I'd Like to Thank the Academy

Sunday night was a big night for Thank Yous.  Movie stars and directors, writers and cinematographers, composers and producers dressed in designer fashions, walked the red carpet before the cameras of the world, took their seats, and hoped for a turn to come to the stage and give thanks.  Around the world, people got cozy in front of their televisions, their Twitter feeds afire, and tuned in to learn the winners.

I'm not a huge fan of the Academy Awards, to be honest.  Most years, I haven't seen all the nominated movies.  Some years, I don't watch the awards at all.  But this year, after four days spent sick in bed with the flu, I was just happy to be sitting upright and was thankful to have something to distract me from the absence of "Downton Abbey" since its heartbreaking season finale last week.  

I sat through all the speeches.  There were hugs and smiles and kisses.  They thanked mom and dad.  They thanked their wives who stood by them through it all.  They thanked their creative teams and film crews.  They thanked the other nominees.  They thanked their costars and directors, their agents and lawyers.  Yes, they thanked their lawyers.  They thanked the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences for acknowledging them and the Academy membership for voting for them.

You know what they didn't say?  Three and a half hours of awards and thank yous, and I didn't hear anyone thank God.  The inspiration behind the stories, the genius behind the cinematography, the music in the mind of the composer, the Divine is in the Details.

Well, I'm not surprised.  Hollywood is a temple built to self-promotion, and at the altar hangs a great gilded mirror.  Popularity occupies such an important role in the religion of movies.  It takes a braver, humbler person to stand before the world and say, "Praise God, from Whom all blessings flow."  These gifts we have, the talents we employ, the career we love, are blessings from God.  That would be so good to hear.

I do not mean to say that these artists don't deserve praise for their amazing achievements.  They most certainly do.  Movies have the power to uplift and educate the world, to inspire service and promote change.  So give them credit, absolutely.  But when the credits roll, Thank God.

Thank you, God, for the brilliant and talented individuals who bring us the movies.  Thank you for the inspiration and genius that drives them to do it.