AmericanPapist Comments
"But it got me thinking: what is it about human nature that causes us, in our moments of greatest fear and with the prospects of eternity proximately looming, to fixate on two things: one, God, and second, contrition."
I don't think it's human nature that causes us to fixate on God and contrition when the prospect of eternity looms. I think it's a grace from God...so that when the last moments are upon us, we will experience perfect contrition and say "Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner."
Amen to Beau on that being a grace from God.
It's ironic that the kind of deaths we seem to dread most (scary or painful ones with advance warning), are probably the most healthy for our souls.
I know that, from my limited perspective, a "good death" would be one where I die in sleep or instantly without having seen it coming. I think there's a good chance I'm wrong about that.
Lord, grant me a truly good death, whether I want it or not...
Either interpretation falls within the pale of orthodoxy, I think. I'm just glad the line is in the movie.
I agree that contrition is a grace from God. But it would be foolhardy and spiritually dangerous to rely upon an expectation of achieving perfect contrition at the time of death, sorrow for sin SOLELY because one has offended God; sorrow for the love of God, and for no lesser reason. Foolhardy, because in our fallen state I think that truly perfect contrition is hard to come by for most people. Better to rely upon frequent recourse to the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
Where exactly did I make the claim that this young man exhibits perfect contrition? I'm confused.
RE: Beau, perhaps it would have been more precise to say "what is it about human experience".
AP: Definitely part of the human experience (and I've had a couple of those near-death moments myself!)
Also, while I do think that it is a grace from God to have that "Oh God, I'm so sorry" moment when you fear for your life, I definitely agree with Richard in that I would not count on it. Frequent recourse to the Sacrament of Reconciliation is a MUCH better approach.
And of course I'm in agreement. Again, what I talked about should in no way be taken to mean that it's a normative or usual dispensation.
There's quite a bit of Catholicism in Lost which makes me think that JJ Abrams does have a somewhat of a Catholic background
AP,
You didn't make the claim that this young man exhibits perfect contrition. I was responding to Beau in his first comment.
Ah right, thanks. Obviously such a situation would seem to exhibit imperfect contrition. But better a thousand ages in purgatory...
Without commenting on anyone's comment, I would simply echo your observation, AP. I noticed the same, and in addition I liked that all the characters were "good guys", meaning they tried to do right, not a louse among them.
Not a really profound movie, but enjoyable, and I like the positive light it put on us humans. :)
Thomas,
I'm envious that you got to see this movie. I haven't been able to find anyone to go with me so I may breakdown this afternoon and check it out.
I saw the move on friday, and I agree with a lot of the observations expressed here. I'm also glad the someone else noticed the "Oh God, I'm so sorry" line as seeming a bit out of place. Had it come from Rob, it would've made more sense, since he could easily be apologizing the Beth. But since it same from Hud the only conclusion is that it was some form of contrition. Perhaps Hud was raised with some form of Christian belief and got distracted by life, and only realized its importance at the the end.
In all honesty, that;s one of the things I enjoyed most about the movie, the ability to play with the characters and story in your head. While It wasn't necessarily a cinematic achievement, it was certainly something new. I liked the fact that they never bother to really explain anything that happens in the film. We never find out where the monster comes from, what created, or why it's destroying New York. It's justy simply the circumstances that the characters find themselves in and have to adapt to it. To me, it's almost a Chestertonian monster movie. Rather than focusing on the wise and the strong, it focuses and on the weak and ordinary. Reminds me of Chesterton's saying that if social scientist really want to understand humanity they should climb down a chimney into a random home and see how well they get along with the people they find inside. Which is precisely what each of us did the day we were born. We didn't ask tobe found in these circumstances, but now that we're here we simply have to make the best of it.
I don't know if J.J. Abrams was raised Catholic or had experience with Catholicism, but for some reason (and I won't pretend to know what it is), Catholicism and science fiction seem to fit each other well. It seems very easy to put Catholic spins on science fiction stories, even ones written by avowed non-Catholics (don't believe me? Go watch the Twilight Zone sometime)
I'm happy to see that I'm not the only one who noticed the act of contrition in that very effective scene. I was also heartened to see a young lady bless herself during the first chaotic scene.
Older movies striving for realism used to always show people making the Sign of the Cross. So few movies do it now - when it is such an appropriate gesture. It make you think that intentionally excluding it has some sort of malicious intent. (IMHO).
Overall I thought the movie was excellent.
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