Don't Forget Your Belovedness
Sing Sing and the power of words, art, and community.
Life blooms behind prison walls too. Not only the prisons of our mind and souls, but the physical prisons as seen in the most recent film, Sing Sing.
Based on a remarkable, hopeful moving story of the prison inmates at the Sing Sing Maximum Security Prison; who found purpose and beauty through the Rehabilitation Through the Arts program. This real-life program serves as an outlet for inmates to learn management & communication skills, and to find purpose through to the beauty of the arts.
In the story of Sing Sing we follow characters who are played by real life inmates who were all personally impacted by the beauty of the RTA program. Our lead, the fearless and magnificent, Colman Domingo plays the role of John “Divine G” Whitfield. He appears to be one of natural leaders within the program, encouraging inmates to come along side to participate in upcoming shows. Divine G takes great pride in his craft of theater, and being a key player within the RTA program.
We clearly see the importance that theater plays in bringing purpose to our participants. A clear reminder of the importance of the arts and its necessity within communities. These men may be confided to concrete walls and wired fences, but life and world exists within the auditorium of Sing Sing. A hauntingly, beautiful contrast.
Sing Sing is filled with stunning shots, a stirring score from The National’s Bryce Dessner, with a soft undercurrent of the redemption.
The actions that caused these men to become prisoners is not always full unpacked, neither are everyone’s back story. Rather, we are more focused on the present and moving forward with the next play that these inmates must rehearse and prepare for. We find no purpose to dwell on who they once were, but to observe who they are becoming through this program. We are forced to see their humanity on and off the stage.
In one of the more notable scenes, an inmate aggressively calls Divine G a derogatory term. Divine G’s simple, calm response is, “here, we don’t call one another that. We call one another beloved.”
Without giving too much away from this special and beautiful film, I could not help but see the redemptive story that waits for us all. Regardless of our past, background, mistakes, regrets, etc. We are always more than our worst days, and even our best. We have always been loved by a God who sees our souls, who collects our tears, weeps with us, and knows our longings. A God who is not angry at us or out to get us, but meets us in our despair and joy. Who sees all, the injustice done and the words that have wounded us. He has always seen us, and he has always loved us. We only have to let ourselves be loved.
I have a feeling Divine G would have loved the writings of Henri Nouwen, mainly his writings found in Life of the Beloved. Nouwen’s pulse on the beauty of God’s love lavished on us is summed up here:
“I kept running around it in large or small circles, always looking for someone or something able to convince me of my Belovedness.
Self-rejection is the greatest enemy of the spiritual life because it contradicts the sacred voice that calls us the ‘Beloved’. Being the Beloved expresses the core truth of our existence.
To be chosen as the Beloved of God is something radically different. Instead of excluding others, it includes others. Instead of rejecting others as less valuable, it accepts others in their own uniqueness. It is not a competitive, but a compassionate choice. Our minds have great difficulty in coming to grips with such a reality. Maybe our minds will never understand it. Perhaps it is only our hearts that can accomplish this. Every time we hear about 'chosen people', 'chosen talents', or 'chosen friends', we almost automatically start thinking about elites and find ourselves not far from feelings of jealousy, anger, or resentment. Not seldom has the perception of others as being chosen led to aggression, violence, and war.”
The hope that many of the inmates within Sing Sing have found was not only through the arts, but through their community and the assurance of their belovedness. They were willing to wear this term as their badge, and it was the banner over their lives.
Sing Sing reminded me that we are all worthy in the eyes of God. Those with a torrid past, the one who vote differently, those who are inside and outside prison walls. All deeply worthy.
For God so loved us, He became us, died for us, redeemed and restored us.
We are redeemed within His Love, found in His love, and are His beloved.
And you can claim it at any time.
Sing Sing is now playing in select theaters. I so hope you catch it at a local theater, and a locally owned theater if you can. You can listen to the interview with the director and former inmate/ current actor here.