It's a Wonderful Life: St. Francis knows how to lasso the moon

"It’s a Wonderful Life" is a Christmas classic through and through. The deep and uplifting message about the dignity and value of every human life is refreshing, heartwarming, and spreads holiday cheer at a faster pace that George and Mary’s Charleston. But rather than focus on the obvious (yet immensely wonderful) themes from a big picture, I’d like to draw attention to the specific experiences George Bailey encountered on his way from the bar to the bridge:

As he is finishing his fervent prayer for help, George is unsympathetically jolted by an impetuous punch from Mr. Welch, the school teacher's husband. Upon stumbling outside and precariously driving away, George crashes his car into a tree and is furiously berated by the landowner. He then disorientedly continues towards the bridge, only to be scolded and shouted at by a passing car. So here's my point: what if these people whom he had encountered along the way had of shown him love and compassion instead of hatred and anger? What if Mr. Welch had of forgiven George rather than promptly socking him across the face? What if the landowner had of first asked "Are you ok?" before berating disheveled George for gashing his tree? What if the driver had of stopped and aided the clearly disoriented and unstable George rather than yelling an angry "What's wrong with you?! Get out of the road!"?

There were so many chances for the people who passed by George to help him out during his lowest point before he even reached the bridge and needed Clarence as a drastic measure. The man at the bar, the man with the tree, and the passing car surely would have reacted differently if they knew the sever condition of this man and the gravity of the situation. We ourselves, often can't tell when the people around us are in need of love, but we always have the opportunity to be an angel of sorts to them by showing kindness and compassion.

To use the popular metaphor from the film, we are called to “lasso the moon” in a variety of ways and to different extents for the people we encounter in our lives. St Francis was a master at this and, thankfully, he basically left us a guidebook. It's called The Prayer of St. Francis (and even has the "giving is better than receiving" Christmas message thrown in for good measure):

“Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy.

O, Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love; For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; it is in dying that we are born again to eternal life.”

The opening dialogue in the movie "It's a Wonderful Life" says:

-"Someone on Earth needs our help."

-"Splendid! Is he sick?"

-"No. Worse. He's discouraged."

The deep discouragement that some of our brothers and sisters in Christ may be suffering through is even more reason why we must be channels of peace and love this holiday season, and always. Just as the people who passed by George did not realize the severity of his situation, we never know the level of suffering of the people we encounter. This is yet another reason why we should strive to "lasso the moon" and be an instrument of peace to all we meet. “It’s a Wonderful Life” emphasizes the value and impact of every human life, and that “Gods greatest gift” is certainly not something to be thrown away. This season, along with your prayers for those suffering physically, include a special petition for those suffering emotionally. By following St. Francis' lead and striving to show love to everyone we meet, we are treating our brothers and sisters in Christ with the God-given dignity they deserve, as well as spreading the much needed message of hope this Christmas season.

Originally published on http://saintsandthesilverscreen.blogspot.com/ 12/26/14