Raiders of the Lost Ark Religion Quotes

Indy's troubled here, even though we know a few scenes later that he doesn't really believe. But the notion that the Nazis could get their hands on this, and that it might actually let them rule the world, is enough to give him pause. So there's at least an inkling of theology amid his hard science background.

Marcus reiterates the stakes involved here, tied into whatever magic juju is in that gold box.

Beyond the stakes, there's the danger. Supernatural objects don't mean anything if we can't feel the threat they represent. We fear anything we don't understand and, to paraphrase Marcus, what we don't understand about this thing could just about fill the Grand Canyon.

Indy's skepticism here is really important because it sets him up for the undeniable power of the Ark at the end. He doesn't really believe that the Ark can harness the power of God. But judging by his earlier comments, could he be whistling past the graveyard? Can you have respect for beliefs you don't really hold yourself?

Sallah ties the fact that the Ark is otherworldly with the very real possibility of death. Otherworldly on its own may be freaky, but it's not necessarily fatal. Sallah wants to make it very clear that poking at this thing could be seriously dangerous. The danger of disturbing something holy is a popular movie motif. You mess with the mummy's sarcophagus or the Native American burial ground or the wrong chalice at your peril.

Unlike Sallah, Belloq's eager to see exactly what the Ark does. And notice that he describes it in mechanical terms ("transmitter" and "radio"). He doesn't feel the religious significance of it. He just wants to tap into the power that it holds.

Each step, each stage along the journey that Indy takes, comes with a fresh warning. At this stage, Indy's still pretty blasé about it: He brushes past the warning and asks about the height of the staff. He's looking at it in mechanical terms, just like Belloq.

Note the messianic tone in Belloq's voice here. He's drunk the Kool-Aid, he buys the Ark's power, but he still only thinks in terms of the prize. To paraphrase another Indiana Jones movie, he's after the fortune and glory, not to bring himself closer to God's grace.

At long last, Indy embraces the notion that the Ark may be beyond human understanding, and his quick thinking keeps them from having their faces melted off. It's more than just the screenwriter writing his way out of trouble. The Bible has some pretty clear No Look/No Touch rules about the Ark. In order to view it, you had to be a priest and undergo a lot of very thorough cleansing rituals even to be allowed into the same room as the Ark. If you were naughty or didn't have permission, it was gonna get ugly. Lucky for Indy (and Marion), he paid attention during all those Sunday school lessons.

The government has the Ark, and Indy's cranky because he thinks they're going to just go poking at it with sticks. How do you think Indy would feel if he knew that the Ark was going to get locked in a box and put somewhere where no one would ever find it? At this point, he's signed on to the Ark's supernatural power.