Брессон и asinitas

"Agrippa [von Nettesheim, in De incertitutine et vanitate scientiarum atque artium (1530)] ... goes on to say that 'there are no men less prepared to receive Christ's doctrine than those whose mind is cultivated and enriched by knowledge.' And he embarks on lengthy praise of mental simplicity:

Let no one quarrel with me for having called the apostles donkeys. I wish to explain the mysterious worth and excellence of the donkey. In the eyes of Hebrew scholars the donkey is the symbol of strength and courage. He has all the qualities essential to a disciple of truth; he is satisfied with little and endures hunger and blows. Simple-minded, he does not know the difference between a head of lettuce and thistle; he loves peace; he carries burdens. A donkey saved Marius when he was pursued by Sylla. The philosopher Apuleius would never have been vouchsafed the mysteries of Isis had he not been transformed into a donkey. The donkey was useful in the triumph of Christ; the donkey was able to perceive the angel as Balaam had not done. The donkey's jaw supplied Samson with a victorious weapon. No animal had ever the honor to rise from the dead except the donkey, the donkey alone, to whom St. Germanus gave back life; and that suffices that after this life the donkey will have his share of immortality.

This passage reveals the Christian tradition that must have inspired Robert Bresson to film Au hasard Balthazar."

Ioan P. Couliano, Eros and Magic in the Renaissance