EAST CHICAGO | Each year for the past 24, as Mike Salinas readies for his role, he says a special prayer.

"I ask the Lord to give me the strength. I ask him, 'Put the spirit on me to represent you.'"

That invocation is critical to Salinas, a long-haired, bearded Mexican native raised in East Chicago who plays Jesus Christ for Our Lady of Guadalupe's annual Living Way of the Cross.

He was recruited by a former Our Lady of Guadalupe priest who thought Salinas' svelte physique, long hair and beard made him perfect for the part.

"It's been a blessing," said Salinas, while preparing Friday morning for his performance. "It's a blessing every time I do this. To represent Jesus is not easy. You really have to live it."

Salinas, now a Hobart resident, said it is a taxing thing to do every year.

"It is emotional, but I think that no human can do what Jesus Christ does for us. I just ask for the strength to be able to do it," he said.

The celebration of sacrifice and adoration marks Good Friday in East Chicago's Indiana Harbor neighborhood.

Beginning at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church with the sentencing of Jesus by Pontius Pilate, the re-enactment follows Jesus as he carries his cross to his own crucifixion as detailed in the Bible.

The actors, who rehearse for three months, and hundreds of faithful who turn out for the walk every year follow a circular route through the Harbor, with stops at St. Patrick's and St. John Cantius churches. The re-enactment finishes at Nunez Park, with the Crucifixion.

"For all of us, this is very, very important," said Judith Garibay, assistant director of the Way of the Cross for the church. "This is a big week for us. This is a Holy Week, and this is an important part of that for us."