A beautiful day in the neighborhood

And why we love that movie so much

“No one can live the life you live. And even though no human being is perfect, we always have the chance to bring what’s unique about us to live in a redeeming way.”

-Fred Rogers

It took me a few years, but I finally watched the Mr. Rogers movie, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, a couple of weeks ago. The movie itself was amazing. Mr. Rogers really possessed what Christians would call “the heart of Jesus.” His whole life was about helping those who were in trouble—who were burdened. He didn’t seem to care who the person was. He wanted to get to know them and really cared about what they were going through. He listened. He would follow-up. He let people know that he cared about them on a personal level, even if he hadn’t known them for more than a day. Quite inspiring. The love he gave was simple and yet overwhelming.

But something else happened to me after I saw the movie. I talked about it to close friends and family—and they would overwhelmingly tell me just how much they loved that movie. One family member shared that she and her husband watched it over and over again. And a friend declared that it was her favorite movie. What was going on with this movie?

To me it is obvious and self-evident. It is God. God is a star in that movie. And not just when Fred is on his knees at night, praying for people by name. Not just then—God is in the entire movie. Fred is working God’s mission to a hurting people. His actions are the actions of people who believe—and do. He is the living testimony of the biblical warning of James: Faith without works is dead. Fred Rogers is the work. His life was faith in action. And we are attracted to that.

We are attracted to God through the people who live out God’s will, even when we can’t put our finger on it. As a people, we have let our spiritual selves fall asleep—we no longer think about God much. And then when we see a movie like A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, that spiritual side of us wakes up. We remember what has always been there—deep down inside is the idea of God. And we recognize it, if for only for a moment.

I have a lot of hope in that.

The connection my loved ones experienced watching that movie is the exact connection I felt when I walked into my first AA meeting. The whole meeting was about helping me and others to get sober—by connecting to a Higher Power. The members of AA and Al-Anon do just that by the welcome and comfort we give at each meeting. And God is there in their works—no doubt. And we sense that and know that God is both real and present.