“God Friended Me”: Internet Spam or Divine Intervention?

amp8220I am absolutely okay with those comparisonsamp8221 star Brandon Michael Hall pictured above told me one August afternoon at the Beverly Hilton in Los Angeles amp160If he looks familiar thatamp8217s because he was the unlikely politician in last seasonamp8217s The Mayor a shortlived but critically acclaimed sitcom and has worked steadily since graduating from Juilliard in 2015Wearing a pink suit pink sneakers an ankle bracelet and a pink tie Hall was clearly at ease in his skin discussing his new series one that tackles nothing less than the meaning of beliefamp8220You are not going to see a God or angels or demonsamp8221 Hall said amp160amp8220The only God you will get close to meeting is on an accountamp8221amp160 That account is a familiar one Facebook amp160Hallamp8217s character Miles Finer receives a friend request from God amp160He deletes it amp160Within the pilotamp8217s first five minutes Miles receives five such requests amp160He deletes them and they instantly pop up again His immediate suspicion is that itamp8217s some pranksteramp8217s handiwork amp160Obviously heamp8217s wrongMiles may struggle with what to believe but as the son of a preacher man he knows his Bible amp160He and his father played by the always terrific Joe Morton pictured below are estranged amp160When viewers meet Mortonamp8217s Reverend Finer he is practicing a sermon amp160His first words on the show are amp8220God is always testing usamp8221Morton picked this role because it is amp8220diametrically oppositeamp8221 to his character on Scandalamp160 Indeed God Friended Me prompted Morton to consider what this series could accomplishamp160 amp8220Iamp8217m hoping this sparks a conversation of manamp8217s kindness to manamp8221 he told me amp160amp8220How do we with social media go about helping peopleamp160 Itamp8217s about what we do reflexively as opposed to what we donamp8217t do when we think about it amp160Despite the fact that Miles is an atheist he is in a position to help other people amp160You donamp8217t have to believe in God to believe in goodamp8221Heamp8217s no stranger to the sort of church his character preaches in and remembered his grandmother taking him to one of the most famous The Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem amp160amp8220Adam Clayton Powell was still preaching when I went to churchamp8221 he recalledAnd he attended Catholic military school which Morton added with a grin amp8220is a little bit redundantamp8221amp160 So he did not feel the need to interview a preacher for his research for the role though he did study the Reverend Michael Curry who delivered the powerful sermon at Prince Harry and Meghan Markleamp8217s weddingMorton has done his thinking about the church and its effects on people and admitted that he worried a little about a possible backlash to God Friended Meamp160 He fretted that some people could have a kneejerk reaction to the show without even seeing it amp160People can be very sensitive when the word amp8220Godamp8221 is in the title of something he explainedPerhaps and perhaps itamp8217s not edgy enough for those who need constant sneering amp160Yet who could argue with its baseline amp160Itamp8217s a human responsibility not necessarily a religious one to help people And as one person is helped the kindness is paid forward in a karmic circle amp160In the pilot everyone God suggests Miles friend has a name found in nature John Dove Katie Rivers Cara BloomAlthough God Friended Me is a show that aims for a higher plane it doesnamp8217t take itself too seriouslyamp160 amp8220Not for one moment have I felt I was getting preached toamp8221 Hall noted amp160amp8220The goal I have for the show is that someone going through times where they donamp8217t have anyone to talk to or feels down can tune in to a story thatamp8217s captivating amp160We just want to spark a dialog about kindness about humanity about faith about what it means to search for somethingamp8221God Friended Me is telecast Sunday at 8 pm on CBSClick the social buttons above or below to share this content with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writersamp160

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“God Friended Me”: Internet Spam or Divine Intervention?

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Jacqueline Cutler

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“God Friended Me”: Internet Spam or Divine Intervention?

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Jacqueline Cutler

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