In the 1959 film...
Illustration
In the 1959 film epic Ben Hur, Director William Wyler told the story of Judah Ben Hur. Judah is wrongly convicted of attempting to assassinate the new Roman governor, Gratus, when a roof tile dislodges scaring his horse and causing injury. He is assigned ultimately to service upon a Roman galley as an oarsman where he meets an admiral named Quintus Arrius. Arrius, after whipping Ben Hur, comes to appreciate the character of the slave known to him only as #41. Three years' service on the flagship has toughened Ben Hur.
In a key scene the Romans do battle with a Macedonian pirate fleet. As the battle approaches, the admiral orders Judah's shackles undone in response to an earlier conversation with the man about freedom. Their ship is rammed, the oars are smashed, and the ship boarded. Judah escapes, strangles a guard, retrieves the keys and frees many of the other slaves from death by drowning. Upon going on deck, Judah sees the state of the battle and observes Quintus Arrius being knocked overboard while wearing his heavy armor. Judah pulls him to some floating debris and frees him from the armor. The admiral's assumption is that the battle has been lost and he attempts suicide in shame. In a poignant conversation the next morning, Arrius asks: "Why did you save me?"
Judah responds, "Why did you have me unchained?"
Later another Roman ship picks them up and they discover the perceived defeat was, in fact, a victory. Arrius comments to Judah: "In his eagerness to save you, your God has also saved the Roman fleet." They are both saved through association with one another. The text bespeaks holiness in association with Christ.
