Religion in the World of Super Heroes

Zauriel

Now before I say anything about religion and super heroes I am just going to say I am an Atheist and a Geek. So that means I know a lot more about the latter than I do the former so if I write anything that is considered blasphemous please know I am only doing so in order to relate the subject of religion to the subject of comic books. I am not trying to insult any one's faith or belief. Except for Odin worshippers. They deserve to be taken down a peg.

One important thing to realize about religion in the world of super heroes is that it is real. That is to say that, for the most part, characters can actually witness and observe a supernatural presence in their lives. And this goes for all religions. Both the contemporary and historical belief systems are represented in the world of comics. Characters like Wonder Woman and Hercules get their powers from the Greek Gods. Zauriel, a fallen angel from the Judeo/Christian pantheon, was actually a member of the Justice League. The Spectre, a member of the Justice Society, is supposed to be the embodiment of God’s vengeance. Doctor Strange has fought demonic entities from every belief system in the world. There is physical evidence for the divine. And yet characters like Tony Stark (Iron Man) and Hank Pym (Giant Man, Ant Man, Yellowjacket, Wasp) are both written as Atheists and men of science, so their is still room for skepticism in their world.

Now before one assumes it is only mystical characters who believe in religion, there are many non mystical practitioners of faith in comics. Matt Murdock, aka Daredevil, is a practicing Catholic who will attend confession prior to busting crooks heads. Both Kitty Pryde (Shadowcat of the X-Men) and Ben Grimm (The Thing from Fantastic Four) are Jewish. Even Islam is represented in comics with Nightrunner (a member of Batman Incorporated) and Dust (from X-Men) both portrayed as traditional Muslims in their civilian identities. And much like political affiliation (see past entry) the religious beliefs of characters does not get in the way of their duty as heroes. These individuals don’t ask if the person they are saving share their belief in God(s), they just save them.

While sometimes super heroes have religious beliefs, there are also times where religious beliefs get formed around a super hero. In the follow up to the epic Kingdom Come, simply titled The Kingdom, the lone survivor of a horrific tragedy decides to build a religion around the hero who saved him, Superman. He builds a church and wears the S shield around his neck like a cross. So strong is his belief that when Superman actually confronts him and tells him to abandon it, this young individual is manipulated into a super villain, named Gog, who is sent back in time to kill the very hero he worshipped.

In DC Comics there are even characters that refer to themselves as The New Gods and they claim to be in communication with the Source, supposedly the divine energy that created the whole Universe. Their origins come from apparently the first planet of Old Gods splitting into two separate worlds called Apokolips and New Genesis. Now these two worlds are diametrically opposed to each other with New Genesis lead by the wise All Father and Apokolips ruled by the powerful Darkseid. Both these planets have made their presence known to the people of earth, and in the case of Darkseid tried to invade earth.

So basically in the world of comics there is both concrete proof of particular religious beliefs and yet there is still divergent opinions on the subject of religion in this world. The major conflicts among religious beliefs in reality seem to be that no one can concretely prove their belief system is correct and others aren’t, whereas in comics EVERYONE can prove their belief system is correct. So this seems to me that regardless of proof or no proof there will always be religious strife.