pointing out that Mel Gibson's 2004 film The Passion of the Christ, which contains very few scenes that do not feature graphic violence or suffering, was more financially successful than any previous film about Jesus. The film references poll results indicating that 44% of Americans believe, to some degree, that Jesus will come back to Earth in their lifetime, and that this sort of thinking is not conducive to long-term governmental policies. Interviews and commentary Several notable personalities make appearances in the documentary: Scott Butcher is the creator of the Rapture Letters.com website. Richard Carrier is an atheist activist and scholarly writer on the Christ Myth Theory, who holds a PhD in ancient history from Columbia University. Alan Dundes was an anthropologist and folklorist. Until his death shortly after being interviewed for the documentary, he was Professor of Folklore and Anthropology at the University of California, Berkeley. Sam Harris neuroscientist, philosopher, and author of The End of Faith, Letter to a Christian Nation, and The Moral Landscape. Barbara Mikkelson and David P. Mikkelson are the founders of Snopes.com. Robert M. Price is Professor of Biblical Criticism at the Council for Secular Humanism's Center for Inquiry Institute. Ronald Sipus, principal of Village Christian School, which Brian Flemming attended as a youth. Sipus walked out of the interview, accusing Flemming of misrepresenting himself and his reasons for the interview. The following only appear on the DVD's commentary track: Richard Dawkins is an evolutionary biologist and science writer who has argued for atheism, such as in his book The God Delusion. Earl Doherty is a contemporary advocate of the Jesus Myth theory and author of The Jesus Puzzle. The Raving Theist is a lawyer and former atheist blogger, who has since converted to Christianity. Among the Christians shown in the film were attendees at a Billy Graham Crusade event at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California on November 18, 2004. Reception Critical reviews A reviewer for Impose Magazine wrote that the film "poses some serious questions" and said, "if nothing else, this film should be recognized as an important addition to the study of Gibson's masterwork. Film scholars should take note. This is an idiosyncratic film that weaves the arc of Flemming's transition from a religious life to a non-religious life into the larger questions surrounding the dilemma of a 'belief in God.' It's a bold undertaking and he pulls it off." Rovi