An extraordinarily gory statue of Jesus in Puebla Cathedral, Mexico.
I visited Puebla to see Cinco de Mayo celebrations, and checked out the cathedral while I was waiting for my bus back to Mexico City.
During my travels across central and south America I’ve seen dozens of gruesome statues of Jesus’ crucifixion, in churches all the way from Mexico to Argentina.
Some researchers believe that the story of Jesus’ death on the cross, as told by Spanish colonists, appealed to the pre-Columbian civilizations they were trying to conquer.
As human sacrifices were an important part of Mayan, Aztec and Incan rituals, those forced to adopt Christianity are said to have embraced the story Jesus’ death.
When local artists were commissioned to make statues for newly-built Christan churches, they didn’t create the calm, serene crucifixion scenes common in Europe.
Instead, in locally-created statues Christ was covered in wounds and soaked in blood, and looked as if he was the victim of a sacrificial ritual at the summit of a Mesoamerican pyramid.
I don’t know if this is true. But having seen so many grisly statues of Jesus across south and central America, there could be something in this theory.
