It is 6 o'clock in the morning and I'm awake. Yes, I realize this isn't terribly early, but, you have to understand, in my book, this is terribly early. Terribly. I meant to sleep. In fact I meant to sleep since 5 o'clock and hadn't been able to. I went to bed some minutes past midnight and had a restless night of sleep. Then I woke up (at 5) and my mind was on scary movies. No, I've not recently seen any scary movies but they've been on my mind. Let me explain.
A friend and I were just talking about how Sixth Sense though a classic suspense (even somewhat scary) film is not really all that classic. Don't get me wrong it is. I suppose I mean to say that although it is a great movie it's not so great. Still don't make too much sense, do I? Okay, so this movie, Sixth Sense, is in the cinematographic hall of fame for having one of the most twisted endings in movie lore. True. But if you've seen it once you're done with it. At the most you might watch it again just to catch all the subtleties and quirky twists before the final twist. But after a second viewing (which is a bit of a stretch) the movie is done. For that reason it's not even worth buying.
You see, the problem with scary movies (and many suspense ones) is that once seen the thrill is gone. That's not the case with every movie. No, in fact, most movies are thrilling with every viewing. Sometimes the thrill even augments after repeated viewings. Such is the case for comedies, dramas, musicals, and other genres. The reason for this is, I believe, that scary movies are intended to supply the unexpected. Once they are watched the unexpected then becomes expected. After watching the movie once you know when to expect every haunting, every blood sucking, every snap of the neck, every silver bullet shot, every full moon, every evil laugh. All of it. There is no more thrill.
Could this be a problem with everything supernatural? Yes, it affects us with the creepy side of the supernatural realm. By that I mean the daemons, the ghosts, the spectres, the vampires, and what-have-you, but there is another side to the coin as well. Yes, there is a nice side. Supernatural still, but nice. That is the side of the angels, not of the daemons. For example, the parting of the Red Sea, as in the Bible. The first time that story is told us we are fascinated. It is so...so....so unexpected. Wow. It's like a miracle. No, wait, it is a miracle! But then we hear the story again. Maybe we heard it the first time in family devotions. That was great. Then we heard it again in Sunday School. That was great too. This time it came illustrated. True, it was just an old flannelgraph board or some silly slide show of flash cards, but it was still pictured for us. Then we read it for ourselves. Okay. That was kind of cool too. Then we heard it in a sermon. That's when we first felt adult and responsible and enjoyed the story still. But then we read it again. No, actually we didn't. We skimmed it. That's when we dozed during the next sermon on the same story or text. Yeah, you've heard it once, you've heard it a million times.
Unfortunately then I think this is a problem that affects all supernatural events, both the scary and the sacred. Once the thrill of the unexpected has been delivered it soon becomes expected and that equals boredom. Yes, even of the virgin birth or of the resurrection or of other divine occasions. Einstein calls us "a dead, snuffed-out candle." He said, "The fairest thing we can experience is the mysterious. He who knows it not, can no longer wonder, no longer feel amazement, is as a good as a dead, snuffed-out candle." We can no longer let "this little light of mine shine." It has died. It has been snuffed out. How am I suppose to share the awesomeness of redemption - the greatest miracle ever - if I myself have lost the awe of it?
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