New Sermon Series: That Didn’t Age Well!
Loving the God Who’s Said Some Really Terrible Things
A character named Jean Grey is arguably one of--if not the--most powerful character in the present day world of Marvel Comics and movies. In the most recent X-Men movie, she was capable of controlling the minds of thousands of people at once, vaporizing enemies with a thought, flying across limitless distances, and throwing entire trains around with ease. Not a bad resume for a job as a superhero.
The character made her first appearance in the first ever issue of "The X-Men," published on July 2, 1963. It was the first time the world met this team of five students from a school for kids with special abilities who use their powers to fight crime.
Financially, X-Men #1 has aged well. If you bought a copy for 12 cents back in 1963 (and still have it), your investment has increased in value almost 25,000,000%. It is one of the most valuable comic books in the world, with a copy in good condition estimated to be worth about $30,000.
In other ways, however, it has not aged well at all. In X-Men #1, Jean Grey has the ability to move things with her mind, but doing so leaves her exhausted and in need of protection from the boys--usually requiring one of them to carry her back to the school after the battle. Her main job, while the boys were talking strategy, was to sew their uniforms! Her internal dialogue--always visible in comic books in a "thought-bubble" above the character's head, of course--was almost constantly about which of the boys she had a crush on.
Over time, the authors of the Marvel Comic and Cinematic Universe realized the sexist portrayal of the character, and thus they gave us the powerful character Jean Grey is today.
Sometimes, things written long ago find a way to endure the test of time and remain every bit as relevant today as when the pen first produced it. In other cases, those words, thoughts and ideas from another era need some help being understood in this one. The Bible contains examples of both.
For the next four weeks, we will consider some of the ancient stories from Scripture that make us often scratch our heads and wonder what God was thinking. Please join us for our new sermons series starting this Sunday: That Didn't Age Well: Loving the God Who's Said Some Really Terrible Things.
October 25: Why did God Seem so Violent?
November 1: Why did God Seem so Sexist?
November 8: Who's Actually in Charge Here?
November 15: What has God Been Doing All This Time?
