Dostoevsky made his character Ivan Karamazov create a poem, the Grand Inquisitor, in which he orders the arrest of Christ, returned to earth, condemning him to death at the stake.
Bunuel takes up the theme again in this Nazarín. It is not Christ, but a Catholic priest, determined to follow Jesus' example, to the last consequences. It is not the inquisition that persecutes and condemns him, but rather the contemporary Church and society, led by rich property owners, who persist in using the name of Christ to manipulate the faith of the ignorant people, for their benefit.
This essential idea has been repeated over the centuries, under the most varied heresies and ideologies. The Christian message is one of peace, solidarity, love, detachment from material goods, sharing and helping those most in need. Instead, the Church and temporal power have transformed Christianity into a straitjacket, which protects their interests and perpetuates the shameless exploitation of the weakest. And does it in the name of God and Christ.
The film's final message, however, is one of hope: there are still charitable souls who do good selflessly.
This is how the Nazarene's faith in man is renewed.
Bunuel takes up the theme again in this Nazarín. It is not Christ, but a Catholic priest, determined to follow Jesus' example, to the last consequences. It is not the inquisition that persecutes and condemns him, but rather the contemporary Church and society, led by rich property owners, who persist in using the name of Christ to manipulate the faith of the ignorant people, for their benefit.
This essential idea has been repeated over the centuries, under the most varied heresies and ideologies. The Christian message is one of peace, solidarity, love, detachment from material goods, sharing and helping those most in need. Instead, the Church and temporal power have transformed Christianity into a straitjacket, which protects their interests and perpetuates the shameless exploitation of the weakest. And does it in the name of God and Christ.
The film's final message, however, is one of hope: there are still charitable souls who do good selflessly.
This is how the Nazarene's faith in man is renewed.