What If God Was One Of Us….!

character so to say was appreciably relatable, Judas’ betrayal and Peter’s denials making powerful impact. Not to be missed was the winning docility of the gentle Jesus as contrasted with the convincing yet losing abrasiveness of Satan! Isn’t what we see played out in Jesus’ case and reflected in Reuben’s, seen in action at our places of work, study and play, not to mention our own family?

Dwelling on “the duty that has been imposed” on all the baptized “of bringing back to the discipline of the Church human society, now estranged from the wisdom of Christ,” Pope Saint Pius X asserted exactly 120 years ago that, “if We, through the goodness of God Himself, bring this task to a happy issue, We shall be rejoiced to see evil giving place to good, and hear…. "a loud voice from Heaven saying: Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God and the power of his Christ" (Apoc xii, 10)” [Encyclical E Supremi…(n 9) 04 October 1903]. That duty a parish named after none other than Pius X himself gave flesh to when some 80 parishioners of varying ages, lead by the ebullient Merlyn Fernandes, treated a 3000-strong audience to the drama of witnessing God as really being one of us: walking our streets, drinking chai by the wayside, travelling by our trains and BEST buses, showing the way to courier delivery boys— and yes, accompanying youth on their efforts at facing life’s destiny head on!

[Shaun Alvares], through his paces across a life laced with injustice visà-vis the injustice Jesus himself faced during his last days on Earth.

Notably, the crucifixion act was in a genre of its own, its symbolism impossible to be overlooked. The selective use of dancing to complement

by Ladislaus Louis D’Souza

The sheer novelty of the entire production was as uplifting as it was fascinating, to say the least! The presentation of the miracles was somewhat reminiscent of the passion play I witnessed at Oberammergau, Germany, in September 2022. However, the contrast concept evident in the Pharisees travelling incognito by Mumbai’s public transport and the import of Pontius Pilate aka ‘kind-hearted’ College Principal’s hand-washing act vis-à-vis Jesus’ foot-washing exercise was significantly palpable. The attitude of hostility on their part is evidently root- certain scenes was a delight so refreshingly different from the outlandish gyratory and pelvic thrust moves that have become de rigueur in most modern day stage productions.

Meticulously scripted by Merlyn, the two-hour power-packed show that included classy oratory and acting, music and dancing, lighting, screen media et al had an edge-ofthe-seat touch to it! And witnessing it on Palm Sunday proved an appropriate preparation for the celebration of the Sacred Triduum.

The highlight of this one-of-a-kind Passion Play was the way Jesus led its protagonist, Reuben D’Souza ed in the irony of Jesus being envied, despite being just one of them (and us). To sum up, they are scandalized by his commonness and pedestrian ‘roots’ and refuse to place their faith in him. Notably, the detailing of each

Evidently, Merlyn’s heart was a hub of ideas and emotions that lucidly spelt themselves out in every facet of the production, realism manifesting itself in the doorbell ringer and the distribution of the loaves of bread (with enough to spare after the closing!) among other things, the lab fire scene taking the cake. The coordination between the various teams involved was so flawless as to ensure that the evening began on time and concluded on time. No wonder then that, not only did the Parish Priest Father George Athaide voice the cast’s sentiments as to “what will we do tomorrow night” but the audience for its part, despite comprising not merely parishioners and people from neighbouring parishes but also from places as far as Orlem, Malad, seemed in no hurry to leave!

All in all, what cannot be taken for

(Contd..

on p. 4)