I really didn't learn of it until the weekend after Christmas following news that Porta dos Fundos' office had been firebombed on Christmas Eve. i belong to a Facebook group for liberal Christians, all of whom spoke out against the attack but several of whom stated that they understood why someone would want to attack the comedy troupe.
More recently, a Brazilian judge ruled that Netflix must temporarily remove "The First Temptation of Christ" (AKA "1TC") from its streaming service, arguing that "the right to freedom of expression... is not absolute." Fortunately, Brazil's Supreme Court overturned that ruling yesterday.
I found myself discussing this a lot with my fellow liberal Christians. I've defended the notion that someone might artistically imagine a gay Christ and that this type of artistic exercise is fine several times since Christmas this year -- not just where it relates to "1TC," but also with regards to other artistic pieces involving a queer Christ -- however that might manifest.
It suddenly occurred to me this week that we're all debating a movie that none of us has actually seen. So I went to the gym last night and cued up "1TC" on Netflix. Here is what I learned about this show.
By the way, prepare for SPOILERS. If you don't want to learn actual plot points, then you shouldn't be reading this blog post. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!
As noted above, "1TC" took place at Jesus' surprise birthday party. Everyone was gathering at Mary and Joseph's home -- Aunt Lupita, the Three Wisemen, Lazarus, God, etc. Jesus returned from his 40 day fast in the Judean Desert -- and surprised everyone with a new boyfriend named Orlando. What followed were several gags as people uncomfortably struggled to cope with Jesus' new friend -- especially since everyone seemed to know that Jesus is the actual son of God.
Everyone but Jesus himself. This 30th birthday party was to kick of the big talk. Where Jesus would learn that God is his father and that Jesus himself is meant to take over for him.
Struggling to cope with this revelation, Jesus accidentally finds himself in a drug-induced spiritual quest. He meets up with all sorts of deities including Shiva, Buddha, Xenu, and Jah Rastafari. Muhammad is also referenced, though he's apparently quite shy and wasn't present when Jesus met up with the other deities -- which was probably the smartest thing that Porta dos Fundos did when it plotted out this movie! The assembled deities assure Jesus that they all felt overwhelmed when they'd stumbled forward as the personifications of their various religious but that this is a once in a lifetime gig and that he'd be stupid to ignore it.
Jesus wakes from his spiritual quest one week later. The others thought that he'd done a runner and decided that they liked Orlando so much that they permitted God to adopt and baptize Orlando and transform him into the new son of God. Just in time for Jesus to enter the yard.
This is where most of the protesters fail to consider the identity of the other half of this relationship. Who is Orlando? Where did he and Jesus meet? (Jon's Answer: In the Judean Desert during Jesus' 40 day self-imposed exile.) What is this movie call? (Jon's Answer: "The First Temptation of Christ.")
It was obvious to me from the beginning that Orlando is the Devil and that he was trying to create trouble for God, the son of God, and humanity in general.
And Jesus does end up using his divinity to defeat the now super-powered Orlando in a blood-splattering battle between good and evil. But, you know, firebomb the production office. Right?
The movie ends with Jesus agreeing to completing a three-year internship for God. At the end of that three year period, he'll decide if he wants to continue acting as God or if he will move on to his great passion: professional juggling. The ever-omnipotent God agrees, with full understanding that Jesus only has three more years before he'll end up crucified for mankind's collective sins.
I get that people were offended by a confused Jesus who found himself attracted to other men. But apparently people are okay with a God who's constantly belittling and attacking Joseph, and who's constantly trying to bone Mary whenever they're alone.
And then there was this birthday song (sung to the tune of "Jingle Bells") that Orlando performed for the assembled guests that apparently nobody grouses about:
God is very good
He created the world in seven days
And sometime after that
He drowned his kids
He created Adam and Eve
Who had sex with each other
If there was only one family
How are we even here?
Let us now dwell on the details
We must have faith
God is almighty
He doesn't make a lot of sense
Jesus Christ, his firstborn
He is so exciting
In the heat of the desert
I saw the size of his... power
And then when I was initially looking for "The First Temptation of Christ" on Netflix, I discovered this other Christian comedy special (from December 2018) by Porta dos Fundos called "The Last Hangover." I understand that it likely didn't have a queer Christ figure, but it definitely contained the same type sophomoric satire as "1TC" does and people enjoyed it enough to award it an International Emmy Award.
Which leads me to believe that critics are fine with celebrating or even tolerating religious satire -- unless that satire includes queer characters.
That said, definitely check out "The First Temptation of Christ." The actors are great. The comedy is largely spot-on. And the special affects are pretty basic and spectacular at the same time. Just know that they speak in Portuguese, so the rest of us need to have our closed captioning on in order to keep up!