Sta “Passion of the Christ” (2004), Mel Gibson’s much discussed passion film, one of the opening scenes is Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. The betrayal of Judas has already happened, and the soldiers are already on their way. However, first an androgynous figure appears there, pale and hooded: “Do you think that one person can bear the burden of all sins? No one can. It costs too much to save their souls,” he tells Jesus. He continues to pray, asking the Father for courage. Finally, a snake jumps out from under the figure’s feet and crawls up to Jesus. He steps on him and kills him.

In the films of religious content, which are now coming to the fore, the presence of Satan, the Devil, is of particular interest. The forms in which it appears, the circumstances in which it appears and their interpretation, apart from scenarios dictated by the sacred texts themselves, certainly have to do with the beliefs and aesthetics of the screen creators. “For example, Gibson, a devout Catholic, we know he had his addictions and trials with alcoholism. It certainly left its mark,” says theologian Dimitris Ulis, author of, among other things, the book “Devil on Celluloid”published by Armos.

And he continues: “The classical Christian image of the Devil is associated with paganism, namely with the horned Pan. Since then, femininity has often been associated with sexual temptation, Christianity, starting mainly with St. Augustine, has “problems” with sexuality, and a serious Christian like Gibson cannot ignore this. Finally, there is a shadow element (for example, a hood), which is also found already on Byzantine icons, where the Devil is depicted in shadow and in black tones.

Another cinematic – and literary – work that best depicts the confrontation between Jesus and Satan is “The Last Temptation” (1988) by Martin Scorsese based on the book of the same name by Nikos Kazantzakis. There we see Willem Dafoe’s Christ retreating into the desert, where he is visited by the temptation-Devil in various guises: a black serpent speaking in the voice of the Magdalene, a lion symbolizing strength, and a jet of fire inviting him to seize what is his. In the final part of the film, with Jesus on the cross, a young girl comes to take him by the hand and lead him into an alternative life, where his lust for Magdalene is satisfied and he himself becomes a family man.

“The Last Temptation” essentially again contains an element of sexuality, adding an element of “normal” life, marriage and family, a path followed by the vast majority of the Jews of his time. Basically, the temptation that keeps coming back in other films and literature is that “sit on your balls, build a family, don’t get involved.” But if he had, Jesus would have become just “another brick in the wall” and not the revolutionary he was,” notes Mr. Ulis. The fact that the ecclesiastical hierarchy that succeeded Jesus systematically promoted precisely this “normality” of temptation simply proves the ironic dimension of man’s historical journey…

“The same thing happens with priestly authority. There is no founder of a religion who fought against the authority of the priesthood more fiercely than Jesus. Later Christianity, instead of taking this criticism into account, confirmed it. However, we do not need to take anti-clericalism lightly. These are the classic symptoms of all religions as they pass from their revolutionary phase to the next. God is both love and law. That is why religion often attracts and repels us at the same time.”

As for Mel Gibson, he is soon going to turn his attention to the sequel to The Passion of the Christ, which will focus on the Resurrection, and, according to the American director, the fall of angels and the descent into hell. And Jim Caviezel, who is returning to play Jesus, said in an interview that “this is going to be the greatest film the world has ever seen.”