When Mel Gibson was making The Passion of the Christ, he modeled the Crucifixion scene on paintings by Caravaggio. Caravaggio, the Baroque master, made the sufferings of Jesus and the saints vividly believable. But Caravaggio didn’t live like a saint — or even like Mel Gibson. Peter Crimmins learned how Caravaggio’s dangerous and criminal life influenced his depictions of holy events.