"You did not choose me, but I chose you."
John 15:16a
Well, here goes...the inaugural post for the blog to go with our discussion group, "Geeky Gospel," where Faith and Fandoms are constantly in conversation. Please, let me know if you ever want to "guest-blog" here, because it's unlikely I'll be able to keep this thing active on my own. Email or message me on facebook with ideas or articles.
So...Guardians of the Galaxy. Talk about a "dark horse" (Sorry Marvel, just had to go for it!) blockbuster out of nowhere. Marvel has taken some pretty obscure characters and turned them into the action heroes of the summer. I honestly loved the movie: the characters were pretty sympathetic and kept my attention, the action sequences and effects were original, and on top of all that, it was hilarious! Definitely fun. But my friend Nate Schleicher prompted this post by basically asking, "what are the faith connections?"
Good question.
To be honest, I think the basic skeleton of the story--"A bunch of losers band together for the common good and become unlikely heroes"--has been done numerous times, although it's done very well here. But we often forget that one of the first times it was done was in the Gospels.
From the very start, we have Jesus (whose father, Like Peter Quill's, is also "not of this earth"), who was certainly not part of elite society, but literally born in a barn, wandering the countryside and teaching about God's kingdom. And in his quest to gather disciples, he seems to intentionally steer clear of the gifted, the well-connected, the qualified, and the trustworthy. Who does he call to follow him? Yep. The losers.
In fact, it strikes me that some of these "losers" whom Jesus calls, bear a more than passing resemblance to some of our favorite "Guardians." When Jesus calls Matthew the tax collector, he's calling just about the least trustworthy guy you could imagine. This was somebody willing to sell out his own people to the Romans to make a buck. But when he's called to something worthwhile that can give him a chance to hold his head high again, he jumps at it. Not unlike our bounty-hunter friend Rocket, perhaps?
Also, there's this obscure disciple we hear almost nothing about, called "Simon the Cananaean," or "Simon the Zealot." To give you some background, Zealots were a form of radical Jewish nationalists, intent on removing the Romans from Judea, by military means if necessary. They were known as the "carriers of the long knives," and were regarded by Pilate and the Romans as terrorists. But this guy intentionally leaves that fanatical movement behind, in search of a different way...remind you of anybody?
But featured more prominently than any other disciple, you have Simon Peter, the impulsive one, the passionate one, the one who wants so badly to reach the higher level of understanding that Jesus is laying out there, but who, in a pinch, was perfectly willing to plunge in with just...maybe 12% of a plan. Of all the disciples, Peter's character has the most dimension. He's the only one to step out of the boat to walk on water with Jesus, and therefore he's the only one to publicly stumble. He's the first to confess that Jesus is God's Son, but also the first to get scolded for misunderstanding what that means. He's the first to offer to die by Jesus' side, and the first to deny him when things heat up. He's so far from perfect, yet the one in whom we often see ourselves. And Marvel didn't even have to change the first name.
Now, if you're keeping count, you'll notice I left out one of the "Guardians." And the reason is because I think this one can stand in for the church itself (or at least the church at its best, the way Jesus envisioned). He's got a simple creed by which he lives his life. He's the one who is consistently thinking of others, and the whole group, before himself. In fact, toward the end, we realize that he views his own identity as permanently linked with that of his friends, quite literally becoming "one body" with them, and thereby dying for them. This self-sacrifice motif has almost become an action movie cliche. Somebody's got to take one for the team, right? But interestingly, in "Guardians", in losing his life--in putting it all out there in love, for the sake of his friends--this character gains new life. You know him...you love him...he...is...
In calling "the losers" as disciples, Jesus makes it clear: whatever we do together is not from our skill or faith or strength, but from God. This, too, underlines his basic message from the Beatitudes:
"Blessed are those who have nothing to lose. They know how to take risks. They know how to lay it all out there. They know what grace really feels like. Blessed are the 'losers:' They know how to lean on God." (my paraphrase, of course.)
So, some "Geeky Gospel" reflections for the latest Marvel hit. Might make for some interesting discussion at church, at home, or at the comic book store. What are some other faith connections you see?
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