About 'The Passion'
Like many people who saw The Passion, I was amazed and humbled by the experience.
At the urging of my priest, I said a prayer before I saw the movie asking God to help me take away
from the film what He wanted me to understand. I have never felt such a wide range of emotions
watching a movie. I was captivated by the performances of the actor who played Jesus and the
actor who played the Virgin Mary. I never once believed they were acting; they were a joy to watch as they captured the essence of the
individuals, as one would imagine them. I cried, smiled, felt enraged and hopeful many times during the performance.
My favorite scene in the movie is when Jesus and Mary are at home, Jesus is washing up for dinner, and he playfully sprays his mother
with water and then spontaneously kisses her. The scene really moved me because it showed Jesus’humanity and playfulness. In addition,
I really liked the scene in which Mary, who is temporarily frozen by the agony of watching her son being tortured, recalls a scene where
Jesus falls as a boy and she runs to him. At the same time, she sees Jesus pass by and begin to fall under the magnificent pressure of
the cross. Mary runs to him and cries "I’m here!" just as she had been there for him when he fell as a boy. It’s a beautiful and moving
scene set to a remarkable score. After seeing the depiction of the relentless torture that He endured for us, I prayed and apologized to
God for the times I suffer needlessly and selfishly. My pain seems extremely small compared to what He went through and the film helped
me put my problems in perspective. Also, I was strongly affected by the scene in which Jesus is agonizing in the Garden of Gethsemane
and how momentarily even He was tempted and fearful and how, in these moments, He chose to pray for strength. What a lesson for all of
us to remember when we are at our weakest…
Aída
