We walked downtown again today. It is a favorite Saturday ritual - walk downtown, have a nice lunch somewhere and then see a matinee movie at the Block E movie theater. As much as I love teasing Monica about the hideous mileage we put on our feet every week, it was once again a wonderful day. (Don't tell her I enjoyed myself - I'll lose all my whining creds!)Today's movie was a very thoughtful treat. We went to see The Soloist, with Robert Downey Jr. and Jamie Foxx. It is the true story of a Los Angeles Times reporter who develops a friendship with a schizophrenic homeless man, once a musical prodigy. It is a story of rescue, redemption and simple friendship. It is a movie every Christian leader should see. Without spoiling the story, the movie has much to teach on many levels. It is a grim glimpse into homelessness and mental illness, particularly in the underbelly of Los Angeles. It is a careful study in the value of human life and our efforts to save it. It is a love story with lost people on all sides.
I am regularly surprised by the lessons I learn in movies. As we left the theater, crossed the Hennepin Bridge and listened to the beautiful Saturday evening bells of Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church ringing out from the center of St. Anthony Main, I found myself marveling at the moment. The bells were playing All Glory Laud and Honor as we were discussing the horrific conditions of homelessness and mental illness portrayed in the movie. We listened to glory, laud and honor just after walking past the Gay 90's nightclub. What connection is there between glory, laud and honor and the story we were discussing, the story we are living? In the messy, fallen situations we struggle through each day, how do we truly bring glory, laud and honor to God? Is it our responsibility to rescue the world around us or are we simply called to offer ourselves as friends and leave the rescue to the One who knows how?
Once again, I've been surprisingly reminded of where the answers are.
Please go see this movie. It isn't for families, and isn't always pleasant, but it is surprisingly good.
