{"id":6103,"date":"2010-03-02T08:19:33","date_gmt":"2010-03-02T12:19:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.christandpopculture.com\/?p=6103"},"modified":"2010-03-02T08:19:33","modified_gmt":"2010-03-02T12:19:33","slug":"jacob-is-good-all-the-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/christandpopculture\/2010\/03\/jacob-is-good-all-the-time\/","title":{"rendered":"Jacob is Good, All the Time"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

In the CaPC Water Cooler, our writers discuss the implications of the latest cultural events. These days, we\u2019re discussing Lost.<\/em><\/p>\n

Previous Installments: <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Pre-season: Lost\u2019s Biggest Question<\/a>. <\/strong><\/p>\n

Pre-season, part 2: \u00a0Lost\u2019s Free Will\u00a0Dilemma<\/a>. <\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Season Premiere: \u2018Lost\u2019 Patience<\/a>. <\/strong><\/p>\n

What Kate Did: Poor Jack<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Lighthouse: Sawyer\u2019s Choice<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Warning! If you are not completely caught up with Lost, you won\u2019t want to read any further.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Drew wrote, <\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

As Rich so humorously pointed out last week, there have been some pretty heavy handed indications in Lost of a dualistic relationship between Jacob and the Man in Black, but I am beginning to wonder if the relationship is truly dualistic.<\/p>\n

Jacob is dead, but he is still clearly at work. \u00a0The end of last season and last week\u2019s episode make me wonder if Jacob doesn\u2019t have a master plan. \u00a0So here is a short list of reasons why Jacob might just be . . . holy:<\/p>\n

1. \u00a0Clearly he has worked out some very complex circumstances by which the Oceanic 815 passengers end up on the plane and consequently on the island.<\/p>\n

2. \u00a0The \u201cOthers,\u201d especially Ben and Richard clearly fear him.<\/p>\n

3. \u00a0He has given Richard long life, healed John Locke from paralysis and healed both Rose and Juliet\u2019s sister from terminal cancer.<\/p>\n

4. It seems that Jacob had a part in saving young Ben Linus when he was nearly shot to death.<\/p>\n

5. \u00a0In last year\u2019s finale\u2013the MIB claims that he will find a \u201cloophole\u201d by which he will be able to kill Jacob. Jacob responds by saying, \u201cwhen you do, I will be right here my friend.\u201d<\/p>\n

That is certainly not a comprehensive list. \u00a0The objection that I suspect will be brought up is that Jacob ordered the extermination of the DHARMA<\/a> Initiative, but I think it is now unclear as to who was really influencing Ben\u2013Jacob or the Man in Black? \u00a0Further, did not God order the ban on the Ammorites when \u201ctheir iniquity [was] complete\u201d (Gen. 15:16).<\/p>\n

I know people draw Biblical comparisons unnecessarily all the time with shows like Lost, but I think there may be a significant one at play with Jacob. When Ben confronted Jacob at the end of last season, Jacob tells Ben he has a choice, but Jacob knows Ben pretty well by this point and when Ben berates Jacob for ignoring him, Jacob responds in a way that he surely knew would set Ben on the course of action that would result in his death: \u201cwhat about you?\u201d<\/p>\n

It seems a willful death on Jacob\u2019s part at the hand of a supposed servant and friend. \u00a0Now Jacob seems poised to break down Jack to the point of making him the protector of the island. \u00a0I need to stop making predictions, but I suspect that Jacob is going to work on Jack and turning him from \u201cannoying irrational Jack\u201d into \u201cwonderful hero Jack.\u201d<\/p>\n

Is Jacob holy? \u00a0Probably not, I can\u2019t imagine Lost giving credit to an all powerful and good God, but right now it kinda seems that way.<\/p>\n

Richard wrote,<\/strong><\/p>\n

Wow Drew, you\u2019re really really going out on a limb there! I like it! Your five reasons, though I\u2019m sure many fans will say are somewhat questionable, are nonetheless a convincing case for Jacob\u2019s omnipotence and general goodness.<\/p>\n

The omnipotence thing is something I\u2019ve been wondering about for a while. Lost did such a good job building up the mythos of this \u201cJacob\u201d before we even met him, that I just assumed that the logical Lost-style twist would be the startling fact that he was in fact just some guy<\/em>. I was basically settled on this opinion until I read your email, and now I\u2019m not so sure.<\/p>\n

I get a lot of criticism for reading too much biblical stuff into Lost, and with most popular culture, I think this would be a correct criticism. Our site is certainly not about reading spiritual messages into <\/em>cultural artifacts when there are none. In this case though, I think Lost has made it pretty clear that Biblical thought and imagery is a big part of the show.<\/p>\n

And so, it\u2019s entirely possible, and I would argue probable, that Jacob either represents or in some sense is<\/em>, a Judeo-Christian God figure. And of course, just as in the Bible there are all sorts of questions about the character and nature of God that, even when understood as best we can, provide us with an opportunity for debilitating confusion and questioning.<\/p>\n

Maybe I\u2019ve written about this too much in these water cooler posts, but I\u2019m getting more and more worked up about it every week. Since Drew was such a trooper, making all sorts of predictions, I\u2019m going to stop beating around the bush and make a pretty bold claim of my own: Lost is simultaneously about the necessity and near impossibility of faith. It\u2019s Job\u2019s story arc. And Christian\u2019s need to embrace this because it\u2019s the most honest representation of the Christian faith I\u2019ve seen on television that I can remember, even if not specific.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019ve never wanted to take God to task for his choices concerning your life, you viewed Ben\u2019s act at the end of last season as unforgivable and villainous. If you\u2019ve never tried to fix situations that make no sense on your own, you will struggle to relate to Jack. If you\u2019ve ever been frustrated by your lot in life and found it hard to be content with your own lowly circumstances, then you won\u2019t be able empathize with Locke. If you\u2019ve never felt as if you had no choice but to do the wrong thing, and then run from those consequences all your life, then you probably are just annoyed by Kate.<\/p>\n

As for me, the more this season goes on the easier I am on these characters, and the more invested I am in their journey. And like them, sometimes I want to make God answer for \u2013 or at least answer \u2013 these mysteries.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The CaPC Water Cooler: Five reasons Jacob should be considered “holy.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1238,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,7,11,1],"tags":[744],"class_list":["post-6103","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-asides","category-featured","category-headline","category-uncategorized","tag-lost"],"yoast_head":"\nJacob is Good, All the Time<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The CaPC Water Cooler: Five reasons Jacob should be considered "holy."\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/christandpopculture\/2010\/03\/jacob-is-good-all-the-time\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta 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