Why has Tom Cruise been recast as Jesus?

The BibleWalk Museum in Mansfield, Ohio, is a collection of more than three hundred wax figures. Its guided tours include the Miracles of the Old Testament, the Life of Christ, the Heart of the Reformation, the Museum of Christian Martyrs, and Amazing Grace–The Journeys of Paul. There’s also a “Dinner with Grace,” a Bible-themed dinner theater on the property.

Many of the museum’s wax figures come from closed wax museums around the country or were bought from manufacturers that had a surplus. Some were celebrities in their previous lives.

For instance, a wax figure of Prince Charles is now Abel, the murdered brother of Cain. A wax figure of Prince Philip serves as an angel. Elizabeth Taylor is in the King Solomon scene, apparently playing the Queen of Sheba. Steve McQueen and John Travolta have roles as well; Tom Cruise has been recast as Jesus.

Journalists and comedians have made fun of the museum for reusing celebrity figures. However, director Julie Mott-Hardin sees a larger purpose behind the publicity they have received: “Deep down, we believe that God sends each person here, so I want to make sure–as much as it’s in me–that they’re getting out of their experience here everything that God wanted them to get.”

Pastor Brunson returns home

Our post-Christian society is looking for significance in the wrong places. We focus on the celebrities in our culture and miss the ordinary people who are doing extraordinary things in God’s power for God’s glory.

For instance, American pastor Andrew Brunson served for years in Turkey without public recognition or acclaim. He was pastor of a twenty-five-member church in Izmir, Turkey, when he was arrested two years ago and falsely charged with engaging in espionage.

For a time, he was held with twenty-one other prisoners in a cell designed for eight. He lost fifty pounds while in prison.

The pastor faced up to thirty-five years in prison but maintained his innocence throughout his…