Recently, I forced myself to watch The Road. This is not for kids and even for some adults as it is R. Before I watched it, I knew it was brutal. Viggo Mortensen is an under-rated actor. He is truly talented but obviously chooses his films for his own reasons. The film, as most of you know, as it is not new, takes place in the post nuclear war world. How people react to the world of cannibalism and violence creates part of the story. The father tries to teach his son, after the mother leaves to die, about good and bad. The ending is hopeful, thank goodness, and there is a, I think, reference to The Lord of the Rings at the very end which I do not want to spoil. There is nothing beautiful in the film except the love of the father for his boy and the boy's growth into "a good guy".
But, it is an important film. The movies shows that in the end, nothing counts but character and love.
Evil persists and grows worse, which means that good must become heroic.
I went down and helped after Katrina and the landscape, especially the dead trees, reminded me of Mississippi. The reactions of the people were somewhat similar. Many men committed suicide. Some youth began to live pagan lives, completely hating God, life and themselves in a pursuit of pleasure to numb pain and fight the ordinary. Some began to practice the occult, especially voodoo. Some people, the majority, were kind and good and helpful to each other. I learned a lot about people and myself.
I was reminded of the Israelites in the wilderness, trying to get to the Promised Land after years of punishment owing to sin. One of the simplest scenes included the Man and the Boy walking into a city where the expensive jewelry shop had been. They were literally walking on money, pearls and other precious stones. Nothing mattered but food and water.
If there is a nuclear holocaust, it will be a direct result of sin. If there are any survivors who do not see people merely as prey, but as humans in need, responding in love, it will be because of grace.
We need to prepare our souls now. We need to build character and learn what real love is all about.
Sacrifice and courage. May I add real community is a necessity.