Now the
earth was corrupt in God’s sight, and the earth was filled with
violence. And God saw the earth, and behold, it was corrupt, for all
flesh had corrupted their way on the earth. And God said to Noah, “I
have determined to make an end of all flesh, for the earth is filled
with violence through them. Behold, I will destroy them with the
earth. Make yourself an ark of gopher wood…”
Genesis
6:11-14
Is God not too
crazy about families living in suburban homes and riding around in
SUVs?
Well, we know
that some in Christian circles – the “What Would Jesus Drive?” crowd
– have it in for SUVs. Maybe an offshoot could be a “Where Would
Jesus Live?” movement targeting the evils of detached single-family
dwellings with nice yards.
Who knew such
things irritated our Lord? I know I am sinner, but I did not realize
that living in my house and driving a Chevy Blazer were to be listed
among my sinful acts.
Anti-SUV and
anti-suburbia Christians will appreciate the new film “Evan
Almighty.”
The movie
stars Steve Carell as Evan Baxter, who moves on from being a TV
anchorman to a seat in Congress. At times, “Evan Almighty” can be
funny. It also is generally respectful of faith in God.
For example,
Evan’s children pray, so he follows suit, awkwardly asking God for
help to carry out his campaign promise to change the world.
As it turns
out, God (played by Morgan Freeman) wants Evan to build an ark. God
is persistent in getting the reluctant Evan onboard. Along the way,
there are tidbits that Christians will appreciate.
Evan asks God:
“Do I know you?” God responds: “Not as well as I’d like.”
Evan’s alarm
clock goes off each morning at 6:14, and that same number pops up
elsewhere. The reference is to Genesis 6:14. For good measure, the
“Go-4-Wood” company keeps delivering wood to his home, along with
tools from “Alpha and Omega Hardware.” Like Noah, Evan has a wife
and three sons.
Most
important, the message of God acting in our lives out of love is
clear, as is the message that God wants us to be kind to others.
A slap at
corrupt politicians is thrown in as well, which can be appreciated
by many of us.
So, what’s not
to like? The underlying message unmistakably is that God is not
pleased with new suburban homes and SUVs. He shows Evan a stretch of
wilderness. Evan wants to know where this is. God reveals that it is
where Evan now lives. The vision of the wilderness is transformed
into a development of completed and under-construction homes. The
message is that God loves the untouched wilderness, and the homes
soil his creation.
Once Evan
completes the ark, a nearby dam breaks, and washes away these
suburban homes and the light trucks in their driveways.
“Evan
Almighty” is a movie for those wishing to nudge aside the Good News,
at least a bit, in order to push today’s environmentalism onto the
Lord’s agenda. Signaling the green shift at Christianity Today,
online reviewer Carolyn Arends positively gushed over the film,
proclaiming it ideal for the entire family, and noting that “one of
the movie’s strengths is the connection it makes between obedience
to the Creator and care for his creation. (How did those two
concepts ever get divided along party lines?)” Well, in Christian
circles, it is not a matter of party division. Indeed, Christianity
is not about parties or policy proclamations on suburban homes or
SUVs.
More striking
was a review at National Review Online by Rebecca Cusey. She
wrote: “Although the movie has a hint of environmentalism, involving
a story line about development of park lands, it is not the main
thrust of the story. Global warming, carbon footprints, and
recycling are not the moral. Instead, God at one point shows Evan
the valley as He made it, reminiscing fondly about sculpting the
mountains and aligning them to maximize the sunshine. He is Creator,
in charge over creation.” Cusey gets it right on God as the creator,
but rather astoundingly misses the moral of “Evan Almighty.”
It apparently
is beyond the comprehension of the filmmakers – not to mention
countless environmentalists and perhaps the aforementioned reviewers
– that God might consider families living in homes just as or even
more beautiful than a wilderness. God made us in his image, and that
most certainly includes as creators as well.
Interestingly,
Cusey and Arends both touched the idea that “Evan Almighty” glosses
over the harder issues of sin and judgment, as dealt with in the
real Noah story. But they miss the filmmaker’s points about mankind
and the environment. In the Bible, God was washing away corruption
and sin. As homes are overwhelmed by the floodwaters and an SUV
floats by under water in “Evan Almighty,” the parallel is clear.
Homes carved out of trees in a valley, with SUVs parked out front,
are the equivalent of the corruption and violence spoken of in
Genesis.
Though some Christians might like
this environmentalist bent, it is not Christian. It is a twisting of
the faith that plants seeds of division, and fosters distraction
from the true Christian mission of spreading the Good News of
salvation through Jesus Christ.
Raymond J. Keating, also a
columnist with Newsday, is the editor and publisher of the “On the
Church & Society Report.” This column is from the latest issue of
the “On the Church & Society Report,” which also features “Road to
Rome,” “Christian Dangers in Iraq,” “President Bush’s Stem Cell
Veto,” “Sacrifice and the Fantastic Four,” “Surfing Penguins,” and a
news roundup on partial-birth abortion, Episcopalians, Anglicans and
Lutherans. To receive a free four-issue trial of “On the Church &
Society Report,” send an e-mail request to
ChurchandSociety@aol.com.
