...And the Oscar Goes to God

Hugh Laurie (of House fame) once said of acceptance speeches, "the accepted custom, especially among my countrymen, is to play down one's accomplishments; to blush, and stammer charmingly about luck, and teamwork, and possibly the hand of God - which, when you think about it, is a ferociously arrogant explanation for one's success."

While those of us with more religious sensibilities may get our knickers twisted by his last comment, secretly, I think we all agree. We've all seen the various and sundry Oscar acceptance speeches in which actors and filmmakers alike thank Jesus for their big wins and, somewhere in a secret part of ourselves, we wince a little. There’s just something incredibly precocious about claiming God wanted you, above all others, to win in your category.

And yet, it would also be totally inaccurate to deny the hand of God in the Oscars. Just because He might not have hand-picked a best picture winner doesn't mean He can’t use the Oscar films as part of his plan and it certainly doesn't mean we shouldn't thank Him. Just look at some of the films that were nominated:

The story of a boy’s journey of faith while at the total mercy of his creator

A man’s conversion to Catholicism and, ultimately, his sacrifice for something greater than himself

A salute to the daring of a man who, despite the social leanings of the time, stood up for the dignity of all people, regardless of color

...And many more films that served as testaments to hope, beauty, the triumph of the human spirit, and yes, the goodness of God (even ‘Django Unchained’ featured one of the few morally justifiable cradling a rosary).

So here’s what I believe: is God sitting up in Heaven staring mesmerized at a flat screen TV and rooting for a particular film to win over the others? Of course not. But He’s still present.

This is because of the fact that, wherever there is beauty, wherever there is truth, wherever there is goodness, there too is God. It is in those places, perhaps most of all in those places, that God is worshiped.

So, with that in mind, I do not see the Oscars as a competition between rival filmmakers. I see the Oscars as an opportunity for roughly a billion people to tune in and, by witnessing the transcendent truth and beauty presented in these pinnacles of cinema, worship God. And that’s something that, statue in hand or not, we can all thank Jesus for.