I posted this a few years ago as my Christmas message. Yesterday we were asked what Superman meant to us. and today we were asked what superhero represented us. I post this to answer both questions. Look! Up in the sky! It’s a bird! It’s a Plane! It’s Superman! He is the Man of Tomorrow, The Big Blue Boy Scout, The Last son of Krypton, The Man of Steel. I am not amazed that most boys want to be superheroes. If you ask them why, their answers are obvious. Heroes save the day. They are strong, have super powers and get to defeat the bad guys. There are heroes who are born with a silver spoon in their mouth and are endowed with endless funds and gadgetry to support their causes. Some heroes, however, are gifted with other-worldly powers. And then there are what we call flukes of chemical or external forces. Everybody wants to have a hero. Do you have one? For me his name is KalEl, It is Hebrew for “all things Godly” He came from the planet Krypton, which is Greek and means “Hidden, secret.” Much like the location of Heaven He came here at the will of his father to be “the light to show them the way.” Because of mans “capacity for good,” JorEl sent his only begotten son So like a diaspora Jew, he is forced to leave his starry home to find a new life amongst strangers in a strange land. Eventually he would go about his father’s work Superman is the invincible crusader to “truth, justice, and the American way.” He does not seek his own self-glorification, but instead acts like Jesus who proclaimed “I seek not mine own glory” He does not need high-tech accessories. He is both human and other-worldly. While Superman had powers but he did not flaunt them. He preferred disguising as an unassuming ordinary guy. He was all right if he did not get the glory. That is one hard act to follow these days. Everyone wants to be credited. Superman only has two weaknesses: kryptonite and Lois Lane. Each hero always has a chip in his armor. With superman, it was not a crack in his character but his love that made him even more committed. The comics Superman is the guardian of Earth, its tireless servant who resists temptation and is therefore loved and adored by men. There are many reasons for why one would admire Superman; perhaps it his strength, speed, flight or any of his other krptonian abilities. What makes Superman a hero is not that he has power, but that he has the wisdom to use his power wisely. Yet I admire Superman not for his physical abilities or his Christ like symbolism, but for his mental abilities. He is totally selfless. He places the needs of others before his own. While he is not human and he dedicates his whole life to protecting the human race He is humble to a fault. He has all the powers of a God and yet he doesn’t attempt to play one. He knows his place in the universe and strives to be the ultimate guardian angel, with out expecting anything in return. “Truth, Justice, and the American Way.” These are the morals and virtues that Superman defends. Superman is as devoted to them just as much as Batman is to “avenging the death of his parents” and as Spiderman is to his “great responsibility.” These are the principles that Superman lives for and would die for. He is always there for his friends and tries to bring out the best in them. He is the pillar of the Justice League and the lynch pin of the DC Universe, Superman tries to figure out why he’s here, and what his purpose is. In some way we are all like this. What are we here for? What is my purpose? I’ve been trying to figure out the best way that I know how. I know that I can be selfish at times, but I try to make sure I’m there for people all the time. Whenever my friends need me I help in whatever way I can without expecting anything in return. While I have my own problems that I would love to pour out onto someone, I don’t expect that of anyone. I try not to ask for help, because I don’t want to feel selfish in anyway. I try to be Superman. While that may not make sense to anyone who is reading this, that is how I feel about it. Superman is super because hes what everyone should aspire to be. If Superman wanted to he could rule the world and no one would be able to stop him. Superman is, literally, a god among men. He has the power to sink entire continents and kill millions of people with ease, but he chooses to protect everyone, good or bad, no matter how insignificant and tiny the life is for nothing in return. Every time someone asks me why I like Superman I always have to say the speech that Lex Luthor gave in Superman/Doomsday. Just look at him. So sleek. So powerful. So... beautiful, like some great golden god made flesh. Of course, any sensible god would demand absolute obedience in return for his favor. But, no, our Man of Steel protects us, with no strings attached. The people? Hmph. They practically worship him anyway. Enjoy your reign while you may, Superman. For surely as night follows day, there comes a time when even gods must die. The fact that he COULD rule the world but CHOOSES to serve is the greatest compliment you can ever give the big guy. He is the best in humanity, and he isnt even human. And the plot is basically the same in all superhero stories. Good vs. Evil. This is perhaps because these stories are patterned after us. Human beings were born with a problem. We have inherited our sinful genes from our ancestors and thus, limits and disqualifies us to save ourselves from our impending doom. Try as we might, we are helpless. Our arch enemy is supreme evil. For many of us, Superman gave us power. Your mom would cut out a piece of red fabric and tie it around your neck and you could fly. One piece of fabric with a letter on it would mean a day of flying around…and doing good. Rescuing people. Fighting bad guys. For that afternoon, you had power to do whatever you imagined. Perhaps the “problem” with Superman is that everyone can relate to him. That everyone has felt like a unwanted visitor, has felt abandoned, has felt like a stranger? That everyone has had that job the grinds away at their psyche, that everyone has longed for someone that didn’t ever take him or her seriously. Or perhaps the problem with Superman is that technology is making Superman less special? I can “be” in almost any place with my mobile phone when I do a video chat. I have the wealth of the world’s information in my pocket. With the internet and my social network, I don’t really have to be faster than a speeding bullet, you know? I can click a button and donate $25 to a cause in a second. When we see an injustice, we have a camera and we can take a picture and we can fight that injustice by exposing it for all the world to see. Compared to the 40s, we are all…super. For what do we remember Jesus? Resurrection, yes, but truthfully the Crucifixion seems to come up more often. In this night, Christmas, we remember the birth of Jesus. While he was not born on December 25, this is the one thing Christians commemorate and reenact every December 25th. Yes, it’s Christmas, but in most places, it’s celebrated by the giving of gift and the placing of goodies for Santa. The Christian hero is remembered, not for acts of divinity or magic, but for giving of himself. I find that remarkable. I don’t want to downplay the resurrection. For me that is, and must be, central to the whole story, and yet I’m remarkably proud that Christianity pays so little attention to Jesus miracles in the story of his life. Certainly, we speak of the two big miracles, the incarnation and the resurrection, but those are perhaps more miracles performed by God (one God, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost). Wonderfully often we refuse to treat Jesus as a superhero – not even as one who excelled in discipline, asceticism, or that byword of modern hero stories – entrepreneurial spirit. Jesus excelled at preaching, teaching, loving, healing, sharing food. I believe he was, in a very important sense, a pacifist, allowing human fear and selfishness to run its course in the crucifixion. I admire Jesus for things that any one could do. He did them. This is not to downplay his divinity. It is to say that – in a very important way – it is his humanity that makes him worthy of worship, rather than simple respect. It’s easy to praise Superman. It would probably even be easy to obey Superman. Jesus merits far more and far better. It is, I think, easy to love Jesus, to worship and adore Jesus, because he was (and is) one of us. Superman never ever really saved anyone or anything. He’s just a cartoon. We needed help from a source higher and greater than us. Just like in the Superman story, a baby was sent to the world to save us. It is Jesus whom is real. He has saved us all from our sins as well as created us all. If it were not for Jesus we wouldn’t be here upon the Earth. Superman is my favorite superhero and I wear the superman shield upon my chest because the modern Superman is simply an idea based in my opinion, upon Jesus.
Posted on: Mon, 28 Jul 2014 07:36:07 +0000