By the 1990s, spirituality had become "a coffeepot conversation". On television, Gene Reynolds remarked, "Part of the American audience is an audience for whom religion has meaning, and they find it appealing and reassuring and interesting to have shows with that sort of subject matter." Another added, "I noticed over a number of years...that whenever we featured a guest who discussed religion or God, the response was quite high, and the ratings went up."
Between 1999 and 2002, the family drama 'Providence' went on air. Centered around the Hansens of Rhode Island, creator John Masius confessed, "I always liked the name 'Providence' for a series. I like the word. I like the association (it has with) divine intervention." John believed the city of New England was "just a great city in terms of the fact that it's settled and has history, that it's a university town and it's a city in the middle of a real economic upturn...a place where people like these have roots." Shot mostly in San Fernando Valley, Melina Kanakaredes who played Sydney made known, "We work 2 or 3 days per episode all around Los Angeles in places that can look like Providence. We have also shot in Rhode Island twice, and we'll be going back there again." Of Concetta Tomei’s character, John reasoned, "I like the idea that hopefully the people we've lost and still care about are somehow our guardian angels, that they're there in spirit. The whole idea was that death ends the life, but it doesn’t end the relationship. And to have a part of Syd's subconscious giving her a different take on the world, I thought, was pretty unique and terrific. You can overdo it, but done in the right amount, I think it adds a pretty funny side to the stories."
Della Reese could be seen on the TV series, 'Touched By An Angel' between 1994 and 2003. She made the observation, "I think we've now come to a place where we've tried everything else. We've tried greed; we've tried drugs; we've tried medication; we've tried sex. We've tried a lot of stuff, and it doesn't work. So I think we are now all listening to our inner selves and moving toward the (spiritual)." In his State of the Union address in 2002, George W Bush argued, "The civilized world faces unprecedented dangers...Evil is real, and it must be opposed." The 43rd President of the United States pointed out, "Deep in the American character there is honor, and it is stronger than cynicism. And many have discovered again that even in tragedy, especially in tragedy, God is near." However one politician stated the "axis of evil" language "was a speechwriter's dream (but) a policy-maker's nightmare."
To understand good and evil, the documentary 'The History of The Devil' was made in 2007. It was explained, "Three and a half thousand years ago in ancient Persia - where Syria, Iraq and Iran are now - there were many Gods, good and evil, until one man, a religious teacher called Zoroaster reduced the whole complicated cast of characters to 2 (Ahuramazda was the good God and Ahriman was the evil God). In Zoroaster's teachings the universe is a battlefield between the Gods of good (creator of all things spiritual) and evil (creator of all things physical) and every person on earth must take sides." When Alexander The Great defeated King Darius III to conquer Persia, Greek culture was introduced to some part of the Middle East including "a whole cast of God and Goddesses." The God of evil would now be Hades. It was understood when people died, they would go to Hades who would decide whether they would go to "a place of happiness or a place of misery" (or heaven and hell). It was pointed out hell being Gahanna. The word Satan meant "the Beast or 666". In the Book of Revelation, it was mentioned, God sent the Devil to the abyss for 1000 years. Upon the Devil's release, a final battle between good and evil would take place culminating in, it was thought, the end of the world (also known as the Apocalypse). Friday the 13th was considered unlucky because of its connection to satanic forces. The Order of Crusaders, The Knights Templar were said to have met their fate on Friday, October 13, 1307. In conclusion, one contributor theorized about Satan, "It's embroidery, it's mythmaking, it's poetry. It can be good fun except that it has produced great evil. A human invention but one that rebounded on us because it has given us permission to do terrible things to each other which is why I think that we should close hell down and finally banish the Devil and get rid of them."
