German Catholic leaders called Mel Gibson's film "The Passion of Christ" problematic Thursday and said they were worried it could be used to stir anti-Semitism.
The graphic film, portraying Christ's last hours, opened in the United States last week amid a storm of controversy. Some Jewish groups say it blames Jews for Jesus's death.
"We urgently warn against using the suffering of Jesus as an instrument for anti-Semitism," the German Bishops' Conference said in a statement at the end of its semi-annual meeting.
"With its drastic portrayal of atrocities, the film reduces in a problematic way the message of the Bible," they said.
"This can lead to misunderstandings with viewers that are not familiar with Christianity. We believe that accompanying information to better understand the film is needed."
Jewish leaders had urged Gibson to appear in an on-screen post-script to tell viewers not to blame Jews.
Israel's Chief Rabbi has urged Pope John Paul to speak out against the film to prevent Christian-Jewish relations from being undermined.
The Vatican has made no official comment on the film, which opens in Germany on March 18, but top cardinals and archbishops, speaking in a personal capacity, have praised it and said they did not find it anti-Semitic.
In the 1960s the Vatican rejected the notion that the Jews were collectively responsible for the death of Jesus.
Gibson, a traditionalist Catholic who rejects the 1965 Vatican reforms, has denied the film is anti-Semitic.