Concerned about a lack of what she considers to be wholesome entertainment, Shirley sets out to make a religious film and asks Abed for help. However, Abed is consumed in the project, which evolves into a gratuitously meta study of the relationship between Jesus and God, with Abed himself in the starring role. Shirley worries about the blasphemous implications while Abed sweeps the rest of the school into his vision.
Meanwhile, Pierce grows fed up with being the "child" of the study group despite being the oldest member and joins the "hipsters", a trouble-causing clique of other senior citizens.
The Community episode "Messianic Myths and Ancient Peoples" provides examples of:
- Aside Glance:
Abed: This is the movie.
- Crowning Moment of Heartwarming: "You humble me." "You humble me too."
- Crying Wolf/Playing Sick: Leonard's comrade Richard continually says, "Where am I? What year is this?" and the rest of the seniors laugh at this genius ploy of getting out of trouble. This leads to a Tear Jerker moment towards the end when Pierce and the others discover Richard is actually suffering from dementia, and may or may not have been previously faking.
- Everybody Is Jesus in Purgatory: In-universe. Abed's idea for a viral video for Shirley's church was a film about a filmmaker who was making a film about Jesus who realized that he himself was Jesus was having a film made about him.
- Dresses the Same: In The Tag Abed and Troy both Speak in Unison with and dress the same as Jeff. Annie apparently wanted in on the gag too, but got stuck in traffic and arrives just after the joke has ended.
- Freudian Slip: That's Dopey.
- Friendship Moment: Abed makes a new, actually serviceable Jesus rap video for Shirley.
- Funny Background Event: Jeff awkwardly dancing in the background in the pre-opening credits scene.
- Jesus Delusion: Abed comes uncomfortably close to it.
- Jesus Was Way Cool: How Abed reacts after reading the New Testament.
- Last Supper Steal: Abed and his production crew.
- One-Woman Wail: A female vocalist ululates Abed's name for a sort of joking Biblical epic effect many times throughout the episode, then in the "dramatic" ending, the singer eerily wails Shirley's name.
- Recycled In Space: This episode is The Man With the Movie Camera WITH RELIGIOUS SUBTEXT.
- Screw Politeness, I'm A Senior!: Leonard and his elderly clique, the "Hipsters", so called because they all have replaced hips.
- Shrouded in Myth: "I heard it's the same film backwards and forwards."
- Stop Copying Me: Jeff's reaction to the Dresses the Same gag.
- Team Dad/Team Mom: The roles are the most obvious with Jeff and Britta, but the entire study group plays the "concerned family" in Pierce's B-plot.
- Toxic Friend Influence
- A Worldwide Punomenon: "Hipsters"
