So Abraham was told by G-d to sacrifice Isaac. Desmond was told in his vision to sacrifice Charlie.
Desmond, like Abraham, was finally willing to do it. And just as G-d spared Isaac, something/someone/G-d/fate saved Charlie?

How do people read the comparison of the two stories? I wasn't sure exactly what we were supposed to think about how Charlie was spared yet again.

So Abraham was told by G-d to sacrifice Isaac. Desmond was told in his vision to sacrifice Charlie.
Desmond, like Abraham, was finally willing to do it. And just as G-d spared Isaac, something/someone/G-d/fate saved Charlie?

How do people read the comparison of the two stories? I wasn't sure exactly what we were supposed to think about how Charlie was spared yet again.

The thing is, Desmond wasn't willing to sacrifice Charlie, as he saved him (again) at the last minute. At some point, Desmond is going to have to let Charlie "die". Whether that happens, or a "higher power" intervenes remains to be seen.

Right, good point.

I wonder, in the context of Desmond's story, if the high power is not G-d but LOVE.
That's what I believed for a long time.
Desmond wasn't cut out to be a monk. He was cut out to find true love.

Why are we hyphenating God as if it were a curse word? This show is chock full of religious imagery from religions all over the world. If you're uncomfortable around faith and higher powers, this is not the show to watch! :)

Lots of biblical references in this episode. The Issac and Abraham parallel as mentioned, Moriah, and also the name Ruth and...
Naomi, the parachuteist.

Abraham was asked to sacrifice Isaac, the person he loved most. I don't think the analogous sacrifice for Desmond was Charlie; I think it as Penny. He made the choice to save Charlie, despite the fact that he knew he was running the risk of disrupting the events and thus perhaps not getting to Penny.
(And for the person who asked about the convention of writing G-d, it isn't fear; observant Jews are taught not to write the name of God, and it is a commonplace to insert the dash rather than writing the word.)

Why are we hyphenating God as if it were a curse word? This show is chock full of religious imagery from religions all over the world. If you're uncomfortable around faith and higher powers, this is not the show to watch! :)

In orthodox Judaism, which Laura practices, the four Hebrew letters that are sometimes transliterated as "Yahweh" stand for the "ineffable name" of the Deity. It is never to be pronounced or completely written out. Many Jews transfer this practice into their own native languages by leaving out some letters in the word for God.

So the word is being treated with reverence, not as a curse word.

Cardie

Abraham was asked to sacrifice Isaac, the person he loved most. I don't think the analogous sacrifice for Desmond was Charlie; I think it as Penny. He made the choice to save Charlie, despite the fact that he knew he was running the risk of disrupting the events and thus perhaps not getting to Penny.
(And for the person who asked about the convention of writing G-d, it isn't fear; observant Jews are taught not to write the name of God, and it is a commonplace to insert the dash rather than writing the word.)

This is a possible read, although IMO: (spoilers)


It's more likely Desmond's faith is being tested by his refusal to let Charlie die. By season's end, spoilers indicate that once again Charlie is put into a life or death situation (reconnecting the cable that powers the underwater sonar beacon) and my guess is this time, Desmond doesn't intervene. We'll be left to wonder if Charlie died, but in the end, Desmond's faith is rewarded, and a "higher power" saves Charlie.

In orthodox Judaism, which Laura practices, the four Hebrew letters that are sometimes transliterated as "Yahweh" stand for the "ineffable name" of the Deity. It is never to be pronounced or completely written out. Many Jews transfer this practice into their own native languages by leaving out some letters in the word for God

I've heard that with the name Yahweh or Jehovah. Didn't know it was also applied to god.

I edited out my comment before you posted your response. When you are Jewish in a predominantly Christian country, you can get annoyed when people aren't the least bit familiar with your beliefs, but that wasn't any excuse to snark at you.

I hope you'll accept my apology,

Cardie

In the book of Hebrews it was said that Abraham knew God could raise the dead if he so chose. God had told him before this episode that his son's decendents would be as numerous as the stars. Abraham's faith in God was so strong that he trusted God would provide somehow. God did provide a sacrifice in place of Issac which also foreshadowed God giving his own Son in place of us for our sins.

Lost didnt touch that depth. The episode didnt really convey this type of sacrifice. I do agree it was more about Penny than Charlie. But it did mention that the Monk thought God has a plan for Desmond--a path--and the all the things desmond has gone through have prepared him for it.

One being his vow of silence in preparation for the solitude of the hatch.

Also the title "G-d" is slightly mispelled just in case the word is
printed and the paper is thrown away or discarded the person
is not guilty of desecrating or profaning the name of G-d.

In conversation, I use "HaShem" which means "The Name" since the
four letters are never to be pronounced and should never attempted to be
pronounced. My Christian friends don't have a problem with it and a few
of them use "HaShem" in my presence.


Back to the thread ... it occured to me that perhaps the test for Desmond
is not to let Charlie die but to not let Charlie die. Now that lines up with
Abraham's test quite nicely.

Of course that means that a.) Desmond is to guard Charlie at all times or
b.) that Desmond's visions are wrong. Remember that Desmond's visions
cause him to interfer with events that he thinks are going to happen.

I don't recall Charlie being in any visions where Desmond rescues him.
I think that makes a big difference.

And Desmond has been wrong about his interpretations before.

In simple terms, perhaps the test is for Desmond to not let Charile die.

I agree that the test, continally, for Desmond is to not let Charlie die. It's tempting to me to go with the idea that one time, Des needs to not save Charlie, and let his faith be tested, and if his faith is sufficient, Charlie will survive. All well and good, but what faith are we talking about? Faith in God, faith in the island, what? It's never been suggested that God is trying to kill Charlie, or that the island is trying to kill Charlie. It's just destiny or the continuum or the course of fate. If Desmond doesn't intervene, Charlie will die because the universe demands it. Desmond's test is a test of faith in himself.

That being said, I really hope that Des will be rewarded if in fact his saving of Charlie meant that Penny didn't come to the island. If we believe in the course of fate, and Penny is meant to be on the island, it will happen.

One question. How logical was it for Desmond to think that it was Penny hanging in that tree? She's a woman of means. Wouldn't it make more sense for him to believe the person hanging in the tree was someone sent by Penny? Even the photo was strategically placed to make the audience, Charlie, and Desmond think that it was Penny herself.

My point is that Desmond was never meant to sacrifice Charlie. He was meant to take Charlie to that place and make the ultimate sacrifice, what he believed would be his reunion with Penny. To my mind, this was a Shroedinger's cat (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schr%C3%B6dinger's_cat) paradox. (It's a hefty portion of determinism vs positivism if you want to take a look at the link, which fits into Desmond's story arc nicely.) Until he made the decision to save Charlie, it didn't matter who the parachutist was. It was possible that it was Penny and possible that it wasn't. Theoretically, she was at once Penny and the person we saw in the episode, like Schroedinger's cat is at once alive and dead.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Katze.jpg

An illustration of both states, a dead and living cat. According to quantum theory, after an hour the cat is in a quantum superposition of coexisting alive and dead states. Yet when we look in the box we expect to only see one of the states, not a mixture of them.

Sacrificing Charlie to regain Penny would not have been equal at all to Abraham sacrificing Isaac. Penny is his ultimate sacrifice, but one that hopefully will be rewarded.:)

ETA: I think the Catch-22 is that if he doesn't sacrifice his reunion with Penny, then Charlie dies and he isn't worthy of her love anyway. His whole story has been about trying to be worthy of her. If he isn't worthy of her, then he can't be with her. Either way...

I believe Des' test is whether or not he can put another person ahead of his own self. remember Boon's words in Locke's vision? Des is helping himself?
You would think that when he turned the fail safe key, he was passing the test by sacrificing himself to save everyone else, but being that he has been so drunkenly depressed and self-loathing, it may have been a self pity sacrifice instead of truly trying to save someone because of his own goodness. But I do think he passed the test tonight.
God (or perhaps the island) was testing him to see if he would blindly trust his vision of what he thought is "supposed" to happen or if he'd save Charlie of his own free will.
Maybe Smokey (or whomever controls it) hates murderers? Or people that kill without remorse? Course, that doesn't exactly explain the pilot, does it? Hmm...

I edited out my comment before you posted your response. When you are Jewish in a predominantly Christian country, you can get annoyed when people aren't the least bit familiar with your beliefs, but that wasn't any excuse to snark at you.

I hope you'll accept my apology,

Cardie

Done. I've edited mine too. Sorry for the trouble!

See I dont think that this vision had anything to do with Charlie. Desmond saw these events as flashes... we dont know why they were all there, but in retrospect we see that charlie was utterly useless. If he wasnt with them it wouldnt have mattered. He didnt contribute anything, hurley/jin found the parachutist anyways.

i was kinda hoping that it wasnt a flash in the begining... oh well... soon enough...

The Abraham analogy in this ep was, for me at least, the tie back to what Locke, Eko, and Ben have all been struggling over for the last three seasons (and, by proximity, Charlie and everyone else who's had some "miracle" performed on the island by way of sacrifice).

Think back to the episode where Locke is explaining his theory of the island to Charlie--that if he made a sacrifice, he would get what he wanted. Could this be part of the symbolism of Charlie bringing his guitar on the journey? It was a trade for his heroin. Most of the island's strange miracles have come by way of sacrifice. Locke has always been at peace with this--he sacrificed Boone, and he nearly sacrificed himself when Smokey tried to pull him down that hole. This is why, a few episodes ago, he criticized Ben so heavily for relying on modern technology. He implied that the Others, by imposing technology from the outside world, are violating their faith in the island--that it, like God, will provide for them.

The last piece of the puzzle comes from Ben and his "magic box." Whether this is a metaphor or not, its function in the story right now seems to imply that there is a very real, concrete mechanism for granting wishes/miracles on the island. If Jacob is in control of this box, which Ben has never said overtly but I think can be deduced (since Jacob is supposedly in charge of all things Others), he certainly IS the God figure, with the power to cause miracles for better or for worse.

How twisted.

See, I'm in the camp that believes that the Abraham/Isaac parallel meant that Desmond had to let Charlie die (ie, sacrifice him) in order for divine intervention to spare him. I think that's the only way Desmond's visions of Charlie dying over and over will stop.

It's like when he went back in time with Penny but left her all over again. Then he was back on the island and he begged for another chance, insisting he'd get it right this time. Well this is that same thing. The reason he is seeing Charlie die again and again is beause he keeps stepping in to save him. It's a failure of the test, a lack of faith. When he reaches the point where he can have that faith, he will stand back and see that Charlie will live. Once Charlie survives despite one of Desmond's visions and without Desmond doing anything, the cycle will stop. Right now, he's making the same mistake over and over like he did with Penny.

It's essentially what the ring lady told him to do, stop mucking about with the universe and just follow your own path. Desmond focusing on Charlie is like another form of escape from Desmond's own life, a metaphorical boat race, monastary or hatch button. The man in the red shoes died because he was supposed to, but that doesn't mean Charlie is supposed to die.

In orthodox Judaism, which Laura practices, the four Hebrew letters that are sometimes transliterated as "Yahweh" stand for the "ineffable name" of the Deity. It is never to be pronounced or completely written out. Many Jews transfer this practice into their own native languages by leaving out some letters in the word for God.

So the word is being treated with reverence, not as a curse word.

Cardie

Thanks to everyone who clarified this confusion while I was away from the thread. The reason I typed the name that way was exactly the reason Cardie explained.

My point is that Desmond was never meant to sacrifice Charlie. He was meant to take Charlie to that place and make the ultimate sacrifice, what he believed would be his reunion with Penny. To my mind, this was a Shroedinger's cat (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schr%C3%B6dinger's_cat) paradox. (It's a hefty portion of determinism vs positivism if you want to take a look at the link, which fits into Desmond's story arc nicely.) Until he made the decision to save Charlie, it didn't matter who the parachutist was. It was possible that it was Penny and possible that it wasn't. Theoretically, she was at once Penny and the person we saw in the episode, like Schroedinger's cat is at once alive and dead.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Katze.jpg



Sacrificing Charlie to regain Penny would not have been equal at all to Abraham sacrificing Isaac. Penny is his ultimate sacrifice, but one that hopefully will be rewarded.:)

ETA: I think the Catch-22 is that if he doesn't sacrifice his reunion with Penny, then Charlie dies and he isn't worthy of her love anyway. His whole story has been about trying to be worthy of her. If he isn't worthy of her, then he can't be with her. Either way...

See, I like this. Maybe by sacrificing his reunion with Penny, and allowing Charlie to live, Des has *actually* enabled his eventual reunion with Penny and the rescue of everyone on the island! Now that the stranger has landed on the island, and she is presumably part of Penny's team, maybe now Penny can find them! She did have a satellite phone!

See, I'm in the camp that believes that the Abraham/Isaac parallel meant that Desmond had to let Charlie die (ie, sacrifice him) in order for divine intervention to spare him. I think that's the only way Desmond's visions of Charlie dying over and over will stop.

It's like when he went back in time with Penny but left her all over again. Then he was back on the island and he begged for another chance, insisting he'd get it right this time. Well this is that same thing. The reason he is seeing Charlie die again and again is beause he keeps stepping in to save him. It's a failure of the test, a lack of faith. When he reaches the point where he can have that faith, he will stand back and see that Charlie will live. Once Charlie survives despite one of Desmond's visions and without Desmond doing anything, the cycle will stop. Right now, he's making the same mistake over and over like he did with Penny.

It's essentially what the ring lady told him to do, stop mucking about with the universe and just follow your own path. Desmond focusing on Charlie is like another form of escape from Desmond's own life, a metaphorical boat race, monastary or hatch button. The man in the red shoes died because he was supposed to, but that doesn't mean Charlie is supposed to die.
Well put, but I still dissagree.
Ambraham sacrificed that which meant the most to him: his beloved son. Is Charlie in any sense Desmond's beloved? No, then who is? Why, Penny of course. So the analogy with the sacrifice of Isaac would be to sacrifice his chance to reunite with Penny.

And why did Abraham obey God's commandment? Because he thought God would save Isaac or give him another son? No: he did it because as a devout Jew, it was the only right thing to do.

Desmond strongly believed that if he followed the events of the vision, he would be reunitied with Penny. But, he sacrificed this to save Charlie's life. Again, he did the "right thing" instead of getting what meant the most to him

Maybe I'm missing something, but when does anyone or anything--God, the Island, the "flashes"--give Desmond the idea that if he steps back and leaves Charlie to his fate, he can get Penny without sacrificing Charlie? I didn't see any evidence that he had such an idea, and if he did I don't know where he would have gotten it.

Well put, but I still dissagree.
Ambraham sacrificed that which meant the most to him: his beloved son. Is Charlie in any sense Desmond's beloved? No, then who is? Why, Penny of course. So the analogy with the sacrifice of Isaac would be to sacrifice his chance to reunite with Penny.

And why did Abraham obey God's commandment? Because he thought God would save Isaac or give him another son? No: he did it because as a devout Jew, it was the only right thing to do.

Desmond strongly believed that if he followed the events of the vision, he would be reunitied with Penny. But, he sacrificed this to save Charlie's life. Again, he did the "right thing" instead of getting what meant the most to him

Very well put. Your comment about Abraham being a "very devout Jew" is interesting, because, of course, Abraham was the first Jew, the father of Judaism. It's more that he was G-d fearing and had faith in G-d than that he was devout Jew. I know that seems like semantics, but I'm going somewhere.... I think that a lot of the characters are clearly supposed to remind of certain philosophical minds and biblical characters. Sometimes the references are overt (Locke, Rousseau), sometimes slightly less so (Aaron as biblical Aaron or Aaron as baby Jesus?).... now we have Desmond David Hume (overt philosophical reference) but could his biblical connection be to Abraham?
If so, when he makes the sacrifice of his reunion with Penny to spare another person's life, is this the beginning of something great for Desmond? A land of his own? A unique nation all his own? Will Pen arrive and they'll choose to live there on the island?
Just trying to think a little out of the box...

Maybe I'm missing something, but when does anyone or anything--God, the Island, the "flashes"--give Desmond the idea that if he steps back and leaves Charlie to his fate, he can get Penny without sacrificing Charlie? I didn't see any evidence that he had such an idea, and if he did I don't know where he would have gotten it.

Well, he says overtly in the episode that someone is coming, and that he thinks the person is Penny, and he says overtly that he thinks all of the flashes that he saw have to happen in a certain order or the exact same outcome will not occur. In order for Penny to arrive, so he thinks, then Charlie needs to die. Apparently.

Why are we hyphenating God as if it were a curse word? This show is chock full of religious imagery from religions all over the world. If you're uncomfortable around faith and higher powers, this is not the show to watch! :)

Amen, brother.

In flashes before your eyes desmond was told that the world always has a way of course correcting, that no matter what he does it won't make a difference, that's the test in my opinion, to let charlie die, and by doing that he could actually be saving his life.

Your comment about Abraham being a "very devout Jew" is interesting, because, of course, Abraham was the first Jew, the father of Judaism. It's more that he was G-d fearing and had faith in G-d than that he was devout Jew.

I thought it was a little funny calling Abraham a "devout Jew." The word "Jew" came from the kingdom that came from the tribe that descended from Abraham's great-grandson Judah, and has always been connected to adherance to the books of Moses, which were of course written long after Abraham and long after Judah. It might make more sense to call him a devout "Hebrew" (from the monotheistic religion of his ancestor Eber which he reestablished, after it had died out) or "Yahwist" or "monotheist".

Amen, brother.

You might want to read the explanation for this further up the thread (around page 2) before you chime in and congratulate. The question has already been addressed and answered. :)

I thought it was a little funny calling Abraham a "devout Jew." The word "Jew" came from the kingdom that came from the tribe that descended from Abraham's great-grandson Judah, and has always been connected to adherance to the books of Moses, which were of course written long after Abraham and long after Judah. It might make more sense to call him a devout "Hebrew" (from the monotheistic religion of his ancestor Eber which he reestablished, after it had died out) or "Yahwist" or "monotheist".

Well, just to get pedantic, Abraham is also seen as the father of all Muslims. In the Qur'an version of the story, the son to be sacrified was Ishmael, not Isaac.

I think Desmond's whole life has been his test on Mt. Moriah. Time and again he is called to a great purpose, and time and again he has heeded that call at the expense of his own happiness, only to be branded a coward.

I think at the end of LOST, he will make the ultimate sacrifice to fulfill his purpose, only to find that his happiness has not been sacrificed after all.

Great discussion. My mind is so twisted, I am agreeing with both sides!

Maybe this particular flash contains an entirely different lesson for Desmond than the previous ones.

Up until now, It's all been about fate/destiny. Every time Desmond sees Charlie in danger he saves him. He is interfering with the course fate has laid out. If he would just have faith and sit back and let things happen the way they are supposed to, then God, the Island, or what ever higher power controls this place, may step in and spare Charlie. But Des lacks the faith to let go of his own control. He continues to save Charlie again and again, knowing it is pointless. But he lacks the faith to leave it to a higher power.

But will he continue to do so if the rules change and a reward is added? What will Desmond do if by letting Charlie die, he gets to see Penny? Will he continue to save his goofy little acquaintance, and risk loosing the one thing he wants most in life? This is now a test of his goodness/selflessness. So far he has saved Charlie because he felt it was the right thing to do. Now he is being tempted with the golden apple. If he lets fate have the upper hand at THIS moment, it will be for the wrong reason - to get what he wants. Will he still do the same thing when he can now be rewarded for doing the wrong thing?

What WAS the wrong choice (saving Charlie) is now the right choice. Two separate tests/lessons?

Its very confusing. If Desmond wasn't off his rocker already, this will give him that final shove. Ms. Hawking told him how he needed to stop interfering and let fate play out. But now, if he does that this time, it will be for selfish reasons.

Another instance of Catch-22 I guess, to add to the mix.

Maybe now that he has made the sacrifice, and if he can muster the faith to let fate take over, Charlie will be spared.

Or....maybe since Desmond has been cheating fate, fate decided to tempt him with a reward and trick him into letting Charlie die, in hopes of achieving it's predestined outcome

My brain is fried. I'm done.

There is another aspect to the "Desmond = Abraham" connection.

As a monk, Desmond should know that at the end of the biblical story
about Abraham is another lesson - one that is rarely spoken about.
The other lesson is that of not sacrificing his son Isaac. For reason that
go far beyond the scope of this forum, I won't get into it.

So, if Desmond remembered the ending of the story, he would have
known to interrupt the intentioned target of the arrows: Charlie.


And Desmond has been wrong concerning his visions. Remember
that he thought that Jimmy Lemon was going to strike the bartender
in "Flashes Before Your Eyes." But Desmond dived into the path
of his cricket bat and prevented it.

As far as Penny appearing in his vision, he was wrong - it wasn't Penny.

Now this presents Desmond with an interesting dilemma: How much of
the visions can he trust? If he subconsciously inserted Penny into his
vision, how many other visions has he subconsciously tainted with his
own wishful thinking?

I thought it was a little funny calling Abraham a "devout Jew." The word "Jew" came from the kingdom that came from the tribe that descended from Abraham's great-grandson Judah, and has always been connected to adherance to the books of Moses, which were of course written long after Abraham and long after Judah. It might make more sense to call him a devout "Hebrew" (from the monotheistic religion of his ancestor Eber which he reestablished, after it had died out) or "Yahwist" or "monotheist".

OK, devout "follower of the faith that later became Judaism", then, in that he obeyed the Judaic Laws even though they weren't yet written down. I guess being able to talk directly to God makes the book unnecessary.

A few points:

- Some modern Jewish scholars have actually argued that Abraham failed the test by being willing to sacrifice his son. The whole idea of the test was for Abraham to stand up to God and for him to realize that the sacrifice was counterintuitive to who God is. It would have been better for Abraham to sacrifice himself for his son's sake than to go through with God's command.

- Which leads me to my second point... Desmond's sacrifice of himself in Live Together, Die Alone is completely different than his willingness to sacrifice Charlie in Catch-22. In the Christian tradition, sacrificing oneself for others is the highest form of faith.

- The idea of the sacrifice of the Innocents relates to Lost's ongoing debate of determinism vs. free will. Do we have control over are actions or are can we not change are destiny? I think that Desmond's dilemma brings up a really interesting discussion point... i.e. what would you do if you knew the future? wouldn't you do something to stop it?

to answer the question.. yes i would. I could not let go as it stands, because, the vision clearl - IMO- given to desmond or even to us in dreams - is the universe asking for help, its know the future it knows a better out come.. thats how i see it
desmond was chosen to see these things because of his ability to not be a coward -
he has demonstrated his strength in having faith.

we havent heard him ask why he has this ability, but just deals with it. I want to assume that he has had them in the past, that he has always been able to semi predict things.

So Abraham was told by G-d to sacrifice Isaac. Desmond was told in his vision to sacrifice Charlie.
Desmond, like Abraham, was finally willing to do it. And just as G-d spared Isaac, something/someone/G-d/fate saved Charlie?

How do people read the comparison of the two stories? I wasn't sure exactly what we were supposed to think about how Charlie was spared yet again.

It's obvious: Charlie is Jesus. ;)

It's obvious: Charlie is Jesus. ;)

Actually we do have a thread on that - Charlie/Christ (http://thefuselage.com/Threaded/showthread.php?t=76382)

I think Charlie is not gonna die. It would be very anticlimatic. We have been expecting him to die since FBYE, so something else, unexpected, is gonna happen to him. I'm not a very religious person but I read on these forums about this connection between Desmond and Abraham's story, and I believe that the next time Desmond tries to save Charlie's life, he won't be able to do it, so Charlie is gonna face Death. But what's gonna happen to him? Just like God spare Isaac's life, 'The Island God' is gonna spare Charlie's life. Yep, ladies and gentlemen, It's time for Charlie to face Smokie. And, unlike Ecko, he is gonna pass the test. So I hope we are gonna learn a couple of new things about our beloved monster.

Up until now, It's all been about fate/destiny. Every time Desmond sees Charlie in danger he saves him. He is interfering with the course fate has laid out. If he would just have faith and sit back and let things happen the way they are supposed to, then God, the Island, or what ever higher power controls this place, may step in and spare Charlie. But Des lacks the faith to let go of his own control. He continues to save Charlie again and again, knowing it is pointless. But he lacks the faith to leave it to a higher power.
.


Des lacks the faith to let go of his own control? Are you suggesting he (and people in general) is better off leaving his fate to a higher power? Just give up on everything worth fighting for and say, oh well, whatever the higher power has in store for me is ok with me. This is the exact OPPOSITE of the what the point is here.

We, as individuals, have the power to affect our own destiny. This is the ultimate test for Desmond - and by staring down fate and saving Charlie - he will have succeeded where he failed with Penny. If you remember, with Penny, Desmond allowed his fate to be dictated to him. When he lost Penny and awoke from his flashback after he blew up the hatch, he swore to not let that happen again. It is Desmond's mission and test to create his own fate.

And it should be every man and woman's mission and test to create their own fate as well. Belief in oneself is more important than belief in a higher power.