{"id":139,"date":"2011-05-23T00:01:17","date_gmt":"2011-05-23T04:01:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/community\/exploringourmatrix\/?p=138"},"modified":"2011-05-23T00:01:17","modified_gmt":"2011-05-23T04:01:17","slug":"the-lost-series-finale-one-year-later","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2011\/05\/the-lost-series-finale-one-year-later.html","title":{"rendered":"The LOST Series Finale: One Year Later"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

One of the most popular posts of all time on my blog in its old location was an explanation I offered of the ending of LOST<\/a>, of which today is the one year anniversary<\/a>. And so I thought I would repost it here, and invite discussion of LOST now that we have the benefit of a year\u2019s hindsight. What questions do you still have, if any<\/a>? Do you still care how the show ended, and did you find the \u201cPlaces in the Heart\u201d ending satisfying<\/a>? Would you have preferred an ending with an explanation along the lines of the \u201cmidichlorians\u201d in Star Wars<\/a>? [Click the links in the preceding text for some of my reflections on those topics].<\/p>\n

Anyway, below is my post on the ending of LOST, which originally appeared here<\/a>:<\/p>\n

Some<\/a> people are puzzled and\/or disappointed<\/a> by the ending<\/a>. And so here is my attempt to explain<\/a> it.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n

Imagine that you spend several years of your life on a strange island, then off the strange island, then return to that island. Your experience connects you with other people, and also raises perplexing questions and profound mysteries. If you\u2019re a LOST fan, you have spent the past six years imagining this, so it should not be hard.<\/p>\n

Now imagine that you find yourself in another reality and have no recollection of those events on the island.\u00a0But then you \u201cwake up\u201d and remember\u00a0your earlier\u00a0existence, and realize that you have died and have now somehow in or beyond death been reunited with those people.<\/p>\n

The ending of LOST is suggesting that when you have this experience, what comes out of your mouth will not be \u201cSo what was underneath the island?\u201d but \u201cI <\/em>love<\/em><\/a> you!<\/em>\u201d When you discover that you have lived and died and now continue to live or live again, you will rejoice rather than complain, connect with people rather than ask questions about what was really going on that time when such and such puzzled us.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n

Unless you\u2019re one of those souls that can\u2019t move on<\/a>. Then perhaps you\u2019ll remain on the island. And being there you may just possibly witness things that provide further explanations. But sooner or later you too will realize then that there was more to life, something important that you missed. Perhaps, like Michael, you killed rather than connected \u2013\u00a0even if it was out of a desire to save your son.<\/p>\n

When John Locke was alive and confronting death, he wished Jack had believed him. As he died the thought that passed through his head was\u00a0\u201cI don\u2019t understand.\u201d But when he passed into the afterlife and remembered all that had happened to him, he didn\u2019t mention either of those things.\u00a0He didn\u2019t ask for answers. He simply hoped that someone would do for Jack what Jack did for him in that moment \u2013 help him remember it all, recall all the connections. And move on.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n

And so that\u2019s what we\u2019re given at the end of LOST: the suggestion that everyone, even the \u201cgood guys,\u201d will be wrong about some things, the realization that every answer leads to another question, and a challenge to appreciate human connections more than answers, because the former are, in the grand scheme of things, more valuable. And whether you like\u00a0LOST\u2019s vision of the afterlife, or don\u2019t think there is an afterlife at all, I suspect that its message about there being more to life than solving mysteries is still one that most of us can appreciate \u2013 even, and perhaps especially, those of us who spend our lives exploring puzzles and trying to answer unanswered questions, since we are best situated to confirm that it is indeed true that every answer only leads to more questions.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

One of the most popular posts of all time on my blog in its old location was an explanation I offered of the ending of LOST, of which today is the one year anniversary. And so I thought I would repost it here, and invite discussion of LOST now that we have the benefit of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":136,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[153],"tags":[418,647,3063,3429,6719,10885,10890,11109,11822],"class_list":["post-139","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-lost","tag-afterlife-theology","tag-anniversary","tag-ending","tag-finale","tag-lost","tag-sci-fi","tag-science-fiction","tag-series","tag-star-wars"],"yoast_head":"\nThe LOST Series Finale: One Year Later<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"One of the most popular posts of all time on my blog in its old location was an explanation I offered of the ending of LOST, of which today is the one\" \/>\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\/religionprof\/2011\/05\/the-lost-series-finale-one-year-later.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The LOST Series Finale: One Year Later\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"One of the most popular posts of all time on my blog in its old location was an explanation I offered of the ending of LOST, of which today is the one\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2011\/05\/the-lost-series-finale-one-year-later.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Religion Prof: The Blog of James F. McGrath\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/religionprof\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2011-05-23T04:01:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/www.blogcdn.com\/www.tvsquad.com\/media\/2010\/05\/lost-intro-636_205x115.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"James F. McGrath\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@ReligionProf\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"James F. McGrath\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2011\/05\/the-lost-series-finale-one-year-later.html\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2011\/05\/the-lost-series-finale-one-year-later.html\",\"name\":\"The LOST Series Finale: One Year Later\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2011-05-23T04:01:17+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2011-05-23T04:01:17+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/#\/schema\/person\/78342576667b872e3d259c153ce4c5bf\"},\"description\":\"One of the most popular posts of all time on my blog in its old location was an explanation I offered of the ending of LOST, of which today is the one\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2011\/05\/the-lost-series-finale-one-year-later.html#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2011\/05\/the-lost-series-finale-one-year-later.html\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2011\/05\/the-lost-series-finale-one-year-later.html#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"The LOST Series Finale: One Year Later\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/\",\"name\":\"Religion Prof: The Blog of James F. McGrath\",\"description\":\"The Blog of Dr. James F. McGrath, Clarence L. Goodwin Chair in New Testament Language and Literature at Butler University, Indianapolis\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/#\/schema\/person\/78342576667b872e3d259c153ce4c5bf\",\"name\":\"James F. McGrath\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/88ca096942acd474313f7ef4227a49da?s=96&d=identicon&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/88ca096942acd474313f7ef4227a49da?s=96&d=identicon&r=g\",\"caption\":\"James F. McGrath\"},\"description\":\"Clarence L. Goodwin Chair in New Testament Language and Literature at Butler University in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. BD University of London, PhD Durham University. Author of John's Apologetic Christology, The Only True God, Theology and Science Fiction, and The Burial of Jesus, as well as (with Charles Haberl of Rutgers University) the two-volume Mandaean Book of John critical edition, translation, and commentary. Also author of numerous articles (and a few science fiction short stories) and the editor or co-editor of several volumes.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3Ge8ul5\",\"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/religionprof\/\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/jamesfmcgrath\/\",\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/jfmcgrat\/\",\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ReligionProf\",\"http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/religionprof\",\"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/religionprof\",\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/James_F._McGrath\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/author\/james-f-mcgrath\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The LOST Series Finale: One Year Later","description":"One of the most popular posts of all time on my blog in its old location was an explanation I offered of the ending of LOST, of which today is the one","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2011\/05\/the-lost-series-finale-one-year-later.html","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"The LOST Series Finale: One Year Later","og_description":"One of the most popular posts of all time on my blog in its old location was an explanation I offered of the ending of LOST, of which today is the one","og_url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2011\/05\/the-lost-series-finale-one-year-later.html","og_site_name":"Religion Prof: The Blog of James F. McGrath","article_author":"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/religionprof\/","article_published_time":"2011-05-23T04:01:17+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"http:\/\/www.blogcdn.com\/www.tvsquad.com\/media\/2010\/05\/lost-intro-636_205x115.jpg"}],"author":"James F. McGrath","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@ReligionProf","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"James F. McGrath","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2011\/05\/the-lost-series-finale-one-year-later.html","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2011\/05\/the-lost-series-finale-one-year-later.html","name":"The LOST Series Finale: One Year Later","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/#website"},"datePublished":"2011-05-23T04:01:17+00:00","dateModified":"2011-05-23T04:01:17+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/#\/schema\/person\/78342576667b872e3d259c153ce4c5bf"},"description":"One of the most popular posts of all time on my blog in its old location was an explanation I offered of the ending of LOST, of which today is the one","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2011\/05\/the-lost-series-finale-one-year-later.html#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2011\/05\/the-lost-series-finale-one-year-later.html"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2011\/05\/the-lost-series-finale-one-year-later.html#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"The LOST Series Finale: One Year Later"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/","name":"Religion Prof: The Blog of James F. McGrath","description":"The Blog of Dr. James F. McGrath, Clarence L. Goodwin Chair in New Testament Language and Literature at Butler University, Indianapolis","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/#\/schema\/person\/78342576667b872e3d259c153ce4c5bf","name":"James F. McGrath","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/88ca096942acd474313f7ef4227a49da?s=96&d=identicon&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/88ca096942acd474313f7ef4227a49da?s=96&d=identicon&r=g","caption":"James F. McGrath"},"description":"Clarence L. Goodwin Chair in New Testament Language and Literature at Butler University in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. BD University of London, PhD Durham University. Author of John's Apologetic Christology, The Only True God, Theology and Science Fiction, and The Burial of Jesus, as well as (with Charles Haberl of Rutgers University) the two-volume Mandaean Book of John critical edition, translation, and commentary. Also author of numerous articles (and a few science fiction short stories) and the editor or co-editor of several volumes.","sameAs":["https:\/\/amzn.to\/3Ge8ul5","http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/religionprof\/","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/jamesfmcgrath\/","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/jfmcgrat\/","https:\/\/twitter.com\/ReligionProf","http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/religionprof","https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/religionprof","https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/James_F._McGrath"],"url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/author\/james-f-mcgrath"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/139","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/136"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=139"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/139\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=139"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=139"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=139"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}