Rating: 
Summary: "Can the word give nourishment?" (202)
Review: I read THE LAST TEMPTATION OF CHRIST for the first time when I was twenty. I read it again in my thirties, and now again in my forties. I have experienced new adventures each journey.A treatise on Christian theology it is not. The author is quite clear on that matter in the preface. Although not about theology per se, it is prosaic theology for the soul; for anyone who has struggled; for those who know suffering, or have seen trouble and pain. Kazantzakis offers great words of nourishment for such readers. He takes the compelling story of the Christian tradition and weaves its relevance into every human's story. The narrator asks at one point: Can the word give nourishment? The rhetorical question is answered as mandate for the author as well as guide for the reader. "Yes it can --- when it is the good word!" Kazantzakis poses perplexing problems and questions which can only be addressed by good words. This novel abounds in goodness against the backdrop of the complexities of each person's own story. It is a worthwhile reading journey.
Rating:
Summary: One of the best books ever written!
Review: As great as the film was the book is even better. It shows Jesus' human side and his struggle between following God's will and his own. One of the things I like most about this book is how it explores the relationship between Jesus and Judas. Judas is far from the lowly betrayer of Christ. Any book that is banned by the "Holy" Roman Catholic Church is a must read and this is no exception.
Rating:
Summary: PHENOMENAL
Review: As I struggle with my own ideas of god and religion, I wish this book were the bible. I would become the most devout Christian the world has ever known. Kazantzakis is the best.
Rating:
Summary: A magificent book
Review: Reading the english translation of the book, I found that it wasn't as intense as it was in the original Greek language. Despite that, Kazantzakis is at his best and the book is splendid. At the end, it left me the feeling of katharsis and completeness. Worth every minute of reading it.
Rating:
Summary: A Book For All Seasons
Review: If there ever were a book that is so emotionally intense and powerful, and shows the author struggling between his own idea of spirituality and the flesh, it is this novel. In understanding the triumphs and struggles of Jesus, we understand that man can overcome his failings to realise himself as something greater
Rating:
Summary: It is pure art! The book that caused N.K. excommunication
Review: This book caused Nickos Kazantzakis the excommunication from orthodox church. The irony is that this particular book is an hymn to God and Crist! I personal do not believe in Gods but if that book was the Bible I surely would be a priest! It touches you directly in the heart. It is a MUST for every thinking human no matter which his/her religion is.
Rating:
Summary: A thought-provoking novel that will leave you questioning.
Review: Maybe it's just me, but any time I get to think during the course of my reading, it is a satisfying treat. Perhaps
that is why I love this book so much. It deals with a very
controversial issue that really none of us have the answer
to: the life of Jesus Christ. Because no one knows the
actual story, we may decide for ourselves what we choose
to believe. Kazantzakis contradicts the Bible in his
portrayal of Jesus as a despised and often disturbed soul.
Instead of Jesus living the life of a king, he is forced to
suffer with pain inflicted by God, and evil spirits he encounters. The most controversial aspect, however, may not
be Jesus' life, or his affair with Mary Magdalene. It lies
within his betrayal and the forcing of Judas to betray him.
This fact does not incriminate Judas "the betrayer" such as
the Bible does, but it portrays Judas as a loyal friend to
Jesus. Though many say that this novel is simple filth,
there is a reason so many read it. They are interested on
widening their horizons to different thoughts and aspects,
and The Last Temptation of Christ is the perfect novel for it.
Rating:
Summary: A breakthrough...
Review: At 25, more than ten years after the film, I'm still trying to convince my orthodox Christian friends and family to read this book. The continue to parrot lines fed to them following the protest surounding the release of the film. Jesus is portrayed as (...), he says that (...)', etc. None of these things are in this incredibly passionate, devout novel. In all fairness, the film oftened seemed unnecessarily provocative and I think Scorsese did a real injustice to the story. This Jesus, while not wholly accurate (as if such a depiction could exist) is not the white Wilhelm Defoe, but a First Century Palestinian Jew who is written about in a modern form of his native tongue, Greek. I should say at this point, while the English translation expresses many of the fundamental emotions, if you never buy another book in a language foreign to you, buy this one in the original Greek. Today, Christians by the thousands flock to Mel Gibsons controversial film, bemoaning any criticism of it, while completely avoiding this depiction which is without rival in pulling the reader through the ordeal of bearing the sins of humanity at the cost of something we all take for granted, the pleasures of a finite LIFE.That's all I can add to the many other brilliantly expressed reviews already presented here. If you have the time, you should read them all.
Rating:
Summary: Behold the Man!
Review: Kazanzakis portrays a Jesus with whom we can relate. Most people know that the stories from the New Testament, while beautiful and consoling, were written 40 to 60 years after the events described. They are quite selective, adding up to only a few days. And no one thinks Jesus went around addressing himself in the third person or especially that he proclaimed himself "God's son". The idea of God fathering a human child was a Greek concept and was considered blasphemous by Jews.
The book almost shimmers as one is transported back to that ancient age. It is a time machine in every sense of the word and the Jesus we meet here is a normal man with brothers and sisters and a mother. But he is troubled with visions. The realization that something great is afoot comes to him slowly, in flashes, as if a puzzle were slowly being revealed. More than anything this Jesus is a man, not a God. Yet he seems connected to the divine spark and in particular to the God of the Israelites. We view his journeys, his love for Mary, his teachings which seem to emerge almost spontaneously, then that last epic week we know as the Passion. The "last temptation" occurs on the cross in which Jesus is given a vision of the life he might could have. He marries, makes love, fathers children, works as a carpenter and lives happily. But he rejects that vision and suddenly raises his head realizing he is still high in the air, nailed to the cross. He did not flinch from his mission nor did he take the easy way out. Theologically speaking it was condemened as heresy and banned by the Greek Orthodox church. It was not meant as an official biography of "Jesus Christ" (many consider that his last name) but as what might have been. And for that reason it deserves great kudos.
Rating: 
Summary: Jesus with Flaws
Review: So Jesus finally reads what Matthew has been writing about him for the last several months and is flabbergasted. "This isn't the truth," he says. "These are lies! I was not born in Bethlehem. I've never set foot in Egypt in my life. I don't remember any magi! And the dove did not say, 'This is my son,' while I was being baptized!" Matthew tells him he knows this, but nevertheless he has been writing what he has been told to write by an angel, who visits him in the evening. Matthew himself questioned this truth, but the angel told him that he knew nothing of the truth. The angel told him there were many truths, the truths of men, which are many, and the truth of God, which is one. Matthew was to record the truth of God. And he did. The truth. Yes, indeed, the truth. It can make one uncomfortable on occasion, and Mr. Kazantzakis' version of the truth can certainly be said to do that. His Jesus is quite a bit different than the one we've come to know and love from catechism class and from the Bible. His Jesus only performs a few of the miracles recounted in the Bible. There is no mention of the crippled man lowered through the roof. There is no Sermon on the Mount. No wedding at Cana. The walking on water story was a dream of Peter. But he does recite some parables, heal the centurion's daughter, and raise Lazarus from the dead. He agonizes over his fate, is often unsure of his divinity, and rails at God, whose hold on him is described as ten claws gripping his skull. He preaches the doctrine of love, but is somewhat vague as to how to put it into practice. He goes to Jerusalem and screams at the Pharisees and the high priests, stating he will smash the temple to pieces. He claims that all must repent, for the baptism he provides will be fire, not water, and will burn the four corners of the earth. His disciples are weak and vacillating, except for Judas, who is a fervent anti-Roman revolutionary. Magdalene becomes a prostitute after her love for him is spurned. Joseph is stricken and paralyzed the day Jesus is born, and remains that way for the rest of his life. His mother Mary is a miserable wretch as Jesus fails to do any of the normal things that a mother wishes her son to do. No, this is not your typical Bible story. Nor should it be. It is fiction after all. But as the story is of Jesus, it is fiction which must be held to higher scrutiny. The question is, does it work? To a large degree it does. The fact is, Jesus was a man. At one time in his life he was a baby, a ten-year old, a teenager, an adult. At which point during these times of his life did he finally realize he was the son of God? The Bible itself gives us many examples of his humanity: he shows love, anger, strength--and fear. Even on the eve of his death, he cries out to God to spare him from his fate: "Let this cup passeth over me." Mr. Kazantzakis gives us an interesting interpretation of this life, and one which to some degree is in conformity with Biblical events. It is a fascinating piece of work and one which displays a great deal of passion and imagination. It is clearly written by a man with a burning, spiritual yearning. But if there is a flaw it is that it fails to capture the true greatness of Jesus. Whether you believe in his divinity or not, it can not be denied that his influence on humanity was as great or greater than any person who ever lived. He began a religion two-thousand years ago which to this day continues to be practiced by millions of people on every continent of the earth. His teachings formed the basis of the greatest institutions that mankind has created; institutions based on freedom, equality and justice. He must have had, to say the very least, a remarkable personality. And this is where it stretches credulity. For Kazantzakis' Jesus is perhaps just a little too human: too weak, too unsure of himself, sometimes too timid and sometimes too shrill. It is often a little hard to believe from this novel that he inspired the faith of his own disciples, much less the millions who followed. But to be fair, who is to say what the truth is? Mr. Kazantzakis, after all, is simply recording the truth of man. One man. One of many. He must be commended, for by doing so he maybe came a little closer--and perhaps brought his readers a little closer--to the truth of God.
|
