The Mission Paper
Mr. Garavaglia
06-20-04
The Mission Paper
Throughout the duration of Joffre’s The Mission the audience sees the differences between two of the main characters: Rodrigo Mendoza and Fr. Gabriel. In the end however Joffre shows us that, despite the vast differences between these two men, they both have strong faith in God.
Jeremy Irons portrays Father Gabriel, a Jesuit priest sent to a mission near Paraguay to continue the work left by a slain Jesuit. From the very beginning of the movie, it is apparent that Fr. Gabriel is a great man of faith. The most central scene depicting this is when he plays his flute around the hostile-looking native Guarani Indians. When the members approach him while he is playing his flute, he continues playing, having strong faith that God wouldn’t let these men harm him. Fr. Gabriel has a kind of steadfast faith in God throughout the entire movie. When the ending comes and Fr. Gabriel decides what he will do, he chooses with little thought that he will put his utmost faith in God and continue to live his everyday activities. He commits himself to not showing any violence and dies leading the women and children in Mass.
On the other end of the spectrum is Rodrigo Mendoza was played by Robert De Niro. Mendoza, unlike Fr. Gabriel, undergoes a major conversion in the movie. Many would argue that he undergoes a negative conversion at the end of the movie, but I disagree and will explain why later on. Mendoza began the movie as a slave trader and an enemy to the Jesuits. But, a meeting with Fr. Gabriel eventually leads to him joining the Jesuits and their mission at San Carlos. I see many parallels between Mendoza and St. Paul. They were both men that had a terrible past in which they killed Christians, but were converted and became dedicated to those whom they had once persecuted. In the climax of the film, Mendoza is faced with the same tough decision as Fr. Gabriel. He must decide if he will help the Guarani Indians and, if so, how. In the end he chose to resist the invading forces, but the way in which he resists was different from his fellow Jesuit, Fr. Gabriel. Mendoza breaks his Jesuit Vow of Obedience and takes up arms in battle where he eventually perishes.
Both Fr. Gabriel and Mendoza highlight Kathleen Norris’s image of faith, or that faith is an awareness. The faith of the two men fades in and out throughout the film. Their faith and God peaks and pines depending on the action they’re involved in. For example during Mendoza’s conversion experience both men had a great amount of faith in God, but when Altamirano made his decision
I don’t think Fr. Gabriel understood that he doesn’t have to have faith in God always. We aren’t forced too. Faith requires human response. That is one of the main differences between Fr. Gabriel and Mendoza in the end, Mendoza was the only that realized he doesn’t have to have faith in God. However I believe that despite the weakness shown by Mendoza at the end of the film, he had strong faith in God that the battle would be successful for the Guarani Indians and him.
If this film teaches one lesson about faith more than the other that is definitely that faith is not always certain. Fr. Gabriel had an extreme amount of faith in God at the climax of the film, but he couldn’t be certain that God would be able to save him and the Guaranis. So, in this sense, Mendoza was right to question God’s reliability.
As mentioned in our handout the theological virtues are faith, hope, and love. During the film nearing the climax Fr. Gabriel rebuked Mendoza when he said he wanted out of the Jesuit order. He said, “You’ve promised your life to God…and God is love.” This explains why Fr. Gabriel refuses to fight the battle, and it also links together the three theological virtues.
I fortunately haven’t been faced with a situation where violence was an alternative that I can think of. I’m not a big fighter. I use my words before my hands. But, after watching this film, I think of today’s age and how many men and women maybe having to make a similar choice when it comes to the war in the Middle East. First, they must decide if they are going to support the war, and then they most decide how they will support the war.
In conclusion, I believe Father Gabriel and Rodrigo Mendoza as both being men of faith. Both men actually have an equal amount of faith, in my opinion. While many may argue that Fr. Gabriel is perfectly faithful, I criticize him for his blind faith in God. I’m starting to think that maybe he just has faith because he thinks he is supposed to. However, Mendoza quickly looses faith in God at the first minute things go wrong. Neither Mendoza nor Fr. Gabriel is the perfect example of a faithful person.