Dr. Christian Shephards Legacy - Warning Spoilers from 3x12

MMM

In light of events in 3x12 is it a good idea to review all we know about Christian in a new thread?

Wikipedia have summed it all up below, Has anyone got a possible Christian theory to link the survivors and their landing on the island?

Wikipedia:
Dr. Christian Shephard is a recurring fictional character seen in various characters' flashbacks on the ABC television series Lost played by John Terry. He is the father of Jack Shephard and Claire Littleton.
Fictional character biography
Married to Margo Shephard, Dr. Christian Shephard fathered Jack Shephard and also Claire Littleton through an affair with Carole Littleton. He was the chief of surgery at St. Sebastian Hospital before his dismissal due to his son reporting him drinking on the job. According to Jack, Christian was the reason for Jack becoming a doctor; however, he was often hard on his son, encouraging Jack to avoid trying to save everyone and instead focus on letting go when the time calls for it so that he could "have what it takes". Jack says that Christian was hated by many people throughout his life, but instead of taking responsibility he blamed it on fate. Although Christian's relationship with his son is unstable at times, he occasionally provides Jack with inspirational advice, particularly the night before Jack's wedding. After his divorce, Jack suspects Christian of cheating with his ex-wife, Sarah, and the conflict results Jack in attacking Christian during an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, and Jack's subsequent arrest. The stress of Jack's accusation leads to Christian falling off the wagon; Sarah tells Jack that an extremely inebriated Christian called her and begged her to bail Jack out of prison.
Later, Christian's drinking problem proves to be the major final chasm in the father/son relationship. While operating on a patient while intoxicated, Christian severed her hepatic artery (a vague accusation as the Common hepatic artery leads to the Hepatic artery proper before bifurcating into the right and left hepatic arteries), resulting in the patient's death. Christian manages to convince Jack not to report that Christian, operating under the influence, had caused the patient's death, but Jack changes his mind when he discovers that the patient was pregnant, ending Christian's medical career (by review-board ordered autopsy and Christian's confession were required since Jack's written recounts contradict each other, and are defensively biased as he too operated on Christian's patient). Christian and Jack never spoke to each other after this incident.
Christian later meets Ana Lucia at a bar in Los Angeles International Airport. After a brief conversation, he convinces her to accompany him to Sydney to serve as a bodyguard, saying that it is fate. After several days of drinking, Christian has Ana-Lucia take him to a house where he confronts a blonde-haired woman.
Christian then demands to see his daughter, but is beaten away by the woman, later revealed to be the aunt of his daughter Claire. The next day, Ana Lucia leaves Christian, calling him pathetic. Christian subsequently goes into a nearby bar and meets Sawyer, where he tells him that he is made to suffer by fate, explaining "why the Red Sox will never win the damn series". Christian then tells Sawyer about Jack, and how, despite what Jack thinks, he loves his son and is proud of him for doing the right thing, calling him a great man.
Not long after his meeting with Sawyer, Christian dies due to a heart attack caused by a high blood-alcohol content. Jack, in Australia looking for him, identifies his body at the morgue and has his body put on Flight 815 with him, so that he can have the funeral as soon as the flight lands in order to be "done with it". Jack finds Christian's casket on the island, but the body has disappeared. In "Walkabout" and "White Rabbit", Jack has visions of Christian on the island.
Although he doesn't tell Jack Christian's words at first, before boarding the raft, Sawyer says to Jack what Christian wanted to, finally allowing Jack to relieve himself of the guilt brought on by the death of his father.
Trivia
• Christian is among the few characters on Lost who crosses over to the flashbacks of other characters; rather than being confined to his son Jack's flashbacks, he has also been seen in Sawyer, Ana Lucia and Claire centric episodes. It is later revealed through Claire's flashbacks that he is her father, and therefore she is Jack Shephard's half-sister.

abelard

MMM wrote:

Not long after his meeting with Sawyer, Christian dies due to a heart attack caused by a high blood-alcohol content.

I've completely forgotten, did we see this happen?

MMM

I don't recall seeing him die either, perhaps the cause of death was gleamed from the episode where jack identified his body in the morgue?

ZiabR

abelard wrote:

I've completely forgotten, did we see this happen?

Yeah i don't think we were told how he actually died. We just know he did.

cooker3

I think he could turn out to be 1 of the most important characters of the whole show. He seems to have an connection with just about everybody and I just get the feeling there is lot more about him we have yet to discover.

ZiabR

cooker3 wrote:

I think he could turn out to be 1 of the most important characters of the whole show. He seems to have an connection with just about everybody and I just get the feeling there is lot more about him we have yet to discover.

The more i have been thinking about this the more i am starting to think he may not have been in the coffin and reached the Island by other means. He wants his family close to him and if he is infact a higher power among the Others then yes LOST will get very interesting

qwertplaywert

hes ''him''

cooker3

qwertplaywert wrote:

hes ''him''

Well Jacob is a bible character and christian shephard has obvious connatations so maybe they are trying to get some bible mythodology with him and Jack being "son of god" so to speak.
You know the writers love there symbolism.

ZiabR

cooker3 wrote:

Well Jacob is a bible character and christian shephard has obvious connatations so maybe they are trying to get some bible mythodology with him and Jack being "son of god" so to speak.
You know the writers love there symbolism.

I don't think there is any connection with religion. The writers very early on in season 1 said it had nothing to do with religion.

Newaglish

MMM wrote:

encouraging Jack to avoid trying to save everyone and instead focus on letting go when the time calls for it

Isn't this similar to his final confrontation with Claire? Encouraging her to turn off her mother's life support machines or use some other legal means to let her die.

I don't know what I'm getting at with this.

~Rebel~

logik wrote:

I don't think there is any connection with religion. The writers very early on in season 1 said it had nothing to do with religion.

that wouldn't make it about religion though, it would just be a clever use of religious symbolism, the same as they've already used by having the island populated with characters with the same names as various scientists, philosophers etc.

I think thats a very good call. Was thinkin it myself after the last episode that i could well see him being more a part of this then has been mentioned. It just ties in too much.

ZiabR

~Rebel~ wrote:

that wouldn't make it about religion though, it would just be a clever use of religious symbolism, the same as they've already used by having the island populated with characters with the same names as various scientists, philosophers etc.

I think thats a very good call. Was thinkin it myself after the last episode that i could well see him being more a part of this then has been mentioned. It just ties in too much.

Yeah but why would a father not tell their son, their true identity. If Christian is infact high up in command or the leader of the orders is he testing Jack, or does he ever plan to tell Jack he is still alive.

Miguel_Sanchez

So a guy with alcohol problems who was driving around Australia with an ex-cop a short time before the plane crash is in fact the leader of the Others?

Nah.

ZiabR

Jeff_Lebowski wrote:

So a guy with alcohol problems who was driving around Australia with an ex-cop a short time before the plane crash is in fact the leader of the Others?

Nah.

Aye i know how it sounds, but there seems to be a force pulling us to believe that there is alot more to Christian.

damnyanks

Maybe they are the remained of that mary mandinline one (Davinci code)

And they are in hiding on the island!!

Orrrrrrrrrrr

The dad and penny's dad are part of some big dark society protecting the island. They'd have the money / connections if all the members were as well off as them.

ZiabR

damnyanks wrote:

Maybe they are the remained of that mary mandinline one (Davinci code)

And they are in hiding on the island!!

Orrrrrrrrrrr

The dad and penny's dad are part of some big dark society protecting the island. They'd have the money / connections if all the members were as well off as them.

Yeah Penny's father is also dodgy. We will have to wait and see.

Killaqueen!!!

damnyanks wrote:

Maybe they are the remained of that mary mandinline one (Davinci code)

And they are in hiding on the island!!

Orrrrrrrrrrr

The dad and penny's dad are part of some big dark society protecting the island. They'd have the money / connections if all the members were as well off as them.

LOL I take it you're not very religious then ("that mary mandinline one from davinci code") Sorry...had to laugh...

But I agree with you Penny's Dad is suspicious....

I think Christian is important but since that last episode everyone is jumping to conclusions saying that he could just be the key to why they're all on the island...

...I'm not sure....

damnyanks

Whoops - I said EP13 stuff.