What is "The Chosen?"

In times of great stress and unrest, it's critical that we take time to make sure we're healthy both mentally and physically. I've written about the Theology of Rest in this blog before, and this ties in to that a bit. We all owe it to ourselves (and the people we live with) to intentionally take time away for self-edification and renewal. I want to talk with you a bit today about "The Chosen," a 2019 TV show that I've been watching recently, and why you (as a Catholic) should watch it ASAP.

For those of you who haven't heard of "The Chosen," it's billed as "the first multi-season show about the life of Christ." That might not sound all that special, but think about it: in what forms of media have you seen Jesus portrayed?

Movies, animated shorts, paintings, radio programs, songs, sure. But a show? That's a different animal entirely. The average 5-Season network TV show has about 20 episodes per season, averaging around 40 minutes per episode. That translates to about 67 hours of footage, exponentially more than your average 2-hour movie.

That's what sets TV shows apart from other media. TV shows are, in my opinion, better than any other form of media at fleshing out characters. Walter White, Sam Malone, Michael Scott, Robin Scherbatsky, Cersei Lannister, and Cosmo Kramer are all icons of American pop culture because we've spent so much time with them. Watching characters interact season after season helps us to become invested in them and care more about what goes on in their lives.

This is the potential of "The Chosen": to take these Biblical, historical figures like Jesus, the Twelve Apostles, and Mary Magdalene and make them living, breathing characters that we can see and root for on our screen. Do yourself a favor and consider the story of Jesus' life from a non-religious perspective for a moment.

There's love, loyalty, betrayal, battles, politics, despair, resurrection, joy, and a LOT more. Completely absent any religious significance, the story of Jesus is wildly entertaining! So why is this important? As Catholics, we hear the story of Jesus over and over again.