The Last Temptation of Christ - book by Nikos Kazantzakis

 

Once again, one book leads to another - this time John Lurie mentioned being an extra in the film version of The Last Temptation of Christ due to how much he enjoyed the book, so I picked this up. As I'm reading it, I am sure that I have experienced it previously, although I can't remember whether it was back when I was a teen or more recently. Regardless, it is a tome worth revisiting. 

In this version of the well known tale, Jesus is a conflicted man haunted by dreams, visions, paralyzing headaches, a bed-ridden father, a mother who doesn't understand his compulsions, and the need to self flagellate in order to free himself of his (real or imagined) sins. He is a carpenter who betrays his people by making crosses for the Romans to crucify his fellow Jews until he can stand his life no longer and flees into the desert in order to join a monastery. 

Here he more or less comes to terms with his destiny and begins his preachin'n'wanderin'. Kazantzakis basically follows the Biblical story of Jesus, although the reader is never truly sure whether the characters are seized by holiness or madness. The apostle Matthew writes the Gospel as he follows Jesus, but he elaborates'n'embellishes in order to make his life fit in with the prophecies and in order to make miracles happen. There's also some hints that he might be mad. But, that could also apply to Jesus, whose message is confusing'n'contradictory and changes regularly and who certainly has a martyr complex.

The last temptation doesn't occur until Christ has been crucified, of course, when the devil tempts him with the pleasures of the real world that he missed out on throughout his life. Of course, he eventually resists this temptation and his destiny is fulfilled, but Kazantzakis ends the story with his death, so we never know in this tale whether he returns from the dead or not.

I always enjoy a tale that challenges the typical, accepted storyline, whether its the Bible or the likes of Dracula, and this is a well done take. Now that I think of it, there obviously have been a number of different interpretations of the Bible - I wonder if this is one of the first?