John Tyler: The Reoccurring Theme of Human Sacrifice in History and Now in Media

In a YouTube video, Father Barron comments on the Hunger Games.  He begins by mentioning how gladiators would engage in combat to please the crowds and politicians.  Then he recalls Ancient Greek mythology where young men and women were sacrificed to a mythical creature as a tribute.  In light of these past practices, Father Barron proposes that Hunger Games is merely a replication of all these antecedents.  It is a story of human sacrifice and the reality of it in our culture even today.  The games depicted in the film parallel the Roman practices in how they are battles to the death performed in front of massive audiences.  Barron even suggests that the style and language of Hunger Games resembles that of the government and politics of ancient Rome.  With all of this to say, he makes his main point, saying “why is it that this dynamic of human sacrifice is so dominant in our culture; in our fiction and in our behavior from ancient times to the present day?” This is a fascinating question that rings true to history and present times.

Yes, even the Bible displays this dynamic of human sacrifice but it also shows the way out.  Instead of sanctioning scapegoat violence, God identifies Himself as the scapegoated victim.  The Passion of the Christ captures this sacrifice and revelation of Christianity with tremendous detail.  Through the death and resurrection of Christ, a new way of living is revealed - that of compassion and forgiveness not scapegoating violence.  Also, there is identification with the victim rather than separation and disassociation.  It is interesting how there are so many films such as The Hunger Games, where you see this reoccurring theme of human sacrifice.  In many of the ancient sophisticated societies, human sacrifice was prevalent.  Today, in our sophisticated society, do you see signs of it emerging, does it already exist, or are we entirely separated from such atrocities?