Fast And… Dead

Fast And… Dead: Reflections On Paul Walker.

Very fast.
On Saturday, rather too furious.

I do not know much of the life of Paul Walker, the actor of (not only, but mainly) “fast and furious” fame tragically deceased on Saturday in a car crash. I had overheard on the radio, and at first thought Vin Diesel had died. The news about Paul Walker led me to realise the loss was not only of a life, but also of an actor.

I do not know, as I was saying, much of Paul Walker’s life. He was certainly very tempted, but I do not know to what extent he subscribed to the typical Hollywood mantra (that runs more or less so: “have an illegitimate child or two with fleeting “relationships”; live the life on an idiot; give yourself a tone with social issues in the meantime, anti-Christian ones welcome”) that encourages a movie star to be stupid beyond belief and be celebrated as a model of wisdom at the same time. What I do know is that when he got up on Saturday morning his guardian angel, the Blessed Virgin, and the Holy Ghost knew he would never wake up alive again.And I know, Iknow, that some serious work was goign on in the background as Paul Walker’s immortal soul lived its last hours on earth.

As a Catholic concerned with salvation, when such things happen I can never avoid wondering what the dynamic of the entire thing was. If he was in mortal sin (we do not know; but if the stereotypical Hollywood cliche is anything to go by the chances aren’t very good that he wasn’t) we can only imagine the Holy Ghost was massively at work in the last hours, the time when I am informed many report – when they do not die, of course – of having strange feelings and a sense of something very important about to happen. Walker’s (and his friend’s) last hours might well have been funny ones, and the wealthy friend apparently inviting him to have a spin in his Porsche Carrera (a very expensive, and very fast car) put him just in the spot where his funny feelings would not allow him – if it was the friend who was driving, as it would appear from what I have read – to take it easier for the day.

The things, therefore, took their course. And there it is, the world-famous actor approaching the meeting with his Creator, fast and furious.

If you know two things about cars, you know that it is very seldom nowadays that they take fire. The more so, when a high-performance sports car with a price tag of many hundreds of grands is concerned. These cars are very, very safe, and are built to save life and limb of their occupants after impacts that would make a milk-shake of, say, Francis’ Ford Focus. the impact caused the loss of fuel to such an extent that a fire ensued, and it is therefore probable that it was terrible.

And so we have arrived at the moments that might have decided of Paul Walker’s (and his friend’s) eternal destiny. As the car began to slide, very probably moments became very long for both occupants of the vehicle. I have been always induced to believe that the last moments are those of the greatest salvation effort, in which the soul cries out very loud for final repentance. So loud, in fact, that many might be saved in those moments, who otherwise would have gone straight to hell. Particularly so, as in many cases strong premonitions and “funny feelings” must have come to the head of the soon-to-be-judged; feelings perhaps leading to a honest resolution to go to confession, or to a sincere repentance for grievous sin.

I do not know if Walker and his friend died on the impact. If they remained alive and conscious, they must have had a certain time window before the fumes of the fire suffocated them. Again, this would be plenty of time, in which the wounded soul has a last, mighty shot at redemption. Such moments must, I believe, concentrate the mind wonderfully. If Paul Walker and his unknown friend had such moments, they should certainly be grateful for the precious opportunity. May yours truly, when the time comes, have the same opportunity: a gift that can be more precious than an entire life, even more precious than a life lived as a successful actor for many years.

At that point, every concept of success, prosperity, and celebrity was utterly superfluous. Death enters stage left, and stays there. She finds the soul in mortal sin, or not. Nothing else counts.

Whilst many today focus on another dead “celebrity”, I prefer to focus on the destiny of two immortal souls. Both of them – as immortal souls – more important than the entire universe, as the universe will one day be dust, but the two souls will live on – in the one place, or the other – forever. 

The fire was extinguished, the car was destroyed, two lives were lost. But those two souls are as alive now as they ever were. 

Where are they as I write this? The circumstances explained above inspire some hope, but also some very sobering thoughts.

You might say that Paul Walker’s death was fast and furious. Or you might say it came like a thief in the night.

We hope he and his nameless friend met their Maker with sufficiently good cards in their hands to avoid the worst. Then if they didn’t: what was it all worth, the cars and the money, the fun and the celebrity?

I invite you to pray for the rest of the two souls.

Slowly, and calmly.

Mundabor