ABSTRACT
These discom forting w ords form p art of the opening sequence of Derek Jarm an 's film The Garden (1990) and they are certain ly an honest indication of w hat is to come. There follows an ex traordinary flow of scenes, often ra ther loosely tied together. The V irgin M ary stum bles across a rocky beach, pu rsu ed by cam eram en looking for a cheap tabloid scoop. An observing eye blinks, w itnessing the events. Jarm an falls asleep in front of a crucifix and dream s of the passion. In the central sequence, Jesus looks on as two gay m en fall prey to the violence of the church and state. They share his fate of crucifixion. The death of the two gay m en is followed by their resurrection, which appears to be m ore the result of the activities of a w isdom in nature, a Sophia figure, than the activity of a heavenly father. The film 's final scene is of a g roup sharing a n igh t m eal, a candle lit against the darkness. A child plays w ith the ashes of b u rn t food w rappers. The w hole series of im ages is encom passed by a surreal sea and rocky garden, blazing in the sunshine. The Garden m ay perhaps appear as a travesty of traditional them es and im ages of C hristianity , and som e review ers certainly saw it as such,1 b u t I w an t to defend the radical im ages it contains as suggesting a valuable approach to the w ay that faith in C hrist can be ow ned in a w ay ap p ro p ria te to (bu t no t restric ted to) gay m en and lesbians. In the following 1 will look at certain them es that are central to the film and that suggest som e of the problem s and possibilities of C hristian faith for gay and lesbian people. Above all, I w ant to show how The Garden em bodies a liberat ing vision of w hat religious faith m ight be.
