Don’t Look Up- The Prayer

I think that the PRAYER SCENE in the movie was as good a statement on prayer as I have seen. This description by Olivia Bardo (Sojourners, 1/22) capsulizes the moment perfectly.

Note: Spoilers below

At the end of the film, while the wealthy few are boarding an escape ship to leave Earth, the film’s central characters gather at Prof. Mindy’s home, having their own last supper. While sharing words of gratitude, Kate says, “I’m grateful we tried.” Prof. Mindy wonders aloud if they should say amen; they are not a religious family, he explains.

The characteristically quiet Yule responds that he’s “got this” and begins to pray: “Dearest Father and Almighty Creator, we ask for your grace tonight, despite our pride, your forgiveness, despite our doubt. Most of all, Lord, we ask for your love to soothe us through these dark times. May we face whatever is to come in your divine will with courage and open hearts of acceptance.”

Yule provides comfort with his prayer. He does not weaponize his prayer as a means to elevate himself, secure votes, or shore up material possessions like the other characters in the film. Not once does Yule force his beliefs on anyone who does not express a desire to receive it — that’s the sort of manipulation that ushered in the end of the world.

And that’s the power and pull of Yule’s prayer — the call to be grateful for being alive amid uncertainty and darkness, and to possess the will to try. As the world ends, a Christian who grew up evangelical joins hands with the scientists. Here’s to praying that in real life, that unity arrives before it’s too late.