Please note, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is rated PG-13. Previously, we saw how Queen Ramonda gave her life to protect Riri Williams. Her sacrifice gives us a great example of the type of sacrifice Jesus offered for us. After our Lord’s Resurrection, He spoke with His Disciples who in turn went out into the world to share the Good News of the Grace Jesus offered through His death and rising again. In other words, Jesus’ sacrifice became an example for others moving forward. That is what we see with Riri Williams as well. She is impacted by Queen Ramonda’s sacrifice for her, even though she is not part of Ramonda’s family. She even tells Shuri, now made the new queen by her mother’s death, about how she feels: Your mother protected me, like I was one of her own. The least that I can do is to try and return the favor. It’s not that Riri wasn’t amazing before, but now she has more focus. Now she has the tools, focus, and desire to do more with her engineering skills than she ever has before. Riri takes the sacrifice Ramonda made for her seriously. She uses it as fuel to do better and be better. We are called to do the same with the Death and Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, which He went through for our sake.
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Please note, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is rated PG-13. Queen Ramonda, in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, is very protective of her family. This is understandable as her husband T'Chaka and her son T'Challa have both died, and T'Challa, with Thanos' snap, technically died twice. Ramonda even makes some questionable decisions in trying to protect Shuri from Namor and the Talokanil, to the point of leading Wakanda to a war with Talokan. The conflict centers around Riri Williams, a young MIT student who found a way to track vibranium, a metal important to both nations. Namor is worried of being discovered by the outside world, though Riri never meant any harm. While Namor wants to destroy her, Wakanda hopes to protect her, at least allowing her to live a life behind their walls. As Namor tries to do everything to kill Riri, Ramonda does everything she can to protect her, to the point of sacrificing her own life. Ramonda's sacrifice should remind us of Jesus' for us for two reasons. First of all, Ramonda gives her own life so that Riri could live, just as Jesus did for us on the Cross. Second, Riri is not Wakandan. She's not one of Ramonda's people. She's not even part of Ramonda's family. Yet Ramonda values her life to sacrifice herself for Riri anyways. Jesus didn't just die to save His own people. Jesus died to save all of us. This is very apparent at the end of the Gospel according to Matthew when Jesus sends His Disciples to "make disciples of all nations." This kind of sacrifice leaves an impact and gives a great example. That is what led to the Christian Movement and Faith after Jesus' Death and Resurrection. We will see a similar impact on Riri Williams following Ramonda's gift to her in the future. While Ramonda, unlike Jesus, is not perfect, her love and sacrifice give us an example of Jesus' love and sacrifice for us. With our own love, we can be examples point back to Jesus too. Please note, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is rated PG-13. A lot occurs after Shuri's initial talks with Namor. Because of Nakia's actions saving Shuri and Riri, Namor declares war on Wakanda and kills Queen Ramonda. Shuri is now alone in her family, trying to process her grief. It is during this time that Shuri, using what she has gained from her time with the Talokanil, Namor's people, resumes her investigation into producing more of the Heart-Shaped Herb that provides the Black Panther's powers. She then goes through the ritual to become the next Black Panther herself. What Shuri encounters is unexpected and quite layered (see the lesson plan in the link below for more details). However, at its core it illustrates what Jesus says to Nicodemus in John, namely that: Those who believe in [the Son] are not condemned; but those who do not believe are condemned already, because they have not believed in the name of the only Son of God. From the beginning, we've seen that Shuri has a hard time believing. When she finds herself in the Ancestral Plane, Killmonger even mocks her for her unbelief. Shuri's lack of belief is what is causing her problems in this moment. Because she does not believe, she also does not know the way. This leads her down the wrong path. Instead of coming to the part of the Ancestral Plane where her brother and the other past Panthers are, she ends up in a place that looks like the Palace. This is what she expected the Ancestral Plane to look like, which is why she briefly mistakes Killmonger for her brother. Yet God often comes in forms we least expect. Instead of the palace of Solomon, God adorns us with the glory of the lilies, as Jesus tells us. So too, the place to be in the Ancestral Plane is in the open fields, not in the palace. The other problem for Shuri is she has come to the Ancestral Plane in the wrong way. She is no longer looking to be a Peacemaker, as she was before. Now she seeks power and vengeance on Namor for killing her mother. We are not called to take revenge. Instead, we are called to Love and Forgiveness. As Jesus also says in his talk with Nicodemus: God so loved the world, that He gave His Only Begotten Son, to the end all that believe in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. Jesus calls us to this same sort of love. We have to be careful the path we follow. We have to be careful in our belief, or even lack of it. Thankfully, as Jesus again says to Nicodemus, "God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him." Jesus always offers us the chance to come to belief from unbelief. That is what happens with Paul in Acts. It happens with many of us at various points along our way. At the start of this journey with Shuri in the MCU, I said we wouldn't judge Shuri, and I stand by that now. This is a dark point in her pilgrimage, and one where we see some fear for where it might lead. In the end though, Shuri will stay true to who she has been. She will also learn more about the spiritual aspects of the world. When you find yourselves in times of darkness, I hope you will let the Lord be your everlasting light. I hope you too will embrace some of the more spiritual aspects of our world and in that way come closer in your return to God. Please note, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is rated PG-13. Previously, we saw how Shuri fills the role of peacemaker in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. It is particularly important to see that role because Shuri, in many ways, contrasts with other leaders around her. Ramonda, Queen of Wakanda, who often shows great wisdom in spiritual matters, also has a tendency to focus on her family, even above Wakanda herself. Namor, the main antagonist of the film, focuses solely on his people to the detriment of all else. Shuri, on the other hand, sees that there are more important things to focus on. She understands Namor's concerns about Riri Williams and her vibranium detection machine. She offers to keep Riri sequestered in Wakanda. Namor worries about the risk. When Nakia on Ramona's orders comes to save Shuri and Riri, leading to the death of a Talokanil, one of Namor's people, Shuri immediately grows concerned, knowing this will lead to war. She is able to see the bigger picture, beyond herself and Riri even. Shuri, as a peacemaker, lives into one of the lessons Jesus taught us. In each of the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke), we hear Jesus saying that His family isn't His flesh and blood, but those who "do the will of God." It is so easy for us to get wrapped up in our family or people. Obviously we should show those attached to us our love, yet part of that love is realizing there is something beyond us. Holding too close to our tribe can make us forget that our actions can have consequences for others. It can make us forget that there are young innocents, like Riri Williams, that need to be protected too. Shuri gives us a good example for how to live into Jesus' teachings. It's not that she doesn't struggle too, as we will see in the future, but she always comes out, in the end, on the side of peace for all, not just that of her family and people. |
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
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