The final scene in Titanic always bugged me. Rose, the 101 year old main character, dies
at the end of the movie after a full life with career, children and
grandchildren. As she makes her way to the
afterlife, she enters the ship again and it is transformed its former glory
while those who died aboard her are all waiting for her to join them. Jack, her love interest aboard the ship, is
there to greet her and they embrace and the movie ends.
Now this romantic end shows that Rose and her true love do
find each other even if they were kept apart for the past 80 years. This is sentimental and it is kind of nice to
think about them ending up together since we really skipped her eighty years
without him. What bugs me about this is
that her life with her husband, children and grandchildren seemed to pale in
comparison to the few days that she spent with Jack.
In reality, we know that infatuation can come quickly but
true love that lasts over a lifetime includes dealing with conflict, overcoming
difficulties and continuing to get to know each other as we grow and change
throughout life. Love at first sight
might be romantic but love that builds over a lifetime is actually more
substantial.
This film ending may also cause some to wonder about Heaven and
what will it be like. What If a person
is widowed and then remarries? Which
person will you encounter?
The Sadducees inquired to Jesus about this very question in
this week’s lectionary passage, Luke 20:27-38.
Jesus responds that the next life will be very different. This in itself is not a very comprehensive answer and begs more questions. Will we recognize our loved ones? Will they know us? Will we look like we did when we were
younger? Or more importantly, will we
look like we imagine we did when we were younger? Do we continue to experience the five senses
that make up so much of our input?
As Christians, we believe that a person's light continues to shine in Christ after death. |
This Sunday, we will also observe All Saints Day which
occurs every November 1. We will light a
candle in worship for those church members who have died in the past year. We will also have time in the worship service
to remember those loved ones who were not members of our church but who remain
near and dear in our hearts. The sermon
title will be “Children of the Resurrection” and if you are in town, I hope you
will join us at 8:30 or 11 am in the sanctuary or at 10:50 am in Wesley
Hall. It should also be available online if you can't join us in the flesh!
In Christ,
Sam
Photo used from Flickr.com via Creative Commons license.
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