William Shatner: ‘I Don’t Have Long to Live.’

On March 9th, Variety published an interview with William Shatner, discussing his upcoming documentary called, “You Can Call Me Bill.” This film, which was released on March 16th, Shatner talks about his impressive career, family, and love of nature. Though this is a secular magazine with many swear words, I implore you to read it for yourself. I teared up while reading it, because this “god” of cinema has come to the realization that he will die someday; everything he’s ever worked for will be gone, and end up with nothing.

Looking back on Shatner’s career, he has done it all, and then some. His IMDB profile is impressive: an actor, producer, writer, and director; even created many music singles in which he sings famous songs, and maybe some of his own. He’s starred in more television shows and voice acting than anyone else that I know of — among many movies portraying himself. From playing Captain James T. Kirk on Star Trek, traveling to space and seeing the earth from above on Blue Horizon; there is nothing this man hasn’t accomplished.

But even with all that he has done: his fame, his fortune, his charity — it is all in the past; and to him, there is nothing else to look forward to but death.

“People ask about a legacy. There’s no legacy. Statues are torn down. Graveyards are ransacked. Headstones are knocked over. No one remembers anyone. Who remembers Danny Kaye or Cary Grant? They were great stars. But they’re gone and no one cares.” But what does live on are good deeds. If you do a good deed, it reverberates to the end of time…”

https://variety.com/2023/film/news/william-shatner-star-trek-space-travel-death-leonard-nimoy-documentary-1235548320/

He’s right though. I don’t know who Danny Kaye is, what he’s done, or what his legacy is and what he left behind. These famous people think they have it all figured out, and living the dream; but in reality, as the saying goes from Ecclesiastes: it’s all grasping the wind.

Ecclesiastes is one of my favorite books of the Bible. Located between Proverbs and Song of Solomon, when you read it, it has an almost poetic dark way of looking at life and death. Right at the beginning of the book the author announces that he is the son of David, king in Jerusalem. We know this to be Solomon, who wrote Proverbs. At the time he was the wisest person in all the world, and in his wisdom, he looked back and realized that all he had was vanishing away. The only thing we have left is in God.

Striving for the things of the earth (under the sun) is like trying to grasp the wind. You cannot hold onto it. Solomon realized that everything he owned would be someone else’s, or the dumpster. The book talks about the stages of life and death. He realized in chapter 3 that in his observations of life, labor is a gift of God and that there is a time for everything. A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to reap. These seem simple, but the catch he wants to show is that life is made up of things that have no control, responses to life, display of affection, possessions, relationships and everything in between. To be content with what we have and have a loose grip on it, because one day we will part with it.

The book goes into many things like hoarding, misfortune, mistakes, and tragedy, all of which are a part of life. In chapter 12 we are to remember the Lord while we still can. Failing sight, aging body; loss of hearing, teeth, sight, mind, hair, sexual desire, and it only gets worse from there. These things are to prompt us to live life to the fullest, but with God in mind.

In contemplating life and death, Solomon concluded in the last two verses:

Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is man’s all. For God will bring every work into judgment, Including every secret thing, Whether good or evil.

Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 NKJV

Jesus sums up the entire book in several verses in Luke:

Then one from the crowd said to Him, "Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me." But He said to him, "Man, who made Me a judge or an arbitrator over you?" And He said to them, "Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses." 

Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: "The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. "And he thought within himself, saying, 'What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?' "So, he said, 'I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. 'And I will say to my soul, "Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry." ' "But God said to him, 'Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?' "So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God." - Luke 12:13-21 NKJV

The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. Shatner may be having a wake-up call, knowing that his days are numbered and there is nothing he can do about it. But being awakened to the fact that you will die someday not alarmed to what will happen next doesn’t help. If he believes that everything that dies is gone forever, no eternity, and therefore no hope — there will be no reason to change. It’s all grasping for the wind.