its producer.) The film closes explicitly restating its new age themes, that the title "Christ" describes the "God that is in all men" and that the "sublime truths of the East are in harmony with the teachings of Jesus." As strenuously as I disagree with the film's interpretations of Scripture and its conclusions about Christ, I greatly appreciated and enjoyed watching it and would highly recommend others to watch it too, albeit thoughtfully with discernment and with a critical eye open to its new age agenda.

The Lost Years of Jesus Available from Amazon Price: $12.99 Updated on 11-29-2008.

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