The Last Temptation of Christ Page #13

The poor in the mob yell: "Fire! Fire -- burn it all down!"

The TEMPLE GUARDS (usually Levites) grab their lances and

swords. Judas' cohorts draw their weapons.

Suddenly, there is a blast of trumpets. ROMAN SENTRIES,

heavily armed, appear on top of the temple walls. There are

dozens of them, and they are ready to fight.

The people look up. Jesus stops. Peter is still rallying the

crowd, lighted torch in his hand.

PETER:

Let's go! Now's the time!

The crowd looks from the Romans to Jesus. For the moment,

the crowd is still with him. Judas whispers urgently to Jesus.

JUDAS:

They're all with you! They're waiting

for your signal! Give it!

Peter looks over at Jesus.

PETER:

Come on! Now!

Jesus looks from the Romans on the wall to the ground.

JESUS (V.O.)

Please. I'm waiting too. Put the ax

in my hands. Not the cross. Let me

die like this.

JOHN:

If you don't give the sign now, we're

finished. We'll be killed for what

we did today.

PHILIP:

We came here to fight, not to die!

Jesus remains still.

JUDAS:

Master, we knew they would be strong!

We knew it would be like this.

The Roman Soldiers swarm off the walls and start down into

the temple.

Jesus looks at his hands: blood oozes from his palms. He

closes his fists to hide the stigmata and raises his eyes to

Judas.

JESUS:

Judas. Come beside me.

Judas puts his arm around Jesus. The crowd, confused and

furious, starts to scatter. Some of them throw things at the

disciples as they all scramble to avoid the violence of the

Roman soldiers.

JESUS:

(to Judas)

Stay by my side.

The other disciples swarm around Jesus and Judas and form a

wedge. As the Roman soldiers disperse through the temple

courtyard, Jesus and the disciples are swept by the frantic

crowd into a side street leading to the Underground City

below the temple.

CUT TO:

EXT. JERUSALEM - SUNSET

Passover preparations are underway. At twilight we see the

"excavations in Jerusalem." Over a hundred people in black

move across them. Large candles cover the entire site.

We see now elderly Jews cleansing themselves at the ritual

baths. The steam rises to the sky.

The "Underground City" is teeming with men, women, children,

(animals) preparing for the celebration. They wear black and

white shawls and are bathed in candlelight. Psalms, music

and voices are heard.

Jesus and Judas are walking and watching carefully. They

stop at a selected spot between two trees.

JUDAS:

There's got to be something else you

can do.

JESUS:

I wish there was. At the temple I

prayed. I prayed to die. But it's

not God's will. I have to die on the

cross. I prayed out of weakness and

I'm weakening even more. You've got

to give me strength.

JUDAS:

I won't let you die.

JESUS:

You've got to. There's no other way.

The world around us is Satan's world.

It will be destroyed! The world of

God will come! But only by my dying!

By my sacrifice on the cross! Forget

everything else! Understand that.

JUDAS:

No I can't. I'm not strong enough.

JESUS:

You are. You're the strongest. You're

part of God's plan too. You once

made me a promise. You said if I

ever strayed, if I ever shied away

from revolution, you would kill me.

Remember?

Judas nods.

JESUS:

I've strayed, haven't I?

JUDAS:

Yes.

JESUS:

Then you have to keep your word. You

have to kill me.

JUDAS:

If God wants that, then let God do

it. I won't.

JESUS:

He will do it. Through you. The Temple

Guards want to arrest me where there

aren't any crowds. Tonight we'll be

in Gethsemane. Arrange for them to

find me. It will be terrible. But

only for three days. Only three days!

Then I'll come back. We'll all be

together in triumph.

JUDAS:

No.

JESUS:

You've got to! Don't abandon me now.

Without you, the world can't be saved,

There'll be no redemption. Without

us together, the sacrifice can't be

made.

JUDAS:

Could you betray God? If you were

me, could you betray your Master?

JESUS:

No. That's why God gave me the easier

job... to be crucified.

CUT TO:

INT. UPPER ROOM - NIGHT

Three seven-branched candelabra illuminate the lamb, wine

and unleavened bread.

The disciples are seated on cushions on the ground. Food is

brought in from an adjacent room.

Mary, Martha and Magdalene have all come to Jerusalem to

celebrate the festival with Jesus and his disciples and

prepare the ritual meal.

Jesus fills the disciples cups from a pitcher of salt water.

JESUS:

Our ancestors in Egypt celebrated

Passover before they escaped to the

freedom of the desert. On this

Passover we come out of another kind

of slavery and enter another kind of

freedom.

PHILIP:

Oh, please. We're hiding here like

criminals, we can't go out the door,

and even if we could we wouldn't

want to because we've been so

humiliated, we'd like to respect

you...

JOHN:

Respect him? We love him.

PHILIP:

...yes, alright, yes, we love him,

that goes without saying, but at

least he could...

JESUS:

(interrupting)

First... first... first we drink

salt water to remember the tears and

pain our ancestors suffered in the

land of Israel.

Jesus swallows his drink in a single gulp; Judas is the first

to do likewise. Mary brings a tray of bitter herbs. As the

disciples eat, Jesus watches.

JESUS:

Tonight we go further. This passover

celebrates the passage from death to

eternal life. I'll lead the way, you

will follow. John, you know the

prophets. Isaiah says, 'He had neither

beauty nor luster that we should

turn our eyes to him. He was despised

and rejected by men...'

JOHN:

(continues)

'...But he took on himself all our

pains. He was wounded for our

transgressions, he was bruised for

our inequities, and with his stripes

we are healed.'

JESUS:

(interrupting)

'...He was scourged and he was

afflicted. Yet, like a lamb led to

the slaughter, he opened not his

mouth.'

(a beat)

My dear, wonderful friends. I am the

lamb. And I won't open my mouth.

They've been leading me to the

slaughter ever since I was born.

The disciples exchange fearful glances.

PETER:

If you die, I'll die first. Because

I'll be at your side.

JESUS:

Be quiet. What did you have before I

found you? All of you. Nothing.

(no answer)

Now you have God's love -- and eternal

life. Don't worry. You won't die

yet. There's still a lot of work to

do. We haven't come to rule, but to

serve. In three days I'll rise from

the dead to lead you.

The disciples stare in shocked silence. Jesus has either

gone completely mad -- or he is the Messiah.

Jesus breaks the bread loaves and passes them around. He

pours wine for the others:

JESUS:

Eat, this is my body. Drink, this is

my blood. I will be in you always.

As they do, the bread and the wine transubstantiate into

flesh and blood in their mouths. They blanch and cough; some

blood falls on the table. Peter removes the substance from

his mouth with his hand and examines it: it has the

consistency of blood and flesh. This is literally hard for

all the disciples to swallow. But they all persevere, and,

finally, they all manage to do it. As they wipe their bloody

mouths, John starts to weep. Jesus turns and looks at Judas.

Rate this script:2.0 / 2 votes