Sentencing judge urges people to watch The Passion of the Christ: The Lansing State-Journal reports:

District Judge Thomas Brennan Jr. isn’t exactly sentencing his drug court offenders to watch what might be the most controversial movie ever, but he’s strongly recommending it.

Brennan saw “The Passion of the Christ” last week with a group of fellow Catholics. The film, he said, “completely moved” him. And it seemed clear to Brennan that the people around him in the theater also were profoundly moved by the film.

Two days later, as he was presiding over drug court, Brennan was struck by the idea that if “The Passion of the Christ” could do all that heavy lifting, maybe the movie also could nudge four substance abusers in a more promising direction.

“I didn’t make it a condition of probation,” Brennan said. “It was not a requirement. I simply suggested that as part of their spiritual development, they should see the movie.” . . .

Asked if an arm of government should be promoting Christian spirituality, Brennan pointed out that Alcoholics Anonymous’ 12-step program — which IS a condition of probation in drug court — includes a reliance on a “higher power.”

For that reason, some courts . . . no longer force defendants to participate in Alcoholics Anonymous. [Volokh notes: Several courts have actually held that such a condition would violate the Establishment Clause, precisely because it coerces religious conduct.] But there is no such squeamishness [in] this jurisdiction, Brennan said. . . .

The judge said “The Passion of the Christ” might encourage substance-abuse offenders — he preferred to call them “participants” — to “connect to raw beliefs they once had” and perhaps use those beliefs to overcome their addictions.

Brennan said he saw no reason not to expand his “must-see” list. He said he might consider, for example, recommending “Days of Wine and Roses” — a movie about alcoholism — to offenders with drinking problems. . . .