Death is a dark event that can affect anyone forever, as shown in A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving. While these influences typically have a negative connotation, death in this book has a more positive impact on the narrator's life. Owen's death results in John's spiritual reconciliation as he turns to the Christian faith. The sacrificial aspect of his death develops the message that the fragility of life reveals the deepest beliefs. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Owen's death was a premeditated sacrifice made to save the lives of the Vietnamese children and John. Dick Jartvis, a mentally disturbed teenager, enters a bathroom filled with Vietnamese children, as well as John and Owen, and throws a grenade at John. John then passes it to Owen and picks him up, forcing him to throw the grenade onto the windowsill, sacrificing himself for everyone in the bathroom. Owen already knew about his death because of the “dream,” which is a vision he often had about his death; he wrote in his diary “I know when I will die – and now a dream has shown me how I will die. I will become a hero." John read this entry and thought that "the certainty of his beliefs was always a little scary" because John had not previously believed in God, so he was confused as to how Owen could be so sure of his beliefs. Owen was a man of faith; everything he did was because he knew God would get him through it. Owen's certainty influences John to spiritually reconsider his beliefs, as he discovers that it was God who gave him the message of his death. John begins to believe in God because he knew that something as fragile as life could not be in the hands of anyone other than a higher power. Another prediction Owen conveys thank God was the maneuver he and John had to use to dispose of the grenade, called “The Shot.” ​​Owen creates a move where John dribbles a basketball, passes it to Owen and he then lifts Owen to dunk the basketball. John and Owen constantly practice this shot until they execute it in less than three seconds, as according to Owen, "Faith requires practice" to make the shot in time. Their practice becomes the amount of perfect time to save everyone in the bathroom. Owen's ability to predict fate and the future is what shows his connection with God, since Owen thinks of himself as "an instrument of God" saving others in place of God. John makes this connection as Owen willingly sacrifices his life because of his faith in God, so John begins to understand how a higher power must exist for Owen to complete this miracle. John observes Owen's sacrifice with his own eyes, contributing to his reconsideration of beliefs. John is a very logical and doubtful character who needs proof to believe in anything, which explains why he was always doubtful about his belief in God. As a teenager he "became quite vague in his religion", but that quickly changes. John needs to experience first-hand the fragility of life to truly understand that an explanation is not always necessary for miracles, but that it is God who creates them. Owen has said before, “You can't prove a miracle,” and it took a real life-or-death experience for John to understand that. The only proof of miracles according to Owen is God, who John believes in after Owen's sacrifice. This realization on John's part contributes to the development of his character in the book, as he only believed in what he could see instead of having faith. He transforms into someone who can believe based on faith.