The Last Temptation of Christ by Nikos Kazantzakis
"The Last Temptation of Christ," a novel by Nikos Kazantzakis, reimagines the life of Jesus of Nazareth within the context of Roman-occupied Israel. The narrative begins with Jesus grappling with his identity and the weight of his possible role as the Messiah. Facing the pressure to join a rebellious uprising led by Judas Iscariot against the Romans, Jesus ultimately refuses, struggling with his fear of crucifixion and his longing for a normal life filled with love, family, and earthly joys.
Throughout the story, Jesus's journey includes miracles, confrontations with temptation, and profound personal struggles, including his relationship with Mary Magdalene. The novel culminates in a dramatic interpretation of the crucifixion, where Jesus experiences a vivid temptation to abandon his divine mission for earthly happiness. The story explores complex themes of faith, sacrifice, and the human condition, ultimately portraying Jesus's profound internal conflict between his divine purpose and his desires. Kazantzakis’s work is notable for its bold and controversial take on biblical themes, prompting discussions about the nature of spirituality and the human experience in relation to divinity.
The Last Temptation of Christ by Nikos Kazantzakis
First published:Ho teleutaios peirasmos, 1955 (English translation, 1960)
Type of work: Novel
Type of plot: Psychological realism
Time of plot: First century c.e.
Locale: Israel
Principal Characters
Jesus , a carpenter of NazarethSimeon , his uncle, a rabbiBarabbas , a banditMary Magdalene , a prostituteSimon Peter , ,Andrew , ,James , ,John , ,Philip , ,Judas Iscariot , ,Thomas , andMatthew , Jesus’ disciples
The Story
Israel is occupied by the forces of the Roman Empire. In his village of Nazareth in Galilee, Jesus has just finished building a cross ordered by the Romans when Judas Iscariot, a member of the rebel group called the Zealots, comes to ask his help. Judas’s leader, known simply as the Zealot, has been sentenced to be crucified that same day. Judas believes that the Zealot is the Messiah promised to the Jews by the ancient prophets, the man who will save Israel, and that if the people rise up against the Romans to prevent his execution, the Zealot will reveal himself as the Messiah and cast the Romans out of Israel.
Jesus refuses to take part in the rebellion, which he knows the Romans will crush. He has long suspected that he himself is the Messiah, but he is terrified of crucifixion, and he is angry that the role God has chosen for him will deny him the earthly joys beloved by all men in ancient Israel: a hearth, a home, a loving wife, and children. When he was younger he loved Mary Magdalene, but the hand of God kept them apart, and Jesus blames himself for Mary’s descent into sin.
Jesus’ fear and anger have led him to rebel against God, and as part of that rebellion he has built the cross for the execution of the Zealot. He delivers the cross to the Romans and helps to set it in place. The people of Nazareth are stunned, and the planned rebellion never occurs. After the crucifixion, the people call Jesus a traitor, and Jesus, ashamed, sets out for a distant monastery, where he stays for some months. There he gives himself to God and begins his ministry.
For some months, Jesus wanders Galilee and Judea, preaching the Gospel. At Capernaum he saves Mary Magdalene from a mob under the sway of Barabbas, the bandit and Zealot. He is baptized by John the Baptist, then he goes into the desert and wrestles with Satan, who appears to him as a serpent with the eyes and breasts of a woman. Satan offers Jesus the world and, in particular, Mary Magdalene, whom Jesus, the man, still loves. Jesus resists, hoping that he has conquered temptation, but Satan promises to see him again at Passover.
Jesus continues preaching, performing miracles, and gathering followers. In Cana he cures the daughter of Rufus, the Roman centurion of Nazareth, of a mysterious disease. In Bethany, he raises Lazarus from the dead. In Jerusalem, he turns the money changers out of the temple. There, on Jesus’ own orders, Judas betrays him to the hypocritical Pharisees, who arrest him for blasphemy. Lacking the legal authority to punish prisoners, the Pharisees turn Jesus over to the Roman ruler of Judea, Pontius Pilate, and they demand that Jesus be crucified. Pilate, no stranger to the ruthless suppression of troublemakers, complies.
On the cross, Jesus experiences his last temptation. In agony, his head swimming, he shouts, “My God, my God!” but he faints before he can finish. While he is unconscious, an angel comes to him and tells him that his crucifixion has been a dream, a test of his resolve. The angel explains that the disciples have all run away, and that Jesus’ reward for his suffering is to be the earthly joys that have for so long been denied him. The angel leads him to Mary Magdalene and her servant. Jesus and Mary make love, but a short time later Mary is stoned to death by an angry mob. Jesus returns to Bethany, where he marries Lazarus’s sister, Mary. He later enters into a bigamous relationship with Mary and her sister, Martha.
The years pass, and Jesus prospers. Mary and Martha give him many children. As an old man, near death, Jesus is visited by his aged disciples, including Judas, who reviles him as a traitor. Jesus realizes that the angel who led him down from the cross was really Satan in disguise and that all his years of happiness with Mary and Martha are an illusion conjured up by Satan to sway Jesus from his divine purpose. In an instant he finishes his cry, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” and is transported back onto the cross, thereby completing his divine mission.
Bibliography
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