LESSON

introduction

JESUS’ PASSION the story of redemptive suffering for god so loved the world

esus Christ’s life, death, and Resurrection Bible study, but the study has been designed so have been inspiring artists and writers for that participants who wish may view segments the past 2,000 years, but not even Jesus’ of the film as part of their preparation for each many miracles have drawn more interest week’s lesson. Jesus’ Passion: The Story of Reand speculation than the events of his Pas- demptive Suffering focuses on the texts from the sion, the term used to describe the extreme suf- Scriptures that inspired the movie, and it also fering that the Son of God willingly underwent looks at the Catechism of the Catholic Church for the salvation of all humankind. and other Church documents to examine how

Pope St. John Paul II’s apostolic letter Salvi- 2,000 years of Church teaching relate to varifici Doloris (On the Christian Meaning of Human ous scenes in the film that are not specifically Suffering) explains why Jesus’ Passion is such a described in the Scriptures. popular theme: “Human suffering evokes com- Artists and authors frequently exercise passion; it also evokes respect, and in its own way their creative license when depicting biblical it intimidates.” Particularly realistic depictions of events—Michelangelo’s paintings in the Sisthe brutal treatment that tine Chapel contain Jesus endured trigger elements not found in instinctive reactions Apart from the cross, either the Old or the of aversion and horror at humanity’s capac- there is no other ladder New Testament, and Dante’s Divine Comity for cruelty—natural responses to the story by which we may get to heaven. edy is fictional poetry based on his personal of Jesus’ agony and —St. Rose of Lima (1586–1617) visions of heaven, betrayal in the Garden first canonized saint born in the Americas hell, and purgatory. of Gethsemane; his tri- Since the earliest als before Herod, Pon- days of the Church, tius Pilate, and the Jewish religious leaders; his devout Christians have made use of such artisscourging; his carrying of the cross; and his Cruci- tic works to meditate on biblical themes, espefixion and death. All of these events are recorded cially themes connected to the life of Jesus. A in detail in the New Testament, and all are vividly number of popular Catholic devotional prayers portrayed in the 2004 movie The Passion of the are based on Jesus’ Passion—including the sorChrist. The emotional experience of watching this rowful mysteries of the Rosary and the Stations movie or other visual dramatizations of the events of the Cross. No matter how many inspirational of Holy Week can lead Christians to reflect on Je- books are written and how many films are made sus’ suffering in a more intimate way than is pos- about the Son of God, however, there simply is sible when simply reading about his Passion. no substitute for reading the Bible—the inspired

It is not necessary to watch the movie The Word of God—to learn about Jesus’ life and his Passion of the Christ in conjunction with this teachings.