With it's yet powerful social voice, Church pushes the envelope in "My Brother, the Narco"
Guadalajara -
Mexico's Roman Catholic Church remains an influential institution in this country, despite inroads by other faiths in recent years. Experts say that about 80% of the nation considers itself Catholic. And although there is a clear line of demarcation between church and state affairs in Mexico, as there is in the United States, that line not infrequently gets crossed.
An organization known as the Catholic Multimedia Center has produced a brief video which is making big news here, and evoking no small amount of controversy. A 13 year old girl recounts the horror of her parents being executed by narco criminals - we're not told why - and then making the decision to forgive them. The murderers themselves seem to seek reconciliation, but the clip stops short of telling the viewer whether they find it. That will be told in future installments of Hermano Narco - "My Brother, the Narco." The Multimedia Center plans a total of 12 short segments, the first of which has appeared on some national television networks.
The message to Catholics will be clear. Those who seek pardon must grant it. For obvious reasons, it's a message many in this country are not prepared to accept or embrace.
The video is not a production of the Roman Catholic Church in Mexico. But despite the lack of official imprimatur, a safe assumption would be that it wholeheartedly endorses the content.
A note: The clip is quite brief, about seven minutes, with the last three minutes devoted to credits. The video is overwhelmingly visual, with minimal audio content. It's in Spanish, but non-speakers will easily understand what's happening. It's my impression that it was made with exactly that thought in mind, to encourage distribution to the broadest audience possible. Hermano Narco is worth a watch, despite the fact that it's unabashed propaganda. But it's good propaganda, which well may justify it.
[The fictional home invasion and executions which form the backdrop for this film are common place events in Mexico. For a recent MGRR story and equally powerful video, see: In the hard, cold land of the Sierra Tarahumara, narco traffickers wage open war against the poorest of the poor (Dec. 19)].
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