Now Is The Time

Several critics have called the Japanese motion picture, “Ikiru,” the greatest film ever made. “Ikiru” is the story of an old man’s struggle to attach meaning to his life after learning that he has cancer and only six months to live. This causes him to reflect on his uneventful life as a minor city hall bureaucrat. The realization that he has made no significant contribution to his fellow man troubles him spiritually. And, despite his weakened condition, he resolves to do something for other people before he dies. With all his remaining energy he gets behind a playground project which has had one obstacle after another thrown in its path by the local bureaucracy. As the result of his efforts, the playground is finally completed and the neighborhood children are presented with their new paradise. The experience transforms the stuffy old ex-bureaucrat into a warm and compassionate human being.

The movie’s touching finale illustrates with great power the depth of meaning contained in Jesus’…