The Object: On the Religious Fringe

Sometimes I ask myself, am I sane? Perhaps we ought to ask ourselves this question more often. Todd has asked himself this question after finding what he believes to be a Urim and Thummim in a Goodwill Store and comes up with the answer: yes. He peers into this object and seems to see visions of people (in side profile) when the light shines into it just right. As a matter of fact, he builds a light focusing device so that he doesn't have to rely on the unpredictable natural light.

Even he will say that this sounds crazy. However, throughout the movie he challenges all sorts of people to look into the object and see for themselves. Somehow everyone he shows it to also see something in the object, albeit sometimes diametrically opposed things. Some actually see themselves being chased by a demonic force. Todd even takes the object to what he considers the most prestigious university in the south: Vanderbilt. Here he finds a Jew, a Mormon, and an Archeologist and asks each of them to consider his story. They are very respectful. Some challenge him, "Why does this have to be the urim and thummim and not just a sacred cup?" asks the Mormon scholar. The jewish scholar seems to be the most encouraging saying, if you think it's scared and it has a positive force in your life than you go with it.

I have to ask myself, why would I want to believe that an object has special powers. If my life really sucked because I were poor and struggling, I'd want to believe that something magical would save me from my predicament. If I felt like an outcast and that nobody cared about me, I'd want to believe that God had chosen me for a special purpose, even if that purpose were to guard a goodwill cup.

In short, if we as a human race weren't such assholes to each other, we might not have to rely on notions of magic and God-ordained authority. If people had some self-esteem because they could provide for their families and live comfortably I think we'd have a lot more self-actualization replacing religious fervor. But that's just me.