Please note, Astro City is rated T. Previously, we've looked at the Samaritan in Astro City including who he is, how he came to be, and his selfless pursuit of good.
Yet being selfless comes to the detriment of Samaritan's personal life. Many of us in ministry give up a great deal to do this work. It takes up a great deal of our time too. If we're not careful, this can have a huge impact on our health from a physical, mental, and spiritual level. For this reason, many in Scripture take a break when they need it. Elijah, when he struggles, takes time to go to Mt. Horeb. God even gives him an out where he won't be doing the same level of prophecy as before and will instead be focused on raising up the next generation of prophets in the form of Elisha. Paul, in the midst of his travels, took time to care for his own needs. He did this specifically through his work as a tentmaker. In this way, he provided for himself and made sure he wasn't acting in his ministry 24/7. The greatest example we have of taking a break is Jesus. He often would go by Himself for a while to pray. Unfortunately he was typically interrupted in His personal prayer time, yet he saw the importance of doing so and made a practice of taking this alone time. That is why it was so good to see Samaritan taking the opportunity of going out on a date with Winged Victory in Astro City (vol. 1) #7. He needs this time and this break. After seeing him in issue 1 getting very little sleep, it's a wonder he's not running on fumes. Whatever ministry we do and however we go about doing it, we have to make sure to take care of ourselves as well. This is what we see in the examples of those who went before us. It is what we see in Jesus as well. It's not selfish to take the time we need to recharge and rebuild our relationship with God. After all, that's what Jesus Himself did in this world.
0 Comments
Please note, Astro City is rated T. We've already established Samaritan's desire to do good in Astro City. That desire is built into his name. Samaritan came to Astro City in the 1980s in order to prevent a disaster that would lead to the near destruction of humanity in the 35th Century, the time period Samaritan originally comes from. The intention hadn't been for him to gain superpowers. That was a side effect of his time travel. Eventually Samaritan returned to his time and found it completely changed thanks to his help averting the crisis he was sent to stop. It also meant his family had never been born, so he had no home to go back to. When reflecting on what he had done, Samaritan realized that if one action from him did so much good, what could more good deeds do for the future? This approach is similar to Paul's words in Philippians 3. There Paul reminds the Philippians, and us, of the righteousness that comes from Christ Jesus. Yet Paul doesn't stop there with that righteousness. He wants to do more. He wants to be more. As he says in verses 12-14: Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect; but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brethren, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but one thing I do, forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Samaritan is pressing forward to do more good in the world. For the sake of our Lord, we should too. Who knows the good that can come from our continued striving as we seek to be closer to God and receive the ultimate prize of our relationship with Jesus? Please note, Astro City is rated T. Previously we saw the selflessness of the Samaritan in Astro City. Now we see what his name actually means. Samaritan is so named thanks to his first superhero action, which happens to be when he first got his powers. When asked about who he is by the press, he just states: "Call me a Good Samaritan." Samaritan's reference comes from the Parable of the Good Samaritan in the Gospel according to Luke. In this Parable, Jesus tells the story of a man in need of help. A priest and a Levite, religious leaders in Jesus' day, pass by and do nothing. Only a Samaritan comes to this man's aid. The significance of this story comes from the fact that Jews and Samaritans did not get along in Jesus' day, even though they both were descendants of Abraham. Some of the reasons for that are laid out with Jesus' own encounter with a Samaritan woman in John 4. Samaritans were looked down on by many in Jesus' day. In the Parable of the Good Samaritan, Jesus is trying to point out that what makes people followers of the law, loving their neighbor as themselves, isn't who they are, but what they do. The Samaritan is more of a neighbor to the man in need than the religious leaders of his own community. In this way, the name "Samaritan" went from being looked down on to being raised up. That is why the Samaritan makes the reference he does to Jesus' Parable. That is why he takes on the name as his own. Please note, Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne and Time and the Batman are rated T. In the past, we've seen Batman's final conflict with evil incarnate in the form of Darkseid. We even saw Batman being reaffirmed in his identity. In the course of this journey, though, Batman is directly attacked by Darkseid. He's infected with radiation from Darkseid's Omega Beams, and he's chased through time by Darkseid's Hyper-Adapter. He's directly impacted by the evil he faces. It even tries to make Batman forget who he really is. At the end of the journey, Batman has to be purified of evil's influence to the point of death. Only then can he be made whole. Only then can he continue his mission. In this world, we face evil around us everyday. It can seep inside us. It can lead us to do things that we don't really want to do, as Paul says in Romans. In times like these, we may need to repent. That means turning away from the road we've been on and turning back to God. Baptism is a form of doing that when we first join the Body of Christ as we die to sin and are reborn in the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. Along the path of life, though, times can get difficult. We might find ourselves in need of renewing our Baptismal Covenant. We do that through services like Reaffirmation, as spoken of before. Batman shows us that ridding ourselves from evil is possible. Just as with Batman, we never do this alone. We do this only through the help of Christ Jesus. Please note, Astro City is rated T. When I was in seminary, I remember my preaching professor getting up for a weekday service and discussing the first issue of Astro City. There, we are introduced to the superhero known as Samaritan. He's a Superman-level hero who constantly goes about saving others. Except when we first see the Samaritan, he is dreaming. He's dreaming about flying in fact. His dreams are the only time he really gets to fly just to enjoy it. Otherwise, he's just traveling from one place to another so he can try and save people. Samaritan doesn't have the luxury to stop and smell the roses. Later in the issue, Samaritan stops slightly so a girl can see him as he rescues her cat. This almost puts him too far behind to save a man in a different city. To save as many people as possible, the Samaritan gives up any chance at a normal life. What the Samaritan does is really live into what Jesus says in both Mark and Matthew, when he tells the Disciples: "If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it" This is said in the context of Jesus speaking about His upcoming Death and Resurrection. We give up a great deal to serve our Lord. Yet in the end it is worth it. We have the chance to help so many in this world now. Our hope, in the world to come, is that we may then take joy in things greater than we can even imagine, perhaps even flying like the Samaritan in his dreams. Please note, Astro City is rated T. After the Confessor's death, his protégé, Altar Boy, has to make a choice. What does he want to do with the rest of his life.
Altar Boy takes a little time before taking on the mantle of the Confessor, continuing his legacy. As a teacher, this is what the Confessor would have hoped for. It was all of us in Faith hope for really. The point of our work is to bring others to follow our example of Faith. This is what we as Christians have done since our beginning. At the end of Jesus' time in this world, our Lord calls the Disciples to follow His example and spread the Good News of His ministry to the ends of the earth. Paul even took on his own protégés, such as Timothy and Titus, to help in his work and to take on leadership in his absence. Our hope as Christians is to follow Christ Jesus. Our hope is others will follow our example too. We try and raise up others to follow our example so that the world will never be without someone to share the Gospel of our Lord. Please note, Astro City is rated T. Major Spoilers Ahead! The Confessor's last act is one of self sacrifice to save the world. Thanks to what he did an alien takeover is revealed and the other heroes are able to put a stop to it. Caught in the fray is the Confessor's mentee, Altar Boy. Thankfully another Christian-based hero group, the Crossbreed, come and save him. After they take him to safety, their leader Noah tells Altar Boy he regrets they couldn't have gotten there sooner to save the Confessor too. Altar Boy asks if their late arrival had anything due to who the Confessor was. Before he can finish the thought, Noah reveals that they knew the Confessor was a vampire. That fact was not important to them though. As Noah says: Regardless of what he was, he was doing God's work- he was saving innocents and serving Truth. And in the Final Judgement, what is more important? The burdens we bear- or the way we bear them? None of us are perfect. We see that in all the Saints, and with the Apostles who followed before them. Peter denied our Lord on the night Jesus faced death. Paul started out as a persecutor of the church. Neither were perfect, yet they dedicated their lives to spreading the Good News of our Lord Jesus Christ. We all have burdens to bear. We all have things we suffer through. We all have sins that are difficult for us to move past. Yet Noah's words are what we see throughout Scripture. It doesn't matter what we have done or what we face. What matters is that we listen to what God is asking of us and spread the Gospel in our service to the Truth. All that matters is that we keep moving forward in doing God's work as best we can in this world. Please note, Astro City is rated T. Previously, we learned the truth about the Confessor, Astro City's ordained priest turned Batman-type hero. This truth comes out after Confessor leaves little clues for his Robin-type mentee Altar Boy to deduce. After Altar Boy figures it out, Confessor reveals his entire backstory. Afterwards, Altar Boy asks why the Confessor chose him, or really anyone, to be his sidekick in the first place. Confessor's response is: Well, one of the Priestly Duties is to teach. That line has stayed with me over the years, in part because of its truth. While the Confessor speaks from the Roman Catholic tradition, this role of priests, or presbyters as we are also called, is present in other denominations too. In The Episcopal Church, my role as presbyter is to serve as Pastor, Priest, and Teacher. This three-fold role was even laid out for me by my bishop at my ordination. Back in the 80s, the World Council of Churches recognized this role of Teacher in Ministry in their landmark Baptism, Eucharist and Ministry document (See "Ministry" Sect III.C.30.). This document was created by a plethora of scholars across denominations. While we have our differences, and even our disagreements, it is nice to see that Teaching as a key role of ordained ministry is something we agree on more than less. As Teachers, we hand down the examples given to us by those before us, tracing back all the way to the Apostles of the early church and to Jesus. Our hope in passing these teachings down is that people will continue to know God through our Lord Jesus Christ from now until the end of time. The Confessor shows the importance of the role of teaching to the ordained life as well as the central role it continues to play in the church. Please note, Astro City is rated T. This past Sunday, we had a reading from Romans where Paul writes: But the righteousness that comes from faith says, “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’” (that is, to bring Christ down) “or ‘Who will descend into the abyss?’” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say? In my sermon, I used Prince Caspian when Lucy sees Aslan to discuss how God is found not above or below, but with us all along. In that passage, Lucy also comes to terms with the fact that she has been raising herself up above her siblings (bringing Christ down) and at the same time lowering her siblings in her own esteem ("bringing Christ up from the dead"). Prince Caspian, though, wasn't the first story I thought to frame Paul's words in Romans. Kurt Busiek's story of the Confessor in his Astro City series came to me first. There are major spoilers ahead, and The Confessor is a great story arc in Astro City, so precede at your own peril. The Confessor, as a hero, is basically Batman, if Batman were a Roman Catholic priest. It turns out the Confessor has another secret that, depending on your perspective, might make him more or less like Batman. It turns out that the Confessor is also a vampire. The Confessor originally came to Astro City in the 1800s to help administer the construction of the cathedral there. He did many good things, like helping the injured and sick. All of this was meant to be in service to God. Yet the Confessor had one moment of weakness. Though priest in the Roman Catholic Church take vows of celibacy, he found a woman he longed to be with. In one brief moment he went to embrace her. It turns out she was a vampire just looking for a meal. After she drained him, the Confessor woke up too, knowing he was now cursed to roam the world as a vampire. Though the Confessor had been brought low, God was still there. The Confessor was able to still serve God, even in the depths of the Abyss. It took the Confessor many years, many tries, and many persecutions, yet he finally found a way to continue to serve God. When the first superheroes started to show up in the 20th Century, he decided to join them to protect others. He wore the symbol of his Faith on his chest, the Cross, even though it caused him pain, to honor his service to the Lord. Even when we are at our lowest, God is there. Even when we are at our lowest, God can use us to do God's will. The Confessor shows us that. At his best and at his worst, he has been able to find ways to serve God in this world. We all struggle to do what is right. We all struggle to be good. The Confessor shows us that even as we struggle, we can still limp ahead and find ways to best serve the Lord. Please note, Black Panther (vol. 6) is rated T. Shuri has gone from dying for her people to rising again. Sound familiar? This is at the very heart and soul of what Jesus does for us. There's another way Shuri and Jesus are similar. Both are unrecognizable after they come back. For Shuri, she comes back at a difficult time for Wakanda. There have been uprisings and betrayals as the nation comes to terms with what is next. One group that has some dissenters are the Dora Milaje, the royal guard in Wakanda. Some of the women of this group rise up to help their fellow women who have been suffering throughout Wakanda. Shuri's death is an impetus for this move. One of the leaders of this group is the former captain to the Dora Milaje, Aneka. She has struggled with her actions throughout this time and now Shuri comes to confront her. The thing is that Shuri has changed quite a bit from her time in the Djalia. Though she served Shuri for so long, it takes Aneka a while to recognize Shuri. When she does, she begins to repent and comes to help Wakanda once again. The same is true for Jesus. His Resurrection was such that His very appearance was changed. There are several accounts of this occurring. One of these occurs with Mary Magdalene in John. Another occurs on the Road to Emmaus in Luke when Jesus is recognized only after a long walk and breaking the bread before a meal. One of those on the road Jesus was Cleopas. Some believe this to be another name for Clopas, Joseph's brother and Jesus' uncle. This may or may not be true, and there's nothing in Scripture to support the idea, one way or another. Yet if it is true, it shows even more how much Jesus had changed with the Resurrection, that even His own family couldn’t recognize Him. Like with Shuri, this period after the Resurrection was a key time for Jesus in teaching others. Before the Crucifixion, the Disciples had a hard time understanding what Jesus was teaching them. Even after the Resurrection, they struggled some times, yet they did come to believe in who Jesus is and what His mission in the world was as well. The transformation we see in Jesus, as well as in Shuri, should give us hope. It is a sign that the Resurrected Life is one completely different and new. It is a complete transformation of our souls and bodies. For what we often see in the world, even civil unrest like that seen in Shuri's Wakanda, can be heart-breaking. Yet with the transformation of resurrection, there is hope. |
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
May 2024
|