Caught "Exorcist: The Beginning" on DVD last night. And while it didn't scare as much as I remembered the original Exorcist movie did in my childhood, the bottomline still sends chills. The really scary part is being reminded once again that the devil is the great liar. And while in the movie, it becomes clear-cut when the devil is in possession of the physical body, in real life it isn't really so. Rather, evil has a beautiful face, beguiling and tempting us especially in our weakest moments and proving us weak in our strongest moments. It is very evident today as in most of history -- when corruption becomes the norm, perversion becomes quite ordinary, unkindness is pretty standard. Face it, evil lurks not in the shadows but out there.
Most of all, I guess what the movie is all about is that Fr. Merrin, for all his frailties, can put the past behind and put God forward. And so can we. Amen to that.
