By Kevin Rogers
Opinion Assignment Editor
During Lent, many Christians observe the Stations of the Cross, detailing the agony and crucifixion of Jesus Christ. These images and the final resurrection are powerful symbols for Christians worldwide and the basis for their faith.
But what if Jesus emerged from the tomb on Easter Sunday, guns drawn and hungry for Roman blood?
On the latest “Saturday Night Live,” the cast presented this alternate-universe revenge fantasy in the form of “Djesus Uncrossed,” a parody of Quentin Tarantino’s “Inglorious Basterds” and “Django Unchained.”Actor Christoph Waltz portrays Jesus —with a cross strapped to his back while slicing, shooting and dismembering Roman soldiers and Judas Iscariot.
Admittedly, when I first watched the sketch, I laughed. The concept of casting Ving Rhames as Pontius Pilate and Samuel L. Jackson as Judas struck me as brilliant. But when I gave it a bit more thought and another few viewings, the parody struck me as deeply disturbing.
SNL reduced the figure that more than two million Christians look to as a savior and example of ideal conduct into a maniacal gunman. Instead of turning the other cheek, Djesus leads a blood-thirsty band of Apostles to exact vengeance on the wrongdoers.
Regardless of the violence throughout Christian history, Jesus symbolizes peaceful resistance and forgiveness. He chided his follower Peter for taking arms to defend him from his Roman persecutors. While hanging on the cross, he called for God to forgive those who had tortured him.
“He’s risen from the dead, and he’s preaching anything but forgiveness,” the sketch’s narrator pronounces before Djesus swings a katana through a Roman officer’s head.
It’s clear the writers were trying to humorously juxtapose the peaceful Jesus of the Bible with the ultra-violent Djesus depicted. It’s also intended to poke fun at Tarantino’s graphic style.
However, the writers decided to go for shock value rather than a clever parody. Somewhere along the line, SNL should have realized it was pushing things a bit too far. While shows like Family Guy and South Park have all depicted a gun-toting Jesus, they didn’t feature him blowing holes through unarmed foes. And none of them were done in gruesome live action.
Rightly so, Christian groups raised objections soon after. On Feb. 19, Concerned Women for America, a Christian women group, said the sketch was designed to “degrade and taunt,” The Hill reported. The group said SNL would never take on Islam in the same fashion.
They make a decent point. When South Park attempted to poke fun at Islamic prophet Mohammed, creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker received death threats. But this isn’t the argument that should be made here. An SNL sketch depicting Muhammad in a similarly disturbing light wouldn’t make “Djesus Uncrossed” any less troubling.
SNL could have just as easily parodied Tarantino’s style without the excessively offensive depiction of Christ. An ultra-violent American Revolution, a group of peasants rallying against feudal lords or nearly any other event in history would have gotten the parody across in a less disturbing and funnier manner. Instead, they went for gore and shock value at the expense of Jesus and his teachings.
There’s a difference between satire and this sort of content. Satire pokes fun. This sketch swung a katana into the image of Jesus and riddled his message with bullets
Especially during the Lenten preparation for Easter, Jesus and Christians deserve more respect. SNL took things way too far and pushed satire into the realm of the truly offensive.
