AT the age of 33, Jesus was condemned to the death penalty. That was then the ‘worst’ death. Only the worst criminals could die like Jesus. And with Jesus things were worse, because not all the criminals condemned to death could receive nails on their hands and feet. Of course, nails… Big nails! Each was 15 x 20 cm long, with a point of 6 cm. Another point was sharp. The nails were carved into the pulses, and not into the palms, as we are used to hear. In the pulse, there’s a tendon which extends to the shoulder, and when the nails were being hammered, that tendon broke, obliging Jesus to reinforce all the muscles of his back, so that he could breath as He was losing all the air from his lungs.

In this way, He was forced to support Himself onto the nail carved into his feet, which was bigger than those carved into his pulses, for both feet were carved together. And, as his feet could not endure for a long time without tearing, Jesus was forced to alternate that ‘cycle’ so that He could breath. Jesus endured that reality over 3 hours. Yes, over 3 hours! Long time, isn’t it? A few minutes before He died, Jesus was not bleeding anymore. He was simply pouring water from his cuts and holes. When we imagine Him injured, we only picture Him with injuries, but it is not enough; His wounds were true holes, made into his body. He had no more blood to bleed, He only poured water.

The Human body is composed by near 3.5 liters of blood (for an adult). Jesus poured out all 3.5 liters of his blood; He had three nails hammered into his members; a crown of thorns on his head and, beyond that, a Roman soldier who shoved a spear into his side. All this without mentioning the humiliation he passed after carrying his own cross for almost 2 km, while the crowd spat on his face and threw stones (the cross was almost 30 kg of weight, only for its higher part, where his hands were nailed).

The aforementioned features and details have been brought out in some way or the other through the Biblical movies which have been airing on various TV stations during this Lenten season. While a few stations must be commended for the airing relevant movies and the excellent order in which these movies were aired (from Old Testament stories to New Testament scenes) one in particular in New Amsterdam needs to take stock of the fact that ‘Cleopatra’ and ‘Spartacus’ (for the second time now) are not, and I repeat, are not Biblical movies. For the record, ‘Cleopatra’ is documented as one of the worst films made in history (check Wikipedia) and contains numerous inaccuracies (as does ‘Spartacus’).
LEON J. SUSERAN