Jencarlos Canela, a popular actor from Telenovela, not only played Jesus on Tyler Perry‘s The Passion, he also has some pretty strong opinions on the guy in real life.
While Jencarlos Canela grew up Catholic, he says his views have altered significantly with age.
Jencarlos Canela told People, “I was raised Catholic, but I consider myself more spitirual than religious.”
He continued, “We make the mistake of attaching the word God to religion. The word God is way bigger than religion.”
Jencarlos Canela summed up his religious view, saying, “We can’t allow anyone to tell us how our relationship with God must be. We can choose our own path. And at the end of the day, all that matters is that we are on that path with a supreme being who helps us strive to become better people – a better version of ourselves.”
The Passion aired live on Sunday the 20th and really made a splash.
Jencarlos Canela played Jesus, but not the one you may know. Jesus in The Passion is just a guy wandering the streets of modern-day New Orleans, however, those in charge say that the last hours of Jesus’ life were accurately depicted.
The songs performed by Jencarlos Canela were also modern, with him in one instance memorably covering Katy Perry’s “Unconditional” from the top of the Westin Hotel in New Orleans at the end to symbolize the risen Christ’s unconditional love.
Seal, Daughtry and Prince Royce also performed in the live-action religious tribute.
Did you watch The Passion? Do you think Jencarlos Canela’s views line up with truth?