God Friended Me has always broached the topic of faith but never in such a straightforward manner as it did on God Friended Me Season 2 Episode 15.
As Miles connected with a terminal cancer patient, he questioned what the God Account wanted to achieve by making Anna his Friend Suggestion if he never stood a chance at saving her.
Ali suggested that it’s possible Miles’ actions to help Anna reconnect with her faith would lead him back to his.
The audience had to know that we’d arrive at this moment eventually.
I don’t think this show could continue for several more seasons without Miles grappling with the idea of faith, rethinking his beliefs, and checking in to see where he stands now.
So much has transpired since we first met Miles that has influenced his relationship with faith.
Miles may consider himself an atheist in the present-day, but that wasn’t always the case. Much like Anna, Miles began losing his faith when he lost someone important to him.
Anna, who we find out used to attend Harlem Episcopal, started drifting from the church when she lost her friend Kate to suicide.
Similarly, Miles started questioning his belief in God when his mother died in a car crash after beating cancer.
He started to question whether God existed and concluded that he doesn’t because if he did, he would never allow something so terrible to happen.
It’s hard to accept that sometimes bad things happen to good people.
I’m not going to go into religion and faith because we all have our own beliefs and ideas about what faith means to us, but I think that’s exactly the point this episode was trying to drive home.
Faith is different to every single person. For some people, it’s religion, for some it’s more spiritual, for some it’s friends and family.
Miles may be an atheist, but he still has faith and believes in something…. he believes in the God Account. He’s put his faith into the account, the people or person behind it, and the idea of helping people who have lost their way.
Whether or not Miles returns to his previous beliefs is entirely up to him, but I think he’s just now gotten to the point where he’s comfortable choosing to have hope again and understanding that there is some intersection between faith and religion when it comes to the God Account.
It’s why Miles agreed to give up love to commit to the God Account, become the prophet, and hopefully, help Ali.
He may not feel like he has as much faith as Arthur and Ali to help her through treatment, but simply showing up and being there for her is more than enough.
Miles: To save her life, you’re telling me I’m supposed to help her find God?
Arthur: Why not?
I think much of the show’s strength stems from the opposing viewpoints.
On the one hand, we have Arthur, who is a man of God and spread the Lord’s message. On the other hand, we have Miles, who doesn’t share those beliefs but is still a good and thoughtful person. They’ve both proven on many occasions that their differing beliefs have influenced each other.
Arthur’s Bible was a sweet and powerful gesture, but it didn’t negate Miles’ gesture of bringing a journal and a magazine. They’re two different approaches, but both come from the heart.
Anna was an inspirational and fun Friend Suggestion for Miles — which is honestly, a weird thing to say because she was crossing things off of her bucket list before she dies.
Her character was refreshing because she wasn’t introduced as a Friend Suggestion at first.
We’ve never seen Miles meet people randomly on the street in the same way many of us meet people.
Miles: That’s why you got back on the bike. Life’s too short.
Anna: In my case, literally. What’s the point of a terminal illness if you don’t have a bucket list, right?
We’ve come to expect the God Account will send weekly Friend Suggestions, but that’s not how real-life works.
Sure, we may meet someone through a social media profile, but most of the time, we meet people in social settings.
We cross paths with people who inspire us, force us to look inwards, and allow us a different point of view in organic ways just like Miles and Anna did.
Even more interesting was that after Miles and Anna bumped into each other at the park, she became a Friend Suggestion.
Does this prove that the God Account doesn’t always have everything figured out?
Does it reframe how the God Account chooses who Miles helps?
Faith isn’t just about facing death, Miles. It’s also about embracing life. Maybe if she gets her fate back, she’ll remember that and want to fight for it.
Ali
Is this someone who is watching Miles’ every move and decided that Anna was a good Friend Suggestion? Was it entirely by coincidence? We know that’s never a thing with the God Account. It raises so many questions.
Miles and Anna had chemistry right away and were acting like old chums minutes after meeting.
Anna told Miles that she had more time left than she really did, and Miles came into her life at the exact right time because without him, she may have never gotten the courage to face her biggest fears or complete her bucket list.
And she surely would have never had the courage to forgive herself for Kate’s death by confronting her parents.
While everything on her bucket list was important because it was something she wanted to do before dying, accepting that she wasn’t responsible for Kate’s death was the most important.
You never want to die with regrets, and that would have been Anna’s biggest one.
Immediately after coming to terms with it, Anna’s faith was restored, and she passed away peacefully.
It was heartbreaking to see Miles learn of Anna’s death, especially because cancer hits so close to home for him.
It was even sadder that he couldn’t check off the final bucket list item with her, but it was fitting that Miles and Ali could do it together to honor her.
Sometimes, the smallest moments are what matter most.
Anna’s passing was a simple but profound reminder of what’s important.
How many of us ever take the time to go and watch the sunrise with our loved ones?
Many of you probably answered that you’ve never done that in your hometown, and this is a reminder to cherish the little moments, the ones that seem insignificant.
Better yet, turn to the person next to you and give them a big hug.
Miles thought that he was supposed to help Anna return to treatment, which was slightly frustrating.
His journey with Anna was just as much for him as it was for her.
I think that deep down he knew that he was meant to help Anna solve her regrets before passing on rather than convince her to get treatment, he was just too afraid to admit it and let go.
Unless you’ve gone through chemo personally or have been faced with the realization that you may go through treatment and never make it alive, I don’t think you can judge or try to influence anyone’s decision.
Miles meant well, but he had no idea what her experiences were.
Fear may have been holding her back, but once she got rid of that fear, she realized she was more than ready to move on — she wasn’t afraid of dying.
Realizing that you’re not afraid to die seems equally as important and brave as wanting to live.
I’m glad Miles stepped back once he realized that he lost the battle because it was never his battle, to begin with.
She came to terms with her diagnosis, and at some point, when treatment no longer became effective, it made sense that she just wanted to live out her remaining days doing what she enjoys and just living.
Aside from the topic of faith, Cara and Rakesh worked to solve the mystery of who is behind the God Account because if they can do that, it brings Miles and Cara back together and maybe somehow works things out for Ali.
I still don’t understand the Miles and Cara breakup and found myself getting frustrated when she told Ray that the “God Account told Miles he has to walk alone.”
Am I crazy or did the God Account never give that stipulation to Miles?
Anyways, Ray! It’s always so good to see Ray. It’s convenient to have an ex-cop in your back pocket in New York City.
Ray did everything he could to help Miles, Cara, and Rakesh get one step closer to the answers they’re seeking.
He was able to expunge James’ record of the misdemeanor possession charge for marijuana, which allowed for his wife, Graciela, to get a visa and also didn’t require Rakesh to break the law and hack into the police department.
Win-win.
In return, James turned over the birth certificate that Erin Lee (the mystery hacker from the poker match) was looking for. Lee was supposedly working for some mystery employer and thought he’d figured out his identity. The birth certificate was supposed to confirm it.
We waited for much of the episode for this revelation, and while the anticipation was high with this one, it was worth.
The name Corey Smith might not mean much to anyone, but his father’s name does — the one and only Alphonse Jeffries. It may have taken them through a roundabout, but Cara, Miles, and Rakesh were right to think Alphonse was involved somehow.
The question is, did he know his son was also? Was he covering up for him?
Is this another red flag? Erin Lee steered them onto Alphonse in the first place, so we can’t necessarily believe what he’s saying.
And, of course, there’s the question of why? Why would Corey choose Miles? Is he grateful that Miles’ father saved his father back in the war?
Is there more to it?
Given the show’s religious connotations and religious fanbase, I’m starting to think that we’ll never get a straight answer or reveal the God Account’s true identity.
There’s been plenty of comparisons to “The Machine” on Person of Interest, but I something so technologically advanced would alienate too many fans.
The only way to keep the mystery of the God Account and the Friend Suggestions going is to keep it, well, a mystery.
Maybe all of these people Miles has suspected over the seasons have played a role in being the God Account without knowing?
Maybe that’s part of the plan and the message — we’re all the God Account! What did you think of the episode? Share your best theories!
You can watch God Friended Me online to catch up and leave your comments below!
Lizzy Buczak is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow her on Twitter and read her personal blog at CraveYouTV.