Inspired as a child by the girl "icon," St. Joan of Arc, Barbara Hall grew up to eventually create and produce the acclaimed CBS television series, "Joan of Arcadia," a contemporary drama about a teenage girl's visits from God.

The series, a recent People's Choice award winner airing on Friday nights at 8 p.m., has two episodes nominated for the 2004 Humanitas Prize awards, which will be announced July 8.

The show was both "jinxed and unstoppable," Hall said June 10 at St. Paul the Apostle Church in Westwood to members of Open Call, an entertainment industry spirituality group in the Catholic tradition. Hall, an award-winning writer and producer of such television shows as "Chicago Hope" and "Judging Amy," said she got the idea for the show thinking about how her daughter would talk to God if she met the Creator in person. She would probably argue, Hall figured.

When Hall went to pitch the show to CBS, she had no more than three sentences out of her mouth before network executives said they wanted the show. The quick acceptance, however, preceded a number of production challenges, including casting the demanding part of "Joan" (adeptly played by Amber Tamblyn) and coping with "disasters" which occurred during the filming of the pilot episode (such as the heart attack of a crew member).

Good and evil
Just as bad things happen to good people in real life, "Joan of Arcadia" mirrors the kinds of tragedies that people encounter. Joan's brother "Kevin," played by Jason Ritter, lives life in a wheelchair due to injuries suffered in a car accident. A recent episode titled, "Death Be Not Whatever," dealt with human suffering at the death of a loved one. Coincidentally, the script was written just days before the sudden death of Ritter's father, the popular actor John Ritter of "Three's Company" and "Eight Simple Rules."

"I wanted the series to be as dark as life is," said Hall. "The show is mainly about questions, not answers." When Joan sees God, appearing in different disguises, ages and genders, she wrestles with the assignments he gives her, many of which don't immediately make any sense.

"I have more questions about God than answers," said Hall. Raised Methodist, the young adult Hall was unaffiliated with any religious denomination. A victim of a violent crime seven years ago, she afterwards "sort of had an understanding of something bigger than myself."

She embarked on a spiritual journey where she studied every major world religion. A couple of years ago, she converted to Catholicism.

In her own words, she decided to "make the leap and figure everything out later."

An 'available' God
An underlying principle of "Joan of Arcadia" is the belief that God is available to everyone all the time, Hall explained. Another central theme is self-discovery.

"The most important thing about 'Joan of Arcadia' to me is the idea that everybody is here [on earth] to fulfill their true nature," said Hall. She believes that depression and alienation occur when people become separated from their nature and purpose in life.

While no one religion is upheld on the show, clergy from various denominations show up to guide Joan as she tries to fulfill God's sometimes-confusing requests.

"It's not going to happen that we do a show about God and not mention religion," said Hall, who stood her ground with industry executives wanting a religion-free show.

Hall believes the show's "across the board appeal" is due to each episode's unpredictability and, perhaps, the intriguing images of God portrayed by males and females, dog-walkers and punk rockers alike. "The main thing people like is, it's not what they thought it would be," said Hall.