Mr Greenwood's Crucifixion

[poliphilo]

It was the last holiday we took en famille- my parents, my sister, myself. I forget exactly how old I was. Nineteen, twenty- something like that. I filmed proceedings on my dad's old 8mm camera because those were the days when I thought I was Jean Luc Godard. When I edited the film I left all the shots of myself on the cutting room floor except for a close-up at the end which I thought was a nice, auteurish touch. My mother thought it was wankerish (not language she'd have ever used) but then she never understood me...

I'm remembering all this because today is Good Friday and that was the holiday that took us to Colmar and I got to stand in front of Matthias Grunewald's Isenheimer altarpiece with it's central panel of the crucifixion- the most graphic image of a brutalised human body in all western art. 

(That is, until Mel Gibson came along)



Here's a close-up. Horrid, isn't it?

My mother didn't like it. I did. I liked it lots. 

But now?  But now I see it as manipulative.

Grunewald's trying to get to us.  He's pushing buttons. Sex. Transgression. Guilt.   Especially guilt.  You did this to Jesus, Jesus did this for you: don't you think you should be feeling really bad about yourself?

(And while you're in this mood, how about giving us some money?)

You see,  I've been a Christian preacher. I know how the system works. 

My German is rudimentary, but doesn't Grunewald translate as Greenwood?

Mr Greenwood's crucifixion.  Ha!

Comments

Re: Questions

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Because if they feel guilty they'll submit to the Church and give it lots of money.

Sorry- that's very cynical.

I think it's called "Good" Friday because Jesus's death on the cross is supposed to have done us good- redeemed us and all that.

Re: Questions

[jubal51394.livejournal.com]

I read somewhere online yesterday that it is thought to be a corruption of the term "God's Friday" as in "Goodbye" being "God be with you".

Re: Questions

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Interesting.

I hadn't come across that explanation before, but I think it's very plausible.

Re: Questions

[besideserato.livejournal.com]

In Spanish and Romance languages, it's "Holy Friday". Isn't it "Sad Friday" in Germany?

There is a finny story about my mother when she first got to the US and found this holiday was called Good Friday. She said, "ah! The English! Always so optimistic about everything! And these damn Americans! Such workaholics, they can't take a break for a feast!"