"I Felt an Electric Current": The Incredible Conversion of 'Barabbas' in "The Passion of Christ"
It's been 20 years since the release of "The Passion of the Christ" and it remains one of the most well-known Christian classics of all time.
But did you know the impressive conversion testimony of Barabbas actor Pedro Sarubbi? That’s right, he experienced something amazing during the film’s production, which led him closer to Christ.
After its 2004 release, "The Passion of the Christ" actor Pietro Sarubbi recounted his mystical experience to various news outlets, including the Italian daily Avvenire and Zenit.
“I felt an electric current”
“As Barabbas, Gibson told me to avoid looking at Jim Caviezel, who played Jesus, until the very scene in which we were to appear together.
"‘Barabbas is like a ferocious dog,’ he told me, ‘but at one moment he becomes a puppy: when he meets the Son of God and is saved. I want your look to be that of somebody seeing Jesus for the first time.'"
“I did as he said, and when our eyes met, I felt a sort of surge. It was like I was really seeing Jesus. I had never experienced such a thing in all my years of acting,” the Italian actor said.
At that moment, Sarubbi said he finally found the peace he longed for.
“It was a big impact,” he told Zenit. “I felt as if there was an electric current between us. I saw Jesus Himself.”
“When looking at me, his eyes had no hate or resentment–only mercy and love,” he acknowledged in his book, "From Barabbas to Jesus: Converted by a Glance."
“It was not only a professional, but above all, a human experience,” Sarubbi added. “I am not embarrassed to say that during the filming, I had a conversion. All of the actors who took part changed a little bit after this experience, but I have learned much more from the film than from any conference.”
The actor also explained his long road to conversion.
“I have done extensive anthropological research, as a man and as an actor. I was instructed in the martial arts…I lived in a Tibetan monastery for six months with a vow of silence. I practiced meditation in India. I lived in the Amazon. I have reached the final goal of this search in Jesus.”