Anime Lectio: The Orbital Children

                                                            1. Why do Anime Lectio? 

Anime Lectio is a time for us to stop and take a breath. Between work, activities, family life, and social media, our minds are always moving. We rarely take time to contemplate and ask, why am I watching this anime? What’s the point of all this? And, how is this making me feel? 

2. Put away all distractions 

(phones, work, etc.)

We are so enslaved to things that stimulate our minds. Let this be a moment for us to free our minds, look inside of ourselves, and be at peace.

3. Deep Breathing

Take several deep breaths. Let your mind relax. If you’ve had any questions, desires, or struggles that you’ve been hiding or stuffing away, let them rise up to the surface. 

4. Open yourself to God’s Presence

Remember God places all our thoughts and desires inside of us, and He uses them to draw us closer to Himself. God gives us a community to help us understand who we are and what He is calling us to do. The faces of other people you know and don't know are like signs of God’s presence.  

5. Think About What’s on Your Mind in Relation to the Anime

Think about what’s been on your mind in relation to the anime.  The following is an example of such thoughts written by me.  

It's common for people who live together and/or work together, whether they have just met each other or have known each other for a long time (or a combination of the two), to not agree with each other.  However, despite these differences, working together is important, especially when dealing with a problem, or problems, that influence all of you.  An example of such a thing, which involves following destiny versus doing what you want to do, can be seen in the anime series The Orbital Children.

6. Brief and written explanation of the anime

Pay attention to how the brief and written explanation of the anime seen on this blog, or seeing the anime for yourself since that's better than any explanation, might “speak” to you or shed light on the things that have been on your minds.

The anime series The Orbital Children starts off with three Earthlings going into space to meet children who live in space due to winning a contest where the winners can meet children born in space. With the help of some adults, the three Earthlings get to space, but while the one child they meet is nice to them, both initially and for the rest of the time she's with them, the other child they meet isn't initially nice to them at all, even saying that he doesn't like Earth at all and thinks it's not needed. However, due to a certain experience that they have in space that threatens all their lives, they manage to work together in order for most of them to get through it. The one who doesn't make it is someone who was initially helping them how they all wanted it, but eventually reveals she's part of the threat that thinks it's helping in its own way according to what's supposed to happen, which leads to her demise. The children born in space almost meet the same fate too while everyone else is going back to Earth, but they choose their own fates, which leads to them going to Earth with everyone else and possibly going back to space someday.

7.  Reflect on the anime

Has this brief and written explanation of the anime shed any light on what's been on your minds?  The following is an example of a reflection on the anime from me.

Working together is important despite differences. These differences can also include differences in thinking, like following destiny versus doing what you want to do. Following destiny versus doing what you want to do can have the same outcome, but different ways of getting to said outcome. The differences between Earth and space aren't so significant in terms of the people who live there according to this anime, but the thinking of these people can be different due to the nature of these people. It seems that the only difference between people from space and people from Earth according to this anime are physical, specifically with walking. Everyone is different and thinks differently, but working together despite this is important.

8. Final Prayer

Please voice any prayer intentions for friends, family, or people around the world that relate to this anime.  The following is an example written by me.

Let us pray that we can also work together with others despite their differences.