Saving Grace – or – reflections on religion

I've been a fan of TNT's "Saving Grace" since it began. I've been lucky to catch it on-line while in Prague. One thing that really resonates with me has been the relationship between Grace and Earl, her Last Chance Angel. He's pretty no-nonsense. This season they are tackling the issue of capital punishment. What has really struck me has been that the man on death row, Leon, is Muslim. His last chance angel is also Earl. Grace is Catholic. They share an angel. I really like that. The subtle, yet somewhat obvious, concept that Christian God is the same as Muslim Allah. We forget that fact. Abraham has two sons – Isaac and Ishmael. His god – Jehovah, Yahweh, Allah, whatever name you choose to call Him – is the foundation of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. I know this is an obvious post/statement. But we forget sometimes. When I was a freshman in high school, our World History teacher, Mr. Pohl, told us that holy wars are the most vicious, most bloody because if both sides have God on their side, the other must have Satan (or something to that effect). The tv show "Saving Grace" reminds us of this fact – that of our shared belief in one God – through the most popular genre of television today – the cop show. It's really quite brilliant in some ways. The show, based in Oklahoma City, is attractive to an audience that can be the most negatively based towards non-Christian beliefs. There is a sense of good old boy mentality in the show. But then, it brings in Allah. And Earl, the angel, is just as respectful of Allah as he is of Yahweh/God. I guess this shows a little bit about my religious foundations. I love being Catholic. Walking into the church on Easter morning, as the Czech Mass was finishing, and the English about to begin, the air thick with incense - I love the smell of church incense – lifted my spirits. The tradition, the history – I know, not unblemished – draws me and keeps me. As an adult, I have the option of converting or choosing another faith or practice or worship. But I CHOOSE to remain with the Catholic Church. Okay. But I respect other faiths. When I was a young teenager, I read the Narnia Chronicles for the first time. 20 years ago, a parable struck me and has stayed with me. A man who worshipped the satanic figure in the story, saved, in the name of the satanic god, a drowning man. Is the first man good or evil? The answer, as says Aslan, is good because he did an act of good, even if in the name of an evil god (ironically, I recently bought and read the Narnia Chronicles again and did not find this story in the books so am wondering about the recent editions…). Now, please do not think that I am saying that Allah or Buddah or any other god is evil through this example. What I am trying to say is that God takes many forms and goodness will be rewarded in the end. We have to make sense of life in our own ways. So, I guess, you could call me a Golden Rule-er. Do unto others…goodness and a good heart will be rewarded. We just might have some really ugly baggage that it's bound up in.

What I am also "enjoying" if you can call it that, is the portrayal of death row. What it means for the man, since most are men, on it, for the people who fight against it, for the family members...when I was working at the University of Maryland, they chose "Dead Man Walking" as the freshman book. They brought Sister Prejean to speak. I read the book. I heard her speak...I have yet to see the movie. But I am against the death penalty. Add to the fact that poor defense lawyers and discrimination in the various justice systems around the US increase the number of poor and minority men on death row. Again, the show is targeted at those who are most in favor of the death penalty. It's a ballsy show and I give it respect for making people think instead of just go with the flow.