The Chosen, Season Four, Episode 2: An Honest Grief (Part 2)

How the hit T.V. show, "The Chosen," continues to nail honest emotional expression in their storytelling and actors' performances.

Screen-grab from Season Four, Episode 2 of “The Chosen,” from thechosen.tv.

Only two episodes into Season 4 of The Chosen and already the writers continue to take the necessary care and time to deal with grief honestly: slowly, vulnerably, and messily.

Go read Part 1 of this series to catch up.

The Chosen’s stellar “writing room” team, led by Creator/Director Dallas Jenkins, includes friends Tyler Thompson and Ryan Swanson. Whether these guys have experienced personal grief or not, it’s clear they understand the depth, uncertainty, nuance, and overall messiness of grief. As much as we would like, even as Christians, the process of grief does not come in a pretty package with a bow. Or, that it should come in a uniform way that looks and feels the same for everyone.

After sharing a laugh over the staleness of bread, Jesus, played by Jonathan Roumie, succinctly encourages Andrew, played by Noah James, when his head hangs in shame for laughing at such a solemn time:

Andrew: I feel so guilty. I should be in shambles.

Jesus: No. No, Andrew. There is no ‘should’ in grief. There’s no right way to mourn. You’ve already experienced much grief when John was arrested. Falling to pieces again would not honor John’s memory anymore than feeling nothing at all.

Andrew: Mm.

And there it is.

Of course, we don’t know what Jesus would have said to Andrew after the death of his friend and Jesus’ cousin, John the Baptist. But, in alignment with Jesus’ character and values of setting his followers free from guilt and shame and this propensity to follow every “should” of the law just right, it’s easy to imagine Jesus saying exactly this. Jesus would set his followers free even in the way they feel their emotions and heal through their grief.

Free to be human. Free to feel all the feels. Free to be emotional. Free to be fully alive to the pain and hurt we experience. Free to feel and express that emotion freely without shame or guilt or should. Because Jesus as both God who made emotions and man who embodied those emotions could relate to us like no one else. Surely he would understand our pain and hurt.

Not only does The Chosen writing team understand grief’s nuance, but also the awkward human experiences where seemingly paradoxical emotions coexist with grief like laughter and joy. Jesus and Andrew continue:

Andrew: Can we be laughing?

Jesus: Why not? You know, some of the moments in which we laugh the hardest come around the time of a funeral. Our hearts are so tender, all our emotions right at the surface. Laughter and tears, closer than ever.

If you have felt loss from the death of a family member, friend, or even a dream, you know how that grief can carry both moments of deep sadness in our throats with times of laughter from our bellies. It can be very confusing and even disorient us with feelings of shame and guilt. But, as Jesus’ character encourages Andrew, we must not resist our natural humanity in those most vulnerable moments.

We must lean into the emotions as they come. We must embrace our human feelings even in the most awkward and confusing of times. Because many times, the surprising joy and random laughter are an integral part of our healing grief journey. They keep us grounded, calm, and connected to the people and moments that matter.

This powerful moment between Jesus and Andrew lasts only a few minutes in Episode 2. But it sets the vibe for the rest of the episode but also the show. This is going to be an emotional ride and will carry the full range of human emotions we all experience and need to feel fully alive. The God-given emotions that show us who we are and in Who’s image we were made in.

These first two episodes have expanded my view of grief and human emotion and led me deeper into a love for the humanity of Jesus. Share what you’re experiencing so far with Season 4. Leave a comment or DM me, I’d love to hear your story.