Jesus in popular culture

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The Jesus action figure

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Jesus Christ has often appeared in the popular culture of Western nations. He is usually depicted in a completely different way from he was portrayed in the Bible, such as being a human, or even being an avid video gamer. This includes, but is not limited to, fiction, television, music, and art.

Contents

1 In Painting and Sculpture
2 In Movies
3 In Television
4 In Fiction
5 In Music
6 Miscellaneous
7 References
8 See also

In Painting and Sculpture

There has been a long tradition of featuring Jesus in paintings and sculpture over the last 2,000 years, ranging from ancient icons to medieval altarpieces to modern acrylics. Entire websites are devoted to such artwork. Icons of Jesus are prevalent in modern Mexico.[A site documenting the subject via photographs] Jesus is likewise commonly featured in contemporary Mexican religious folk art.[An example - Nicholas Hererra's paintings] A related tradition has been sustained in New Mexico in the United States. Examples include Luis Tapia's "Santa Verónica" (with the face of Christ on Veronica's famous cloth), made in 1980.[link] Eastern Orthodox Christianity has long featured many icons of Jesus.[A site with photos of historical Orthodox icons]A common theme in many of these icons has been the portrayal of Jesus as a child.[A collection of such images] In modern times, the Holy Infant of Prague has become extremely popular among Catholics.[An example]Many contemporary artists continue to emphasize the subject. [Example - "Le baptême du Christ" (The Baptism of the Christ) painted in 2001 by Corinne Vonaesch.]

In Movies

In , Jesus can be seen as part of the American army marching in front of Kyle's house.

Buddy Christ.

In Dogma (film), Buddy Christ is created as an icon to help revitalize the Catholic Church.
The Passion of The Christ, directed by Mel Gibson, portrays the final days in the life of Jesus.
Jesus is seen cheering the lead character on at the end of Orgazmo. [link]

In Television

Many adult-oriented cartoons, such as South Park and Family Guy, utilize Jesus Christ as a character, in unusual situations such as a talk show host.

In Fiction

In Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code, Jesus is married to Mary Magdalene, who is portrayed as a pagan goddess.

In Music

'Jesus Wants Me For a Sunbeam' is a song by The Vaselines, popularized by Nirvana's cover during MTV's Nirvana Unplugged.
Soundgarden has several songs mentioning Jesus, such as Jesus Christ Pose and 4th of July.
Punk band Bad Religion have several songs concerning Jesus, such as "American Jesus," "Don't Pray On Me," and "God's Love."
NOFX featured Jesus prominently on the artwork for their 2006 EP Never Trust A Hippy, as did their video for "Seeing Double At The Triple Rock".

Miscellaneous

The Jesus action figure has become somewhat of a meme of American culture. The action figure made an appearance in Sum 41 's music video for The Hell Song. ^{[[Citing sources citation needed]]}
Jesus is also a minor character in the popular web comic Penny Arcade.[link]