The reason this film is one of my favorite things is its focus on faith. Santa Claus is put on trial for insanity, and the plot hinges on a question of belief. The lawyers, psychologists, and judge, basically everyone, are all forced to reevaluate their ideas about love and charity and compassion. At the end of the movie, Maureen O'Hara says, "Faith is believing when common sense tells you not to."
I was listening to a program on NPR this past week. It was a bunch of scientists discussing the origin of the universe, the Big Bang and what came before. These scientists all kept circling back to the same question: how did figgleblank come into being? (You can substitute anything for "figgleblank": hydrogen, oxygen, carbon, dark matter, whatever.) Not once during the entire hour-long discussion did the word "faith" or "God" get mentioned. It was the elephant sitting in the middle of the room that everyone was ignoring. I was actually laughing at the end of the show.
Those scientists need to watch Miracle on 34th Street this Christmas. They need to learn that not everything can be measured or calibrated or distilled or equated. This time of year, belief takes center stage. Santa Claus does ride around the world on Christmas Eve in a sleigh pulled by flying reindeer. The Son of God was born in a stable in Bethlehem. As the hymn says, Love came down at Christmas.
Saint Marty believes that with his whole heart.
Confessions of Saint Marty
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