Sunday Post: Which Do You Prefer?

Something you or may not have inferred from my blogs to this point is that I am a huge fan of movies. I love cinema. I love all the different ways that film makers and actors and visual effects teams work together to create an art that really gets taken for granted in today's society. I try to watch a new movie at least once a week, whether it's a new release or some classic film that I haven't seen before (finally knocked "Pulp Fiction" of the bucket list last week). One of this week's movies was "Life of Pi", the 2013 Oscar winner for Visual Effects and Directing, as well as a nominee for best picture.

I immediately regretted not seeing this in the movie theater, as the visual effects were nothing short of astounding. It was very much like seeing "Avatar" for the first time, I could not believe what my eyes were seeing on my screen, and it would have been wonderful to see it in theaters as it was meant to be seen.

But why am I discussing it on this blog?

In short, my review of the film is: "Come for the visual effects, stay for the religious discussion."

The main character of the story, a boy named Piscine who shortens his name to Pi to avoid the obvious joke from school bullies, is a man of three faiths. Despite his father's belief that "religion is darkness", Pi inherits the traditions of Hinduism from his mother, then later learns to love and form a relationship with God through Christ. He then learns how to to devote himself to prayer by learning from Muslims. It is a fascinating character trait, as most people I know prefer to have one religion or none at all.

The journey that Pi relates is almost impossible to believe, and the man who asked him to tell it was told the story would make him believe in God. While the bulk of the movie is dedicated to the fantastic story of how Pi survives on the pacific ocean on a boat with an adult Bengal Tiger, there is also a scene at the end where he convincingly tells a more plausible (but far darker) version of his journey in order to please people who cannot believe the more grandiose one.

All day I have been asking myself, "Which version of the story is what really happened in the world of this movie?" It took me a while to realize that this isn't the point of the movie.

Pi asks the man interviewing him, "Which story do your prefer?"

Not "Which do you believe?" but "Which do you prefer?" I find that to be a fascinating question. Given the choice between a believable but tragic and heartbreaking story that cannot be proven and a grandiose, farfetched but beautiful story full of meaning that can also not be proven.....what do you really prefer?

It is interesting to me that a movie that spends so much of it's time discussing religion adamantly refuses to take a side. It condemns faith, it condones it, it wonders at the insanity of it and revels in the peace and beauty of it. Is the movie trying to promote all religions as true, or only one? Is it message that you can't mix faiths and have it work, or that you must mix faiths in order to have it be complete? Maybe it's simply saying that it doesn't matter what faith you have, so long as you have it. Or is it's message that the cold, hard truth is that no matter how beautiful your faith, it's ultimately a lie?

Or perhaps.....it's just asking you what you prefer.

For me, I have to agree with the man who was looking for a story that would make him believe in God.

The one with the Tiger is a much better story.

Valjean and Javert: A Contrast of Faith

Over the last week or so I've posted quite a few blogs that are about spanking, but very little about Christianity. Part of that is in deference to anyone reading who does not share my religious views, as I hope that I occasionally reach out to a wider audience. The idea behind Christian Spanking Fellowship was always to be an open and affirming blog that welcomes everyone, regardless of religious belief, sexual orientation or whatever else. I believe it's my duty as a believer in Christ to share His love with everyone, to give them a safe haven from the judgment and hopefully help them accept who they are and grow into the people God made them to be.

So, while reminding everyone that I am totally accepting of your beliefs and hope you enjoy the blog anyway, I am going to make an effort to set aside Sunday for more faith-oriented posts. Which is not to say that spanking won't be involved, just that it won't necessarily be the focus of my Sunday posts. I hope this pleases most of you.

Recently I purchased and watched Les Miserables on Blu-Ray. While I know the movie wasn't a hit with everyone, it would have had to have been a failure of spectacular proportions for me not to love it. I am a fan of good music, an admirer of Hugh Jackman and Anne Hathaway, and have had a fondness for Victor Hugo's works ever since I first saw the Disney version of The Hunchback of Notre Dame. This movie might as well have been made for me.

To me the most fascinating dynamic in the film is the relationship between the two male leads. Jean Valjean is a man condemned to a life marked as a "dangerous man" for the petty crime of stealing bread, and Javert is a dedicated servant of the corrupt French king, keeping and enforcing the laws he believes in. Both men are shown throughout the film to have a strong faith in God and petition Him to help in their causes.

Javert is a man who sees himself as a saint bringing sinners to justice, and while he is cruel, we get to see glimpses that he is essentially a good man. When he places his badge of honor on the young boy who dies standing up for what he believes in, we see that Javert is hardly heartless. He just places his faith in the letter of the law, and his morality is very black and white. He believes that people are either good or they are hopelessly evil and beyond reform, and the Lord rewards people accordingly. That is why he is rocked to his core when presented with Jean Valjean, a truly good man who was once a thief.

Jean's character is presented early on as man who hates the world, and feels justified in that because he has been wrongly placed in prison for nineteen years for stealing a loaf of bread for his starving family. When he is finally released, he has a lifetime of parole and papers that prevent him from finding any honest work or even the ability to sleep in an end. He is harassed and attacked by everyone from police to children, but ultimately has his turning point when he is shown unconditional love and acceptance by a priest. Even when Jean steals from him in desperation, the priest does not turn him over to the police, but gives him even more in the hopes that he will become an honest man of God.

While Valjean reconciles his soul with God fairly early on and never looks back, we see Javert's faith slowly unravel as he relentlessly pursues the man who who violated his parole. In spite of the years in prison and being chased by Javert, Valjean shows him nothing but mercy, contrition and even submission to his authority, only avoiding arrest to aid the suffering of others. Javert is in such denial that Valjean can possibly be good that by the end of the story, he commits suicide. The world he believed in was shattered and he could no longer live in it.

I find both men very easy to relate to. Ever since giving my soul to Christ in my ten years, I've had difficulty dealing with my sinful nature. At times I am like Javert, clinging to the letter of the Law and attempting to purge myself of all wrong doing, and refusing to believe that I can be both a saint and a sinner. More often, I am Valjean, a man who believes in God's forgiveness but has heard so many times that what I do and feel is wrong that I sometimes believe I am beyond forgiveness. Like Valjean, I eventually came to terms with my past faults and have found peace by loving others.

"To love another person is to see the face of God."

Very few movies are willing to so blatantly support faith in this day and age, while also giving serious thought to the questions that believers ask themselves. Les Miserables is a triumph of the human spirit, but it is also a demonstration that while a life devoted to God can be filled with suffering, there is a greater plan at work, and love will always persevere.