united 93

My wife and I saw the ad for the movie United 93 on TV yesterday... don't know if you have, but you can watch it online. It's about the flight that went down during the 9.11 attacks - the one that made Todd Beamer (among others) a national name and inspirational story in the church circuit. Perhaps you've heard the phrase "Let's roll," although some dispute the accuracy of that statement having been articulated.

In any event, I'm a bit curious about whether or not this will be "appropriate." (SIDE NOTE: Insert your definition of "appropriate" here: _____________) It's only been 5 years since everything went down and such a focus might be hard on the survivors of the passengers (even though the site claims the film was made in the full support of the families). I imagine a lot of the movie will be conjecture and hypothesis based on the 30 minutes of material they have from the plane.

Then I started thinking about the fact that we often use this week - "The Passion" week - to review images of Jesus and the tragedy of the cross he went to on our behalf. In our services, for instance, we have spotlighted the sacrifice and resurrection of Jesus all throughout our current series. It's central to our understanding of God and ourselves, and sometimes (being the forgetful people we are) we need that kind of reminder. That's why Christians participate in communion and baptism as sacred practices involving earthly elements to convey divine realities.

And so... bearing the assumption that this movie is relatively accurate... I must either support it and its intent or I must stop showing images of Jesus on the cross. To me it's simply a matter of consistency, even if I don't feel all that comfortable with the conclusion.

Kind of like how we skip over certain parts of the Bible and only teach the safe ones. You know... how we talk about how God is pro-life because David asserts that life begins in the womb but overlook the fact that in the same passage we find David wishing God to destroy his enemies. I kind of wish the Bible was a bit tidier in this respect, but sadly we must interact with it instead of pocket it and turn off our brains.

Hmm... maybe all of life is like that, too. Perhaps we have to take the time to consider all that has happened - not just the tidy moments - and see what they look like when a redeeming God is a part of the equation.

Remember the days of old; consider the generations long past. Ask your father and he will tell you, your elders, and they will explain to you. (Deuteronomy 32:7)