 The episode is one of many to feature Mulder as a Christ @-@ like figure . These comparisons were first purposely inserted during the seventh season episode " The Sixth Extinction II : Amor Fati " , in which Mulder is placed on a cross @-@ like table , symbolic of the wooden cross that Jesus was nailed to . Michelle Bush , in her book Myth @-@ X notes that Mulder 's torture scenes in " Within " bear a resemblance to the Crucifixion of Jesus . She argues that the metal bars piercing his wrists and ankles are similar to the nails that held Jesus , the metal straps imbedded in his head are similar to the Crown of Thorns , and that his vivisection is reminiscent of the wound made by the Holy Lance . Furthermore , Bush parallels Jesus ' " horrific death in order to rise again " to Mulder 's abduction , death , and resurrection later on in " Deadalive " , which would further make allusions to the Christ @-@ like nature of Mulder . 
