By Michaela Gordoni
At the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast last month, Jonathan Roumie shared his heart for his role as Jesus on THE CHOSEN.
“For the past several years, I’ve had the profound privilege of portraying Jesus in THE CHOSEN, and from the beginning, the desire has been simple: to help people encounter Him,” the Teddy Bear Award® winner explained. “Not just as a figure in history, but as a living person — someone who sees us, someone who knows us.”
“And who calls us to Himself,” he added. “But I’ll be honest, this this role has never been something that I could do on my own. The deeper we go into the gospels, the more I’m reminded of my dependence on His infinite grace.”
The hardest thing the actor has ever done is portraying Jesus’ crucifixion.
“It was physically demanding, but even more than that, it carried a profound spiritual weight. To spend day after day immersed in the passion of Christ, in the reality of the cross, it strips everything else away,” Roumie explained. “You begin to see clearly that this is not just something we remember, but that this is at the very heart of our faith.”
Related: 5 Inspirational Quotes from Jonathan Roumie About Prayer
Something that really struck him is that mercy is always close by.
“It is not confined to the past or some nebulous promise in the future. It is present,” he said. “It is real.”
“And it is being offered to each one of us right now,” Roumie explained. “In our weakness, in our sin, in the places where we feel the most unworthy, that is where his divine mercy meets us.”
THE CHOSEN transcends beyond just entertainment for its viewers.
“Our hope truly is that this won’t be something people simply watch, but that it becomes an experience that draws them deeper into the mystery of Christ’s love, the mystery of His cross and the reality of His mercy,” he said.
In a post about the event, Roumie elaborated that mercy is always available the moment we ask for it.
“No matter who we are or what we’ve carried. ❤️🔥,” he added. “Walking through the reality of the Crucifixion during filming etched that truth into my soul in a way I will never forget. ✝️♥️”
“The power of the arts to evangelize — and to draw hearts closer to Christ — has never been more vital than it is today,” he said. “It was a true honor to speak at the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast, standing alongside hundreds of faithful Catholics united in the mission of evangelization across the U.S.”
Roumie is celebrating Holy Week this week with a series that features Jeff Cavins called HOLY WEEK IN THE HOLY LAND. It’s available now on the Hallow prayer app.
Read Next: CHOSEN Star Jonathan Roumie Says Role Has ‘Deepened [His] Faith Exponentially’
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