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February 06, 2006
Superman Helps Children Understand Religion (Superman Homepage)
"Teenagers visit the cinema and see films on television and DVDs so it's hardly surprising that their assessments of what is heroic and what is evil, possible or impossible, are partly based on what they watch," says Ms Cook, the head of post-graduate teacher training in religious education.
She sees many parallels between Superman and Jesus:
Both arrived on Earth in unusual circumstances after being sent by their fathers.
Both moved from obscurity to a prominent adulthood.
Both were able to help humans they were sent to live with.
Both struggled to stand up for truth against injustice and evil.
[I am unsure if I would compare Superman with Jesus. I see two points of contention about Superman / Clark Kent here (depending on what denomination of Christianity or religion one subscribes to). First of all, many Christian branches believe Jesus came to be from an immaculate conception, whereas Superman was not. Second, Superman's childhood and teen years are covered in comic books and other mediums like The WB's Smallville, whereas Jesus's childhood is covered in the Gospel of Thomas. Nevertheless, I agree with this article in that Superman / Clark Kent is a positive role model for our society and I believe that image provides an explanation for Superman's over six decade existence. I know that learning what my parents taught me about morals and seeing them in action with Superman significantly contributed to my maturity as an adult. BK]
Posted by kuechebj at February 6, 2006 12:02 AM
Comments
For further discussion about this article, look at Superman to the rescue on Jerz's Literacy Weblog, because I am a little rusty on my catechism.
Posted by: Bobby Kuechenmeister at February 12, 2006 06:43 PM
Well, it's one thing to view Superman as a moral teacher, and another entirely to compare him to Jesus. That latter position is an unfortunate example of Christian attempts to establish hegemony over American popular culture. It completely ignores Superman's Jewish roots and meanings. Ms. Cook needs to read "Men of Tomorrow", and "From the Lower East Side to Hollywood." The former by Gerard Jones, the latter by Paul Buhle.
Posted by: Beth at February 7, 2006 01:40 PM