Please note that Black Panther is rated PG-13. Previously, we looked at how T'Challa slips back into his old patterns of vengeance when Klaue, an old enemy of Wakanda, resurfaced. We too sometimes fall back into our old patterns of sin after being baptized, and we need the help of God and often, as we saw with T'Challa, our friends to help us get back on the right path. This is one of the major ways we grow in Faith, by continually setting aside our old pre-baptismal ways. Growing in Faith isn't just about moving beyond our own personal patterns that lead away from God. At times, we also need to move beyond the ways of the culture and society around us that may actually be leading us away from God and the new person we have become through Baptism. In Black Panther, shortly after T'Challa receives the heart-shaped herb, he has a conversation with Nakia, his love interest, as they walk around in the city. Nakia has been serving Wakanda as a spy in the outside world, and her work has given her a new perspective. Nakia suggests Wakanda start giving aid to foreign countries in need. She states that other countries do it, and that Wakanda could do it better. T'Challa, while not saying no, remains hesitant. He says that doing so could mean Wakanda loses her way of life. This is still with-in the isolationist perspective of T'Challa's predecessors, including his father. Times passes, and T'Challa goes with Okoye and Nakia to chase down Klaue. As we saw previously, T'Challa succeeds in capturing Klaue, but unfortunately Klaue has a plan of escape, thanks to his partner-in-crime, Erik "Killmonger" Stevens. As they escape, T'Challa notices Killmonger has a ring around his neck, the same ring that T'Challa received from his father as king. T'Challa decides to go see Zuri, who served under T'Challa's father, T'Chaka. After T'Challa presses him, Zuri tells him how T'Challa's uncle, N'Jobu died. N'Jobu served as a spy in America, and on seeing the plight of African Americans around him, he decided that Wakanda should no longer be an isolationist nation but instead take up arms and start a revolution. Zuri was there as a spy on N'Jobu to prevent him from doing anything that would expose Wakanda to the world. In rage on finding this out, N'Jobu tried to kill Zuri, but T'Chaka protected Zuri and, in the process, killed N'Jobu, his brother. N'Jobu, it turns out, had a son while he was in America. In order to, as Zuri says, "maintain the lie" and protect Wakanda from the outside world, T'Chaka left his nephew behind. That nephew was none other than Killmonger. Killmonger has big plans. He betrays Klaue and kills him so he has an offering to bring when he comes to Wakanda. Once there, he chastises the Wakandan royals for standing aside as "two billion people all over the world that looks like us", as Killmonger puts it, live lives that "are a lot harder". Basically, he advocates for the same plan his father had: Wakandan take-over of the world. He then reveals he is N'Jobu's son and issues a challenge for the throne. T'Challa accepts, loses (which will be a further topic of discussion), and is left for dead as his family flees into exile. Fortunately, T'Challa is saved by a once-enemy-turned-friend (more on that later), and Nakia is able to save some of the heart-shaped herb before Killmonger can destroy it all. T'Challa's family then help T'Challa, who is nearly dead, ingest the heart-shaped herb and be buried once again (perviously we discussed how this is similar to reaffirmation or similar rites). T'Challa sees his father welcome him back to the Ancestral Plane before asking him, "why didn't you bring the boy home?" T'Chaka tells him that he chose his people, that he chose Wakanda. T'Challa cries out: You were wrong! All of you were wrong to turn your backs on the rest of the world. After seeing the dire consequences of Wakanda's past culture as an isolationist nation, T'Challa finally sees that a new path is needed, not just for himself but for the nation. This is a part of his growth. We too are called, at times, to move past our cultural way of looking at things and instead embrace God more fully. Scripture has a great deal to say on this subject. One passage to look at is Jeremiah 31:31-34. Jeremiah speaks to the Israelites after their entire world has changed and they are sent into exile. Yet God promises to make a new covenant with them, but not like the covenants of old. This passage can be summed up in what the Lord says in verse 33: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. In the New Testament, Paul also speaks of moving beyond the old to embrace something new. In Philippians 3:4b-14, Paul discusses following the law and cultural practices as a particularly strict Pharisee. Paul is given a new path in Christ Jesus, and so in verse 7, he states, Yet whatever gains I had, these I have come to regard as loss because of Christ. The takeaway is that God often calls us to embrace a new and better way that is different from what we were taught or what we knew before, just like T'Challa, and just like T'Challa, we are called to keep our ears open to these new and better ways so that when God calls out to us, we will listen and follow the Lord. Disclaimer: unless otherwise stated, the majority of images produced here are not owned or created by me. Commenting is encouraged. Please use discretion leaving comments below, letting the love of God guide you.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Please note, there maybe Spoilers in the Posts below!
The Rev. Trey KennedyHere is my take on how Superheroes and other characters can help us know God better. Categories
All
Archives
June 2024
|