Rotation.org Writing Team
"We don't need another hero"
a Lesson Plan for Youth
for the "Judges Then, Judges Now" Lesson Set
Overview
This lesson features two video clips that present the same poignant song, "We Don't Need Another Hero," in two different ways and two different heroes (Mad Max and Jesus). The first version is sung by Tina Turner, "the Queen of Thunderdome," and the second is sung by Pilate and Jesus in The Passion.
"The Passion" was the 2016 live TV performance featuring pop stars Seal and JenCarlos as Pilate and Jesus. The song is sung during Jesus' trial, which make the original lyrics leap with new meaning. Pilate looks at Jesus as a failed hero. Jesus responds that there's "something better."
This "youth lesson" is something of a departure for the Rotation Writing Team. Normally we focus on elementary kids. But while working on the "Judges Then, Judges Now" lesson set, we realized that every lesson in the set could easily be adapted for younger and older youth classes, ...and should be The topic of "violence and outsiders" is especially important for this age group and very much in the news, in the movies, and in their lives.
Ideally, you will teach this youth lesson after you have introduced the Book of Judges, its themes and problems, in a previous lesson. I suggest using either the "Yay Boo!" dramatic reading lesson, or the "What would Jesus Say" lesson plan in this set. Both give students an overview of Judges.
Read the Bible Background for this lesson set for some great insights into the Book of Judges, and how Christians deal with its issues and violence. The Background will also give you a number of talking points to share.
"Mad Max," Jesus, and the Book of Judges?
Perhaps you're not a fan of the Max Max movies, but its very likely that your teens are, at least, of the popular 2016 reboot of the movie. Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome received high marks from critics when it came out. Ebert gave it 4 out of 4 stars. The lyrics of its famous lead song and its plot speak volumes to the world we live in, and world we hope for.
The Book of Judges and the world of Mad Max have a lot in common. Both are violent stories featuring oppressed people trying to break free. (But I must say, the violence in Judges makes Mad Max seem merely "angry.")
Mad Max is a vision of a dystopian future.
The Book of Judges is a record of a dystopian past
Both feature "heroes."
Both seek answers to brokenness.
The answer is Jesus.
As the Bible Background makes clear, Judges judges itself. It shows that violence is not the answer. Mad Max makes a similar conclusion, albeit, the heroes in both try to use violence to achieve what they consider peace.
The Two Video Clips for this lesson
In the first video clip, we see Tina Turner dressed in her Thunderdome costume and belting out the song, The video is interspersed with clips from the movie, Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (the 3rd and best in the series). Surprisingly, her song is as good today as it was when it received a Grammy nomination.
"Thunderdome" is to the movie what the Coliseum was to Rome, a place of violence to placate and distract the people. In the movie, Mad Max is captured by and eventually destroys the city and its corruption symbolized by the Thunderdome. Tina Turner plays the over-the-top "lord" of Thunderdome, ...which makes her lyrics in the song something of a lament (agreement) that Thunderdome must exist at all. But the first clip only sets us up for the amazing SECOND clip, where Jesus and Pilate sing the "Thunderdome" song.
Here's the first clip. A fan created it and it shows various scenes from the movie keyed to certain lyrics. It definitely gets across the impression that "we just need to know the way home" -- the direction away from violence, oppression, and needing people to always have to battle against injustice, rather than creating a future that is based on it!
If the links go dead, let us know and look for similar videos on YouTube posted by others.
In the second video clip, we see Pilate and Jesus singing the song in the amazing television production of The Passion. It too becomes something of a "Jesus lament" ...and a promise that "something better" is coming. Roman occupied Jerusalem had become something of a "thunderdome" -a place where violence was used to keep the peace, and Jesus walked head-long into.
Start the video at about 1:30 into it. The song begins at about 3:20.
Yes, that's Jesus in the orange jumpsuit. The Passion was a live TV presentation of the story of Jesus. It was produced by Tyler Perry and performed outdoors in New Orleans in 2016. They used a number of hit songs and popular singers to tell the story. (We hope they'll release it on DVD soon.)
Here are some key teaching points:
Jesus and "Mad Max" are two anti-heroes, but each in a different way. Max is a reluctant savior. He doesn't want to be a hero, but becomes one to save others, ...who embrace him. Why do people need a hero?
Jesus, on the other hand, IS the Savior, but the people reject him. Why? What kind of Savior-hero is Jesus offering them that is so unappealing?
Max fights evil in an Old Testament kind of way. Jesus fights evil in a New Testament kind of way. How did each choose to fight? What's the difference? Is Jesus' way better? How?
The broken world of Judges Then and Now still thinks the answer is violence, oppression, hate, spreading fear of outsiders. Our kids experience it on the news, in school, and sadly, some even at home. What is Jesus' answer to that way of living and treating each other?
Hint: Use the attached "Jesus Quotes" handout! It was written for another lesson in this set, but should be used to help your students see Jesus' answer to what the world needs, and what our difficult relationships need.
Scripture
Judges 21:25
Various Jesus Quotes (handout attached)
Various stories from the Book of Judges (presented in Week One).
Preparation and Materials
- Read the Bible Background and scripture.
- Make copies of the Jesus scripture handout
- Make copies of the lyrics to the song, "We Don't Need Another Hero," found on many lyrics websites, including this one.
- Download, preview and prepare to watch the two video clips. See how-to below.
Video clip 1: https://youtu.be/x8W4DEMUSeM
Video clip 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?...youtu.be&t=2m53s - Read a brief synopsis online at RottenTomatoes.com of the Max Max Beyond Thunderdome movie so you can share its story in brief during the lesson to set up the video clip.
How to download videoclips off of Youtube: Copy the clip's URL from YouTube and paste it into the conversion tool at www.clipconverter.cc. It will convert it to MP4 format (common video format) and let you download it. Then you can burn to a disc or put on a flash drive and bring to the classroom for playback on a DVD player, computer, or smart tv.
Note about The Passion video clip: We are hoping to soon see them release the full version of The Passion on DVD. For now, all we have is a clip of the tv production on Youtube.
A Two Week Lesson Plan
Week One:
Introduce the stories of Judges using either the "Yay Boo!" dramatic reading lesson, or the "What would Jesus Say" lesson plan in this set.
Week Two: "We Don't Need Another Hero"
Open
Recap the previous week's lesson. Write on the board as much as they can remember about the Judges stories. Give them hints to trigger their memory.
Introduce & Play Video Clip 1: "We Don't Need Another Hero" (Tina Turner)
Introduce the Clip: See how much of the movie your students may know or have seen. Fill in their knowledge with a brief synopsis online of the Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome plot. Tell them the clip features the famous singer, Tina Turner, who also plays the lord of Thunderdome in the movie.
Play the Clip - We Don't Need Another Hero (featuring Tina Turner)
Hand out the lyrics and ask some questions.
- How is the world today like "Thunderdome"?
- What's wrong with today's heroes?
- What's that "something better" we are looking for?
Introduce and Play the Second Video Clip: "We Don't...." from The Passion
Introduce the Clip: Ask your students if they know who Seal and JenCarlos, and Tyler Perry are. Point out that Seal is playing Pilate, and JenCarlos is playing Jesus (in the orange prison jumpsuit). Tell them a little bit about The Passion which was taped live in New Orleans. (See notes above.)
Play the Clip: "We Don't...." from The Passion
Start it at about 1:30 minutes into the video (Pilate interrogates Jesus, then they sing)
Ask: Why do you think Tyler Perry chose Tina Turner's song for The Passion? (How do its lyrics help tell Jesus' story, what's on both Pilate and Jesus' minds, at his trial?)
For The Passion, they removed the word "thunderdome" and replaced it with, "The Love We Know" ...why did they do that? What were they trying to say? What is the "Love We Know"? How is the love that Christ showed us different from what we knew, ...from what the world teaches?
Note: Tina Turner herself was a victim of domestic violence. When she broke from her husband, her career took off and she became a pop culture icon and advocate for women.
Reflect on Jesus' Words about Enemies, Violence, Peace, Etc.
Go through the Jesus Quotes Handout.
Ask: How is Jesus' word different than the way the world does things?
Ask: How is Jesus "better" than a hero?
Read Judges 21:25, "Judges' Last Word"
Before reading Judges 21:25 together, point out that it is the "last word" in Judges. Ask them, "what do you usually expect to hear in someone's "last words"? (the truth, the conclusion, the moral of the story).
Say: Even Judges Knows the Judges Failed and Violence Fails. Jesus is the true "last word."
##
Excerpt from "We Don't Need Another Hero"
We don't need another hero,
We don't need to know the way home
All we want is life beyond the Thunderdome.
Looking for something we can rely on
There's got to be something better out there.
Mmmm, love and compassion, their day is coming
All else are castles built in the air
And I wonder when we are ever gonna change?
Living under the fear, till nothing else remains.
We don't need another hero,
We don't need to know the way home
All we want is life beyond the Thunderdome.
Comments
These prophetic lyrics might well have been sung by those in Israel who were SICK of all the wars and bloodshed of Judges, and those of us who are sick of the violence in our world today. Tina Turner plays the failed leader in the movie, "Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome." One can imagine Deborah and Samson singing the same sentiments.
The pop lyrics profoundly summarize the disillusionment and longing believers THEN AND NOW have felt when confronted by fear, despots, failed religion, leaders, pastors, and prophets who are less than Christ-like and preach something other than peace. In the movie, "Thunderdome" represents the world gone bad. Brutal, violent, full of fear and refugees --it could have been somewhere in Judge's Israel. A reluctant Christ-like figure (Mad Max) leads people to hope for "something better out there." (No, the movie hero isn't perfect, but the theme is ancient and universal.)
Jesus enters history calling people to "a life beyond," to "something we can rely on," ...to a "love and compassion whose day is coming." (And they called him "mad" too.)
We follow the Prince of Peace, not Deborah or Gideon, or Saul or David, or Max.
Jesus leads us into a new "Promised Land," a Kingdom of the heart, not won by the sword –but by compassion and peace. Already God's land, it is populated with his children, and they need to hear their Father's gracious word, and believe in his way of living.
Written by Neil MacQueen for the Rotation.org Writing Team
Copyright 2017, Rotation.org Inc.
