There seems to be a mini-craze going on right now comparing the new Superman movie with Jesus. I find this rather entertaining for a variety of reasons. And, yes, I will admit it makes me laugh in part because a certain segment of conservative Christians are having a hissy fit over it. Watching them get bent out of shape over things that are highly unlikely to matter in any way is always fun.
There are two comparisons I do find somewhat apt. One has generally been glossed over in the various articles, blogs, TV spots, etc. The second has not been touched at all. I see both Superman and Jesus sharing in common a type of hyper idealization. To some extent both are meant to represent what we, by which I mean humans in general, value most in ourselves. They can be used to portray how we would like to be. It is fairly easy to do this with both figures since they are both completely fictional. Yup, that would be the comparison that no one wants to touch. Both Superman and Jesus are make believe.
A few of the more interesting pieces I came across include:
CNN Belief blog
"Superman: Flying to a church near you"
http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2013/06/14/superman-coming-to-a-church-near-you/
Huffington Post
"Superman vs. Jesus"
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mark-sandlin/superman-vs-jesus_b_3444361.html
Religious News Service - Jonathan Merritt on faith and Culture (blog)
"Superman spirituality: Is Hollywood manipulating Christians?"
http://jonathanmerritt.religionnews.com/2013/06/18/is-hollywood-manipulating-christians/
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