{"id":11816,"date":"2012-12-29T15:37:59","date_gmt":"2012-12-29T20:37:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/?p=11816"},"modified":"2012-12-29T15:37:59","modified_gmt":"2012-12-29T20:37:59","slug":"the-avengers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2012\/12\/the-avengers.html","title":{"rendered":"The Avengers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\"\"<\/a>\"\"It took me until now to get around to watching the movie The Avengers<\/a>\"\"<\/em>. But I\u2019m glad I did. In addition to action and great (if not scientifically feasible<\/a>) special effects<\/a>, it contains a great deal that is food for thought and discussion, for those of us interested in the intersection of religion and popular culture in general, or religion and comic books and\/or science fiction in particular.<\/p>\n

Perhaps it is obvious that a movie which includes gods as major characters has the potential to serve as a talking point about religion. But the movie in fact has characters talking about not only gods but also God<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Early in the movie, the tesseract (which, as in the also explicitly religious science fiction of Madeleine L\u2019Engle, A Wrinkle in Time<\/a>\"\"<\/em>, opens a doorway to other parts of the universe) brings Loki to Earth, where he says he brings \u201cglad tidings\u201d of peace. That expression does not merely echo King James English, as Thor also does, but is in fact found in the King James Bible<\/a>.<\/p>\n

From that point on, and over the course of the movie, Loki expresses his view that human beings are made for subjection and to be ruled, claiming that freedom is \u201cthe great lie\u201d and that, if human beings accept this truth into their hearts, they will know peace. Later, in Germany, he will show off his power and demand that a crowd kneel before him. Against that background, the issue of a god demanding worship is set in explicit comparison with the sort of worship that dictators have demanded and received in human history.<\/p>\n

Loki also uses the tesseract\u2019s power to take control of the minds of several characters. When he does so, he touches their heart<\/em> with his scepter. Clearly it is the symbolic heart and not the literal one that is in view. And while the experience is essentially a form of mind control, it is subjectively experienced rather differently by those so \u201cpossessed.\u201d Erik Selvig says, \u201cThe tesseract has shown me so much. It\u2019s more than knowledge. It\u2019s\u2026truth!\u201d<\/p>\n

Towards the end of the movie, Loki reacts to the arrival of the Hulk by boasting, \u201cI am a god, and will not be bullied\u2026\u201d at which point the Hulk smashes him violently, and then says, \u201cPuny god,\u201d which may well be the only dialogue spoken by the Hulk during the entire course of the movie.<\/p>\n

Loki is not the only god in the movie. So too is Thor. Both are in fact highly advanced aliens. But whether that has any bearing on their status as \u201cgods\u201d is unclear. It is arguable that other characters also have godlike aspects.<\/p>\n

\"\"But when Black Widow says to Captain America not to interfere with the conflict involving Thor and Loki as well as Iron Man, saying that they \u201ccome from legend\u201d and \u201cThey\u2019re basically gods,\u201d Captain America responds by saying, \u201cThere\u2019s only one God, ma\u2019am, and I\u2019m pretty sure he doesn\u2019t dress like that.\u201d He then intervenes to end the squabbling between Tony Stark and Thor about Loki. It is interesting that the character who is arguably the most straightforwardly a hero is also an outspoken monotheist. And Thor himself at one point notes that, even though considered gods, the Asgardians brought squabbles and conflicts to Earth, a fact of which Thor is ashamed.<\/p>\n

There are other moments with explicit religious overtones, which ought to be mentioned as worth discussing, even if we don\u2019t explore them here. One is Loki\u2019s reference to what he perceives to be Black Widow\u2019s attitude as not merely \u201cthe basest sentimentality\u201d but \u201ca child at prayer.\u201d Another is Nick Fury\u2019s statement towards the end of the movie that he didn\u2019t make a particular decision, he \u201cjust didn\u2019t argue with the god who did.\u201d And finally, there is Tony Stark\u2019s question to his computerized assistant Jarvis, as he contemplates flying inside a menacing mechanical monster. He asks, \u201cJarvis, have you ever heard the tale of Jonah?\u201d to which Jarvis replies that he has, but \u201cwouldn\u2019t consider him a role model.\u201d It is a sort of throw-away line, but it also fits well with the actual story of Jonah, in which Jonah is indeed anything but a role model.<\/p>\n

Have you seen The Avengers<\/em>? If so, what did you think of it? Did you notice the religious elements, and whether you did when watching it for the first time, or didn\u2019t until now, what are your thoughts about them?<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It took me until now to get around to watching the movie The Avengers. But I\u2019m glad I did. 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