Do you remember the movie Dead Man Walking? It's the story of one seemingly at the opposite end of the spectrum, a convicted killer on death row, and his relationship with a Catholic sister who serves as his spiritual director. In a scene near the end of the movie, it is the final evening before the scheduled execution, and all appeals have been denied.

The man and the spiritual director talk honestly about the horrifying crime he committed, its impact upon the victims' families, and the readiness of the convicted killer to face death. In the midst of these painfully honest remembrances, the sister reminds the killer, "You are a son of God." Moments of shocked silence follow, and then the one facing a mandated death sentence confesses, "No one's ever said that to me before.  Plenty of times I've been called a son of something else, but never a son of God."

One senses that it is a truth that all too late in the game begins to settle in the convicted killer's heart. Yet even at that late date, it is a gift that carries with it the power to transform and make new.