Status
Available
Call number
Publication
Touchstone (1988), 506 pages
Description
In this story, Jesus is presented as both fully human and fully divine, free of sin but subject to all temptations.
User reviews
LibraryThing member RJRutstein
Nikos Kazantzakis is the greatest of the 20th century Greek writers, best known for his work Zorba the Greek, and is profoundly interested in the passions and emotions of human beings and how they relate spiritually to each other and to God. Kazantzakis writes about such great spiritual leaders and
I first read Kazantzakis novel St. Francis about 10 years ago, and it was through this novel that I was able to understand Francis’s relationship to God and to the world around him. St. Francis's spiritual search became something I could relate to and understand, and possibly even emulate to some extent. Here was a human being living a life he could no longer accept and taking action to change not only himself but hopefully those around him. It is also a novel about the development of a spiritual community dedicated to the service of others and service of God. I highly recommend this novel for anyone who is interested in spirituality, St. Francis, or the works of Kazantzakis.
The novel The Greek Passion is about a Greek village preparing to put on an Easter passion play. As the roles are handed out amongst the villagers everyone has a different role which they wish to play, and no one wishes to take on the role of Judas. However, once the roles are assigned, each individual begins to take on characteristics of the roles they are assigned. Their lives are changed in unforeseen ways as they begin to interact with each other based not so much on who they are, but on who they will be playing in the Passion. Eventually, as the story unfolds, the passion plays itself out in the community, as history repeats itself in the life of the village.
The Kazantzakis novel that I read over the holidays is the Last Temptation of Christ. Here too as Kazantzakis tells the story of a carpenter who become a spiritual leader, he is interested in how the human Christ accepts and takes on the role of teacher, prophet, Messiah. The two main characters of the novel are Christ and Judas. Christ is a teacher of peace, love, forgiveness; Judas is a man in search of a military Messiah, one who will lead Israel out from under the yoke of the Roman Empire. The human Christ knows and understands the role he is destined to play, and clearly foresees the pain and suffering that he will go through, and, understanding that, the temptation he feels is to avoid it. He understands the weaknesses of his followers and how in the end their own fears will lead them at least temporarily away from his side. From the beginning Christ senses the strength of Judas as a man of action and keeps him at his side. When Judas first meets up with Christ he finds his message of peace and love offensive; he even finds this message dangerous to his own goal of ridding Israel of the Romans. He decides to follow Christ and if necessary kill him to prevent his message from spreading. In the beginning of their journeys he vacillates between wanting to kill Christ and wanting to understand what he is teaching; and in the end he decides that Christ's teachings are what will ultimately free mankind. As the time for the passion draws near Jesus tells Judas that he must betray him. But Judas has come to love Jesus and begs him saying there must be another way. Christ tells him not to worry that he will rise again in three days. Judas tells Jesus that he will not have the strength to endure, but Jesus tells him that he does have the strength. Judas, bowing his head says, “if you had to betray your master would you do it?" And Jesus replies "No, I do not think I would be able to. That is why God took pity me and gave me the easier task: to be crucified." The humanity and passions in these two men, who have come to love and understand each other, give each the strength to do what must be done; Jesus to face the cross, and Judas to go down in history as a betrayer of man and God.
As we are now a decade into the 21st century I fear that the works of Nikos Kazantzakis may get left behind, that he will be remembered as the author of Zorba the Greek. But the richness of his novels and his understanding of human nature will hopefully lead to a new generation of readers. His stories are timeless and powerful, designed to lead us to an understanding of ourselves and the passions that drive us. We, as readers, fully understand the emotional needs, hopes and fears that drive his characters. Even the motivations of minor characters are laid before us, for how else can we understand what is taking place. His books are filled with real people, people we could recognize as friends, neighbors, acquaintances: or even ourselves. His characters are never bland or dull, that type of person Kazantzakis would not understand, he himself was a man filled with passion and a lust for life. Elie Wiesel writes of Kazantzakis; “The great writer carried me into an enchanted universe in which man pursues with equal stubbornness his battle with himself and with God.”
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St. Francis and Christ, but when he writes about them, and their spiritual experiences and teachings, he understands them first as human beings rather than as spiritual beings, and he understands their spirituality as coming from their humanity, and the crises they face must be understood from a human perspective; because it is only from the human perspective that we can truly begin to understand them.I first read Kazantzakis novel St. Francis about 10 years ago, and it was through this novel that I was able to understand Francis’s relationship to God and to the world around him. St. Francis's spiritual search became something I could relate to and understand, and possibly even emulate to some extent. Here was a human being living a life he could no longer accept and taking action to change not only himself but hopefully those around him. It is also a novel about the development of a spiritual community dedicated to the service of others and service of God. I highly recommend this novel for anyone who is interested in spirituality, St. Francis, or the works of Kazantzakis.
The novel The Greek Passion is about a Greek village preparing to put on an Easter passion play. As the roles are handed out amongst the villagers everyone has a different role which they wish to play, and no one wishes to take on the role of Judas. However, once the roles are assigned, each individual begins to take on characteristics of the roles they are assigned. Their lives are changed in unforeseen ways as they begin to interact with each other based not so much on who they are, but on who they will be playing in the Passion. Eventually, as the story unfolds, the passion plays itself out in the community, as history repeats itself in the life of the village.
The Kazantzakis novel that I read over the holidays is the Last Temptation of Christ. Here too as Kazantzakis tells the story of a carpenter who become a spiritual leader, he is interested in how the human Christ accepts and takes on the role of teacher, prophet, Messiah. The two main characters of the novel are Christ and Judas. Christ is a teacher of peace, love, forgiveness; Judas is a man in search of a military Messiah, one who will lead Israel out from under the yoke of the Roman Empire. The human Christ knows and understands the role he is destined to play, and clearly foresees the pain and suffering that he will go through, and, understanding that, the temptation he feels is to avoid it. He understands the weaknesses of his followers and how in the end their own fears will lead them at least temporarily away from his side. From the beginning Christ senses the strength of Judas as a man of action and keeps him at his side. When Judas first meets up with Christ he finds his message of peace and love offensive; he even finds this message dangerous to his own goal of ridding Israel of the Romans. He decides to follow Christ and if necessary kill him to prevent his message from spreading. In the beginning of their journeys he vacillates between wanting to kill Christ and wanting to understand what he is teaching; and in the end he decides that Christ's teachings are what will ultimately free mankind. As the time for the passion draws near Jesus tells Judas that he must betray him. But Judas has come to love Jesus and begs him saying there must be another way. Christ tells him not to worry that he will rise again in three days. Judas tells Jesus that he will not have the strength to endure, but Jesus tells him that he does have the strength. Judas, bowing his head says, “if you had to betray your master would you do it?" And Jesus replies "No, I do not think I would be able to. That is why God took pity me and gave me the easier task: to be crucified." The humanity and passions in these two men, who have come to love and understand each other, give each the strength to do what must be done; Jesus to face the cross, and Judas to go down in history as a betrayer of man and God.
As we are now a decade into the 21st century I fear that the works of Nikos Kazantzakis may get left behind, that he will be remembered as the author of Zorba the Greek. But the richness of his novels and his understanding of human nature will hopefully lead to a new generation of readers. His stories are timeless and powerful, designed to lead us to an understanding of ourselves and the passions that drive us. We, as readers, fully understand the emotional needs, hopes and fears that drive his characters. Even the motivations of minor characters are laid before us, for how else can we understand what is taking place. His books are filled with real people, people we could recognize as friends, neighbors, acquaintances: or even ourselves. His characters are never bland or dull, that type of person Kazantzakis would not understand, he himself was a man filled with passion and a lust for life. Elie Wiesel writes of Kazantzakis; “The great writer carried me into an enchanted universe in which man pursues with equal stubbornness his battle with himself and with God.”
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LibraryThing member the_awesome_opossum
The Last Temptation of Christ is a seminal and challenging work, which pushes readers to identify with Jesus on a human level, not just the divine and distant way in which most people are used to thinking about him. This can be uncomfortable for believers, to think of Jesus as having doubt or
And even stepping back from matters of faith, The Last Temptation is still a good story. The historical background of Judaism in first-century Israel is really well-done and gives the book an interesting atmosphere. The characters are dynamic and fleshed-out, much more than in the Bible, and I know that's going to color how I read the gospels from now on.
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second thoughts. But without them, Jesus is in some ways only a puppet; having a Christ with whom readers can relate allows for a deeper and more meaningful Christianity.And even stepping back from matters of faith, The Last Temptation is still a good story. The historical background of Judaism in first-century Israel is really well-done and gives the book an interesting atmosphere. The characters are dynamic and fleshed-out, much more than in the Bible, and I know that's going to color how I read the gospels from now on.
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LibraryThing member ursula
I'll just say right away that I have only the vaguest notions of what the Bible has to say about the life of Jesus Christ. I was raised in and out of various churches, so I heard a little of this, a little of that, but nothing really stuck with me. So while I was reading this book, I spent a lot of
All I can really base my opinion on are two things: its merits as a story, and how well it achieved what Kazantzakis said he was trying to do in his prologue: "I am certain that every free man who reads this book, so filled as it is with love, will more than ever before, love Christ." As a story, it's well-told. Jesus isn't sure what's different about him at first, and he fights against taking the path that seems to be laid out for him. For a while, he's kind of like "Fun Jesus" (not in the sense of Fun Bobby from Friends), preaching love, happiness and enjoyment. But soon enough his mood becomes more somber, as he realizes what will be ultimately asked of him. At that point, he turns into way-too-serious Jesus with a side of poor-me Jesus. As a result, I liked the first half of the book a lot more than the second half.
As for Kazantzakis' certainty that everyone would finish the book and love Christ, I'm not convinced. Depicting Jesus as a regular guy who had his doubts and wanted to find a solution that didn't involve his own death makes him seem more approachable, but when he begins the process of acceptance of his fate, he turns sanctimonious. He alternates between superior patience with his apostles and impatient anger at their unwillingness to face death when push comes to shove. Related to this is something else the author wrote in his prologue - he said, "I loved my body and did not want it to perish; I loved my soul and did not want it to decay." Putting that all-too-human struggle onto Christ is supposed to make him seem more like us and us more like him, but I didn't walk away with that feeling. I guess we're supposed to think that he reconciled himself to his fate because he knew it was worth it, important, had meaning, whatever, and that's great for him, but it doesn't exactly make me feel better about death as a general concept.
Recommended for: people who don't mind their Messiahs being too human, people who have more background in Christianity than I do.
Quote: "Without man, God would have no mind on this Earth to reflect upon his creatures intelligibly and to examine, fearfully yet impudently, his wise omnipotence. He would have on this Earth no heart to pity the concerns of others and to struggle to beget virtues and cares which God either did not want, or forgot, or was afraid to fashion. He breathed upon man, however, giving him the power and audacity to continue creation."
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time unsure of what was Biblically-based, what was based on some other apocryphal texts or traditions, and what came purely from Kazantzakis' imagination. This means that I have no idea what the apostles were really like, whether Jesus and Judas Iscariot were really besties, if Mary was bitter and disappointed that her son wasn't just a regular guy who was going to get married and give her grandchildren.All I can really base my opinion on are two things: its merits as a story, and how well it achieved what Kazantzakis said he was trying to do in his prologue: "I am certain that every free man who reads this book, so filled as it is with love, will more than ever before, love Christ." As a story, it's well-told. Jesus isn't sure what's different about him at first, and he fights against taking the path that seems to be laid out for him. For a while, he's kind of like "Fun Jesus" (not in the sense of Fun Bobby from Friends), preaching love, happiness and enjoyment. But soon enough his mood becomes more somber, as he realizes what will be ultimately asked of him. At that point, he turns into way-too-serious Jesus with a side of poor-me Jesus. As a result, I liked the first half of the book a lot more than the second half.
As for Kazantzakis' certainty that everyone would finish the book and love Christ, I'm not convinced. Depicting Jesus as a regular guy who had his doubts and wanted to find a solution that didn't involve his own death makes him seem more approachable, but when he begins the process of acceptance of his fate, he turns sanctimonious. He alternates between superior patience with his apostles and impatient anger at their unwillingness to face death when push comes to shove. Related to this is something else the author wrote in his prologue - he said, "I loved my body and did not want it to perish; I loved my soul and did not want it to decay." Putting that all-too-human struggle onto Christ is supposed to make him seem more like us and us more like him, but I didn't walk away with that feeling. I guess we're supposed to think that he reconciled himself to his fate because he knew it was worth it, important, had meaning, whatever, and that's great for him, but it doesn't exactly make me feel better about death as a general concept.
Recommended for: people who don't mind their Messiahs being too human, people who have more background in Christianity than I do.
Quote: "Without man, God would have no mind on this Earth to reflect upon his creatures intelligibly and to examine, fearfully yet impudently, his wise omnipotence. He would have on this Earth no heart to pity the concerns of others and to struggle to beget virtues and cares which God either did not want, or forgot, or was afraid to fashion. He breathed upon man, however, giving him the power and audacity to continue creation."
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LibraryThing member Kplatypus
A lot of people have grave misconceptions about this book, often based on the movie version and/or hearsay. This is a beautiful book. It is not at all anti-Christian. It offers a glimpse at what it might have meant to be the Christ, ie both completely human and completely divine. Too many authors
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focus only on the divine aspect, neglecting the human one. Kazantzakis did not shy away from what can be a difficult subject for Christianity, and in my eyes, he handled it brilliantly. A must-read for anyone interested in Christianity, whether from the inside or outside. Show Less
LibraryThing member elyreader
A powerful and intense novel which explores profound themes concerning the dual nature of human experience in general and the humanity of Christ in particular. A brief outline does not do justice to this challenging work. It shall live with me for some time.
LibraryThing member joeydag
I read this before Scorsese made his movie. I think he did a good job but I like the novel better.
LibraryThing member SoubhiKiewiet
I read this after loving the movie, and really liked the book too.
What does the bible leave out or twist or misinterpret? What if Jesus did give up at the end and what if he did have doubts? How can we know, and how can anyone trust that any version of a story is the complete truth?
What does the bible leave out or twist or misinterpret? What if Jesus did give up at the end and what if he did have doubts? How can we know, and how can anyone trust that any version of a story is the complete truth?
LibraryThing member PuddinTame
I stopped after a couple of chapters of this book. Some people feel that no-one should review a book that they didn't finish. I think that if one honestlly tried, and found it so ghastly one couldn't continue, that counts.
One reviewer found it brilliant that Kazantakis's characters are modern
Perhaps Jesus improves during the book, but in the beginning, he is a real wimp. Both he and Mary Magdalene are overwhelmed with angst and hyper-sensitivity. She became a whore because Jesus used to press her feet when they were children. Mabe there is something to reflexology.
The dreariness had overwhelmed after a few chapters. Life is too short.
One reviewer found it brilliant that Kazantakis's characters are modern
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Greek peasants, not ancient Jews. I thought that was on of the biggest problems. And I put the book down after one of the more obnoxious told us (again!) that two plus two equals four. How charitiable of his neighbors not to stone this know-it-all. If the characters are typical Greek peasants, they are not an ad for visiting the country.Perhaps Jesus improves during the book, but in the beginning, he is a real wimp. Both he and Mary Magdalene are overwhelmed with angst and hyper-sensitivity. She became a whore because Jesus used to press her feet when they were children. Mabe there is something to reflexology.
The dreariness had overwhelmed after a few chapters. Life is too short.
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LibraryThing member gbill
Kazantzakis’ controversial story of Jesus Christ is humanistic in the sense that Christ is portrayed as a man, struggling with real temptations of the flesh, and dealing with real emotions. It’s also Nietzschean in the sense that Christ transcends those temptations through force of will, and in
Despite those that would ban or burn the book, Kazantzakis was not trying to tear Christ down or cause controversy with the Church, he was trying to uplift Christ. It’s a spiritual story told by profound author. Kazantzakis was trying to illustrate the struggles that we all face between the flesh and the spirit, and by making Christ human, subject to all of our foibles, make him more powerful, and a source of greater strength to us.
Quotes:
On brotherhood:
“They are all brothers, every one of them, but they do not know it – and that is why they suffer.”
On death:
“Whoever has no fear of death is immortal.”
And:
“The two friends have parted and returned to their homes…the flesh to the soil and the soul to God.”
On eating animals:
“Good Lord, just think what poor old God must go through also,” he said with a laugh. “He certainly got himself in hot water when he created the world. The fish screams, Don’t blind me, Lord; don’t let me enter the nets! The fisherman screams, Blind the fish, Lord; make him enter the nets! Which one is God supposed to listen to? Sometimes he listens to the fish, sometimes to the fisherman – and that’s the way the world goes round!”
On God:
“He looked down and saw a preoccupied swarm of fat yellow-black ants filing hurriedly under his arches. Working in groups of twos or threes, they were carrying away the wheat in their roomy mandibles, one grain at a time. They had stolen it from the plain, right out of the mouths of men, and were transporting it now to their anthill, all the while praising God the Great Ant, who ever solicitous for his Chosen People the ants, sent floods to the plain at precisely the right moment, just when the wheat was stacked upon the threshing floors.”
On love, I love this one:
“If I were fire, I would burn; if I were a woodcutter, I would strike. But I am a heart, and I love.”
On temptation:
“Within me are the dark immemorial forces of the Evil One, human and pre-human; within me too are the luminous forces, human and pre-human, of God – and my soul is the arena where these two armies have clashed and met.”
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the process, achieves true freedom.Despite those that would ban or burn the book, Kazantzakis was not trying to tear Christ down or cause controversy with the Church, he was trying to uplift Christ. It’s a spiritual story told by profound author. Kazantzakis was trying to illustrate the struggles that we all face between the flesh and the spirit, and by making Christ human, subject to all of our foibles, make him more powerful, and a source of greater strength to us.
Quotes:
On brotherhood:
“They are all brothers, every one of them, but they do not know it – and that is why they suffer.”
On death:
“Whoever has no fear of death is immortal.”
And:
“The two friends have parted and returned to their homes…the flesh to the soil and the soul to God.”
On eating animals:
“Good Lord, just think what poor old God must go through also,” he said with a laugh. “He certainly got himself in hot water when he created the world. The fish screams, Don’t blind me, Lord; don’t let me enter the nets! The fisherman screams, Blind the fish, Lord; make him enter the nets! Which one is God supposed to listen to? Sometimes he listens to the fish, sometimes to the fisherman – and that’s the way the world goes round!”
On God:
“He looked down and saw a preoccupied swarm of fat yellow-black ants filing hurriedly under his arches. Working in groups of twos or threes, they were carrying away the wheat in their roomy mandibles, one grain at a time. They had stolen it from the plain, right out of the mouths of men, and were transporting it now to their anthill, all the while praising God the Great Ant, who ever solicitous for his Chosen People the ants, sent floods to the plain at precisely the right moment, just when the wheat was stacked upon the threshing floors.”
On love, I love this one:
“If I were fire, I would burn; if I were a woodcutter, I would strike. But I am a heart, and I love.”
On temptation:
“Within me are the dark immemorial forces of the Evil One, human and pre-human; within me too are the luminous forces, human and pre-human, of God – and my soul is the arena where these two armies have clashed and met.”
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LibraryThing member amanda4242
“In order to mount the Cross, the summit of sacrifice, and to God, the summit of immateriality, Christ passed through all the stages which the man who struggles passes through…That part of Christ’s nature which was profoundly human helps us to understand him and love him and pursue his
Any meaningful book about a religious figure is bound to cause strife, something Kazantzakis found out when he published The Last Temptation of Christ.
The book covers the last three years of Jesus’ life, from the start of his ministry to his death. Throughout, he fights against all temptations to stay on his path. At the end, as he is nailed to the cross, Satan comes to him with one last temptation: the chance for a normal human life. In a vision that lasts a fraction of a second, Jesus experiences the joys of marriage and fatherhood. As an old man reflecting on his life, he realizes that he has been deceived and rejects the false vision. The book ends with his acceptance of his death on the cross.
Kazantzakis’ depiction of Jesus as a man who struggled to fulfill his destiny caused a great deal of controversy. The Eastern Orthodox Church excommunicated him and the Roman Catholic Church placed the work on its Index of forbidden books. Religious organizations across America condemned the book–without, of course, having read it.
Those who read The Last Temptation of Christ will find that it is a moving book, written by a man of profound faith. Kazantzakis reminds us that true sacrifice must be difficult, that it must be a struggle, or it is meaningless.
I originally wrote this for The Tiger Print. It is reprinted with permission.
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Passion as though it were our own…We struggle, we see him struggle also, and we find strength. We see that we are not all alone in the world: he is fighting at our side."–Nikos Kazantzakis, The Last Temptation of ChristAny meaningful book about a religious figure is bound to cause strife, something Kazantzakis found out when he published The Last Temptation of Christ.
The book covers the last three years of Jesus’ life, from the start of his ministry to his death. Throughout, he fights against all temptations to stay on his path. At the end, as he is nailed to the cross, Satan comes to him with one last temptation: the chance for a normal human life. In a vision that lasts a fraction of a second, Jesus experiences the joys of marriage and fatherhood. As an old man reflecting on his life, he realizes that he has been deceived and rejects the false vision. The book ends with his acceptance of his death on the cross.
Kazantzakis’ depiction of Jesus as a man who struggled to fulfill his destiny caused a great deal of controversy. The Eastern Orthodox Church excommunicated him and the Roman Catholic Church placed the work on its Index of forbidden books. Religious organizations across America condemned the book–without, of course, having read it.
Those who read The Last Temptation of Christ will find that it is a moving book, written by a man of profound faith. Kazantzakis reminds us that true sacrifice must be difficult, that it must be a struggle, or it is meaningless.
I originally wrote this for The Tiger Print. It is reprinted with permission.
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LibraryThing member LisaJanes
This book, in many ways, helped me to understand and appreciate the full humanity of Jesus. Kazantzakis' account gave me permission as a believer of the gospel to see Jesus struggle towards his Christological end. It is indeed beautifully written and powerfully compelling to the believer and
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non-believer alike. Show Less
LibraryThing member AltheaAnn
Obviously, the novel re-tells the life of Christ. I doubt anyone doesn't remember the controversy that surrounded the movie, and apparently there was controversy at the book's publishing, too - to the extent that at his death, a Greek Archbishop wouldn't let his body 'lie in state' in his church.
Does it work, in that respect? Possibly not.
For one thing, I think when Kazantzakis says "man who struggles," that 'man' is not insignificant. Women are portrayed in this book largely as symbols - either of temptation, or of the 'earthly' way of life - hearth and children. It's said repeatedly that women do not yearn after eternity, they live in the moment; that their 'eternity' is here on earth. In order to achieve spiritual greatness, Jesus must reject women - not only as objects of lust or love, but as mother, family, and all earthly comfort.
Hmmph. Anything that portrays women as symbols rather than individuals is somewhat annoying to me.
And I've just never really bought into the idea that spiritual growth is attained by physical denial or renunciation.
So my personal problem with the ideas in the book starts there - but they're really issues I have with Chrisitanity in general, not with the book, specifically.
Interestingly, throughout the book, it's shown pretty frequently that people around Jesus seem pretty rational. Epileptic-type fits and Revelations-style 'visions' are seen as a sign of mental illness, as is his insistence on denying his mother. The wisdom of abandoning family, career and responsibilities to become an impoverished itinerant preacher is questioned - many characters state that the Way of God, or the right thing to do, is to marry and raise a family well.
I guess this weird conflict is still seen in Christianity today, when followers are encouraged to marry and have children, but priests and nuns are required to be celibate.
But the most unusual thing about this portrayal of Christ is his initial directionlessness. At first he is even unsure if his 'divine' inspiration comes from God or Satan. He is afraid to speak publicly. When he first becomes a public speaker, his message is all about love and pacifism. Later, after meeting John the Baptist, he becomes more revolutionary (but not without much inner conflict). And when he decides that becoming martyred is the right thing to do, it seems a sudden change of direction, not something that was in the plan all along.
Again, according to the afterword, this model for Jesus' personal development seems to mirror Kazantzakis', who changed tacks in his search for personal enlightenment many times in his life, exploring monasticism, Buddhism, Marxism and more during his life before writing this novel.
As a novel, it works pretty well. It's in translation (from demotic, or 'low' Greek), so it's hard to make judgements about the writing style. The 'flow' is sometimes made awkward, I felt, by the necessity of 'getting in' various parables or Biblical incidents, and there are occasional bits that I felt were probably historically inaccurate (would a peasant of Jesus' time have cursed 'Damn you to hell," for instance?) - but the characters of Jesus and his apostles were brought vividly and originally to life - his violent, zealous and brawny red-bearded Judas isn't someone I'll forget soon, nor is quiet, ink-stained Matthew, taking poetic liberties while writing down the life of Jesus (interesting stuff there, about the difference between literal truth and spiritual truth.)
Oh, and I won't be forgetting Lazarus-as-rotting-zombie, either!!! ohmy.gif
Overall, this is a book I'm glad I've read, even if I didn't agree with a lot of its message, and it certainly didn't change my spiritual views.
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However, it's my impression that nothing in the book was intended to be blasphemous. The afterword makes the point that in his own life, Kazantzakis was much concerned with the struggle between earthly and spiritual matters, and he shows Christ as a man, divinely inspired, yet beset by doubts and fears, in order to, in his own words, "offer a supreme model to the man who struggles," and, through an understanding of that struggle, to "love Christ more."Does it work, in that respect? Possibly not.
For one thing, I think when Kazantzakis says "man who struggles," that 'man' is not insignificant. Women are portrayed in this book largely as symbols - either of temptation, or of the 'earthly' way of life - hearth and children. It's said repeatedly that women do not yearn after eternity, they live in the moment; that their 'eternity' is here on earth. In order to achieve spiritual greatness, Jesus must reject women - not only as objects of lust or love, but as mother, family, and all earthly comfort.
Hmmph. Anything that portrays women as symbols rather than individuals is somewhat annoying to me.
And I've just never really bought into the idea that spiritual growth is attained by physical denial or renunciation.
So my personal problem with the ideas in the book starts there - but they're really issues I have with Chrisitanity in general, not with the book, specifically.
Interestingly, throughout the book, it's shown pretty frequently that people around Jesus seem pretty rational. Epileptic-type fits and Revelations-style 'visions' are seen as a sign of mental illness, as is his insistence on denying his mother. The wisdom of abandoning family, career and responsibilities to become an impoverished itinerant preacher is questioned - many characters state that the Way of God, or the right thing to do, is to marry and raise a family well.
I guess this weird conflict is still seen in Christianity today, when followers are encouraged to marry and have children, but priests and nuns are required to be celibate.
But the most unusual thing about this portrayal of Christ is his initial directionlessness. At first he is even unsure if his 'divine' inspiration comes from God or Satan. He is afraid to speak publicly. When he first becomes a public speaker, his message is all about love and pacifism. Later, after meeting John the Baptist, he becomes more revolutionary (but not without much inner conflict). And when he decides that becoming martyred is the right thing to do, it seems a sudden change of direction, not something that was in the plan all along.
Again, according to the afterword, this model for Jesus' personal development seems to mirror Kazantzakis', who changed tacks in his search for personal enlightenment many times in his life, exploring monasticism, Buddhism, Marxism and more during his life before writing this novel.
As a novel, it works pretty well. It's in translation (from demotic, or 'low' Greek), so it's hard to make judgements about the writing style. The 'flow' is sometimes made awkward, I felt, by the necessity of 'getting in' various parables or Biblical incidents, and there are occasional bits that I felt were probably historically inaccurate (would a peasant of Jesus' time have cursed 'Damn you to hell," for instance?) - but the characters of Jesus and his apostles were brought vividly and originally to life - his violent, zealous and brawny red-bearded Judas isn't someone I'll forget soon, nor is quiet, ink-stained Matthew, taking poetic liberties while writing down the life of Jesus (interesting stuff there, about the difference between literal truth and spiritual truth.)
Oh, and I won't be forgetting Lazarus-as-rotting-zombie, either!!! ohmy.gif
Overall, this is a book I'm glad I've read, even if I didn't agree with a lot of its message, and it certainly didn't change my spiritual views.
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LibraryThing member thorold
The last life-of-Christ novel I read was Saramago’s The gospel according to Jesus Christ, a powerful satire of the whole notion of religious faith. Kazantzakis is at the extreme opposite end of the spectrum, someone who has spent his life exploring every philosophical and theological idea the
I found this a much harder novel to get into than Christ recrucified: it got put back on the shelf several times before I got through the first few chapters. Peter Bien, the translator, admits that he had a hard time with Kazantzakis’s language, and it may be that he doesn't always get the tone quite right in English. I think it only really grabbed me when Kazantzakis gets to the Capernaum chapters. His fishermen are presented with a wonderful mix of humanity and cynicism that brings all the anguish and dreams-and-visions into some kind of context. From then on it had me riveted, and I read the rest of the book in a couple of days.
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nineteenth and twentieth centuries could throw at him, and has come down firmly on the side of religious faith. But his view of Christ, informed by his experience of Russia after the revolution and by the ideas of Nietzsche (and presumably also by his lifelong obsession with Odysseus), is hardly the conventional one. He has come to the conclusion that the conflict between the human and the divine sides of Christ’s nature is the key, and that it is only meaningful for us if it was a real conflict, if Christ was capable of succumbing to temptation. I found this a much harder novel to get into than Christ recrucified: it got put back on the shelf several times before I got through the first few chapters. Peter Bien, the translator, admits that he had a hard time with Kazantzakis’s language, and it may be that he doesn't always get the tone quite right in English. I think it only really grabbed me when Kazantzakis gets to the Capernaum chapters. His fishermen are presented with a wonderful mix of humanity and cynicism that brings all the anguish and dreams-and-visions into some kind of context. From then on it had me riveted, and I read the rest of the book in a couple of days.
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LibraryThing member DinadansFriend
A very fine rendition of the gospels as they might have been experienced. The Crucifiction isn't in this book, not the way the Pauline church would have it shown.
LibraryThing member Atomicmutant
Here's a book that people have certainly heard a lot about, and I was cautioned to approach carefully. Well, not to be too glib about it, but this is one case where the "remake" of the original stands up quite well. Although it is said that the original Greek version of this is quite a bit more
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effective than the English, I was quite taken by the prose and style nevertheless. The overall meditation on faith and the human condition is compelling and definitely devout and sincere. By imbuing the gospels with fleshed out minor characters and vivid place descriptions, Kazantzakis has also rendered them more vivid in a contemporary sense; you can really get a sense of what it could have been like to be there at the time, and feel the humanity behind what is obviously the ultimate symbolic tale. Show Less
LibraryThing member jmoncton
The Last Temptation of Christ retells the Gospels but fills in many details that are left out. But more than that, it portrays Christ as a man who struggles with his birthright and duty of sacrificing his life vs. living the life of an ordinary man - marrying, having children and growing old. This
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book is often featured on banned book lists. I'm not sure if it is because the added details of Christ's life are fictitious and possibly sacrilegious or because it portrays Jesus as an ordinary man who struggles with the temptation of pleasure over duty. What I enjoyed most about this book was that struggle because it is universal. We all get that choice at some point in our life to take the difficult road because it is expected of us or we know that the sacrifice we make is for the better good. Also loved the portrayal of Jesus' mother Mary and her sorrow of losing her son for a greater cause. Show Less
LibraryThing member Ricardus
Quite powerful, but I'd say he has a tendency to use overblown emotional prose as a substitute for coherence ...
LibraryThing member Anagarika-Sean
I absolutely love this book. It's one of my all-time favorites. It was interesting the way Mr. Kazantzakis portrayed Mary Magdalene and Jesus. His "last temptation" seemed, to me, totally plausible.
LibraryThing member NaleagDeco
This book (translation) is about two thirds awesome with a middle that is either contradictory or requires an awareness of (Greek Orthodox?) Catholicism that is well above my head.
Based on the beginning and much of the end, I'd much rather take this book as a relevant gospel than the source
It's once Jesus accepts his destiny that the book starts to get weird. There's a lot of mood whiplash between Jesus speaking violently and Jesus speaking of love. In the earlier moments Jesus subverts a lot of God's angry tone, but throughout the middle both are happening simultaneously, seemingly contradicting each other. This is to me where the book really shows its seams. I don't really understand or relate to Jesus in the middle, rather than being someone who fears for and struggles to comprehend his nature and fate, he does one thing and says another, with little justification.
The end becomes interesting again, but can't recover from that fatal flaw. The concept is amazing, and the idea of Jesus dreaming of a normal life during his Crucifixion is really compelling, but given how he seems to have eagerly accepted his role beforehand, it no longer makes sense. His feelings towards Magdalene, Mary, Martha and his Mother are unexplored, especially the death of the former and easy replacement with other wives, all evidently by God's hand.
His renunciation of the last temptation seems mostly from being guilt tripped by his disciple buddies having been screwed over, not by any higher ideals or motives.
It's possible there is a concept of Jesus I don't understand, being a post-Vatican II baby and not particularly devout or scholarly. The motivations of God and Jesus in the middle don't make any sense to me, despite the intention of the author.
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Other things: I love the writing style, and the way the author paints the episodes and the people. The characters are engaging and very relatable. I enjoy the seeming fan-fiction nature of bit characters showing up in relation to others, and parables being hinted at in random asides.
I don't get why the author seems to pick on Thomas and Simon Peter; his use of Judas Iscariot is incredibly daring, but dare I say the inversion of usual respect granted to the disciples seems mostly a 'darker and edgier' device from my vantage-point.
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All in all, I thought this book did a good job of connecting me to Jesus and his times, but the actions of God and a divine Jesus still were incredible unrelatable and cut through an otherwise compelling portrait like swiss cheese.
Based on the beginning and much of the end, I'd much rather take this book as a relevant gospel than the source
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materials. Jesus is a much more relatable character as someone who struggles with his destiny (which is very much what the author wanted to explore.)It's once Jesus accepts his destiny that the book starts to get weird. There's a lot of mood whiplash between Jesus speaking violently and Jesus speaking of love. In the earlier moments Jesus subverts a lot of God's angry tone, but throughout the middle both are happening simultaneously, seemingly contradicting each other. This is to me where the book really shows its seams. I don't really understand or relate to Jesus in the middle, rather than being someone who fears for and struggles to comprehend his nature and fate, he does one thing and says another, with little justification.
The end becomes interesting again, but can't recover from that fatal flaw. The concept is amazing, and the idea of Jesus dreaming of a normal life during his Crucifixion is really compelling, but given how he seems to have eagerly accepted his role beforehand, it no longer makes sense. His feelings towards Magdalene, Mary, Martha and his Mother are unexplored, especially the death of the former and easy replacement with other wives, all evidently by God's hand.
His renunciation of the last temptation seems mostly from being guilt tripped by his disciple buddies having been screwed over, not by any higher ideals or motives.
It's possible there is a concept of Jesus I don't understand, being a post-Vatican II baby and not particularly devout or scholarly. The motivations of God and Jesus in the middle don't make any sense to me, despite the intention of the author.
--
Other things: I love the writing style, and the way the author paints the episodes and the people. The characters are engaging and very relatable. I enjoy the seeming fan-fiction nature of bit characters showing up in relation to others, and parables being hinted at in random asides.
I don't get why the author seems to pick on Thomas and Simon Peter; his use of Judas Iscariot is incredibly daring, but dare I say the inversion of usual respect granted to the disciples seems mostly a 'darker and edgier' device from my vantage-point.
--
All in all, I thought this book did a good job of connecting me to Jesus and his times, but the actions of God and a divine Jesus still were incredible unrelatable and cut through an otherwise compelling portrait like swiss cheese.
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Subjects
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
1955
Physical description
5.5 inches
ISBN
0671672576 / 9780671672577