A Mere Human?

“Then he released Barabbas for them; but after having Jesus scourged, he delivered Him to be crucified.” Matthew 27:26

The deity of Jesus Christ was affirmed in Mel Gibson’s film The Passion, both on screen and behind the scenes. The on-screen affirmation is obvious, but a small incident behind the scenes reminds us that only the Son of God could endure such treatment and never sin.

While filming the scourging sequence, a piece of plywood was used to absorb the blows to the actor’s back. With the artistry of Hollywood, it appeared as though Jim Caviezel was actually being hit. In reality, he was only hit twice by accident, but his response is telling. Gibson stopped the filming and redirected the two actors with whips to use an overhand errant shot and hit Caviezel in the back. He said, “It just extended over the board and hit me with such a velocity that I couldn’t breathe. It’s like getting the wind knocked out of you. The stinging is so horrific that you can’t get air.”

Although he is a Christian and handled his role with austere reverence, his reaction to that single blow affirmed that a mere human could not handle the scourging like Christ.

Caviezel said, “I turned around and looked at the guy, and I tell you, I may be playing Jesus, but I felt like Satan at that moment. I turned to him, and a couple of expletives came out of my mouth.” He endured one more accidental blow that left a 14-inch gash in his back, but his response was not noted. Jim Caviezel said, “I didn’t want people to see 'me'. I just wanted them to see the 'Christ.'”

With the knowledge of what happened behind the scourging scene, this brave actor has done just that by uniquely reaffirming the deity of Jesus Christ.