Introduction: So what distinguishes a Christian Comic from other comics? It is primarily the thinking or world view that underlies the basis of the story or series. In this six-part series we will discuss what makes up the Biblical World View. In this sixth and final installment we continue our discusion of the important features of a Biblical Worldview.
The Fall: In Genesis 3, while in a perfect environment, man is tempted by the serpent (identified as Satan in Revelation 20:2). The serpent's temptation was "You will be as gods (or as God) knowing good and evil". Man as God created him was innocent and pure. When man succumbed to Satan's temptation he experienced both spiritual and the beginnings of physical death. Spiritually, sin caused separation of fellowship between God and man. Physically, in order to cover man's nakedness, God killed animals and made coverings for man from the skins (Genesis 3:21). This foreshadowed the ancient Hebrew sacrificial system and the ultimate sacrifice of Christ on the cross for the sins of all mankind. Also, God placed a curse on creation (Genesis 3:17). Man would live by the sweat of his brow and physical death would come to his body (Genesis 3:19). This was not how it was meant to be. Death is an alien presence in creation. Looking again at the seminal Green Lantern #40 (October 1965) the Oan, Krona, broke the prohibition about looking into the origin of the universe. When he did that, "...evil was loosed on the universe! It swiftly spread from world to world where intelligent creatures lived who had not the gift of immorality like the Oans... Brother killed brother, Hatred and violence grew, flourished!" For a number of years this isolated statement of cosmology stood in the DC Universe. This scene was repeated in the History of the DC Universe though later revisions cast doubt on even that mild statement of theism.
Jesus Christ: How does the Bible bring resolution to the sin dilemma? I believe it comes in two stages, if you will. The first "stage" in the resolution of the problem of sin is the Incarnation, God becoming man in Jesus Christ. Jesus lived a morally and ethically perfect (or sinless) life. He fulfilled perfectly the Old Testament messianic prophecies and His death and resurrection provided the perfect substitute or sacrifice for the sins of all mankind. Sin deals with the basic problem of man's alienation from God. In the fictional world of comic books, a super-hero (you insert name) can physically save the world, but he can't save his own soul much less anyone's else's soul. He is as morally flawed as any normal person. The Bible states "...there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name [Jesus Christ] under heaven that has been given among men, by which we must be saved." (Acts 4:12)
Future Things: The final "stage" of the solution to the fallen world takes place in the future with the culmination of history. The book of Revelation tells of a time in the future where the devil, the unrighteous living and dead and death itself will be consigned to a lake of fire that burns forever. (20:10, 14) The present earth and heavens will be destroyed by fire (II Peter 3:12, 13). Then God will create a new heaven and a new earth where "righteousness" dwells (Rev. 20:14). The best the comic writers can come up with is something like Crisis on Infinite Earths where a myriad of comic book universes are destroyed or transformed into one. However, the same problems of sin and falleness are transferred to the new world (or universe).
We have tried to show briefly how to develop a Biblical world view and apply it with discernment to comics. We need to ask ourselves and God how close do the comics we read conform morally and spiritually to the Bible.
(Originally printed in New Creation #11. 1998)
Introduction: So what distinguishes a Christian Comic from other comics? It is primarily the thinking or world view that underlies the basis of the story or series. In this six-part series we will discuss what makes up the Biblical World View. In this fifth installment we discuss the important features of a Biblical Worldview.
In the first column I discussed why a world view was important to our thinking and the importance of the Bible. Next we started to explore the Biblical world view. This time we will continue our brief survey of the Biblical world view (Creation, the Fall, Jesus Christ and Future Things) and how it relates to comics.
The Creation: Previously we mentioned that God created the physical universe with its plant, animal and human life and pronounced it ‘good’ and ‘very good.’ The invisible realities were also created at this time. Psalms 148:2-5 states that the angels were created at the same time as the sun, moon and stars. In scripture, angels are described as servants or messengers of God. These invisible realities distinguish the Biblical and materialist world view. The materialist worldview maintains that reality can be perceived only by the five senses. The Bible claims to be a revelation of spiritual realities beyond the abilities of the five senses. We accept this revelation by faith. “And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that he is, and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.” (Hebrews 11:6). However, this is not a blind faith. It is a reasonable faith based not on wishful thinking, but on solid evidence. Biblical faith and science are not mutually contradictory. A good case has been made that the modern scientific method sprang from and conforms to a Biblical view of reality. Much of modern science assumes a materialist worldview, which excludes God from its discussions.
In 1986, the History of DC Comics was published. It stated, “We know the universe was created more than ten billion years ago, formed of vapor and forged with fire. The single will which bought light to the dark, gave substance to nothingness, and created life from unlife, must have permitted itself a sigh of satisfaction when its children wailed in birth.” In the DC Universe “The single will” got the ball rolling by sending animated “seeds” throughout the universe. These seeds interacted with things like heat, sound, light, minerals and abstract concepts to produce life forms. Apparently something inherent in life caused it to evolve into “something greater.” After this the “God” of the DC Universe, with some exceptions, is strangely silent and uninvolved. As we have seen, this is not how the Bible portrays the creation of life. God, the ultimate life giver, gave life to all of the creatures on the earth. God was very involved in creating the different forms or “kinds” of life. God placed limits (reproduce ‘after its own kind’) on the variability of life forms.
(Originally printed in New Creation #11. 1998)
The Biblical World View and Comics Part 4
By Don Ensign
Evolution is the basis for the naturalist or materialist world view. This world view precludes any kind of God or outside creator. Natural processes within the universe itself are sufficient to account for all the complexity we observe from the simplest molecule to the human brain. While a number of theories have tried to harmonize the Biblical creation account with the theory of evolution—any straightforward normal reading of Genesis knows how incompatible the two are.. Natural processes within The theistic evolutionist says God used evolution as His method of creation. This idea comes up short for several reasons. First, the text of Genesis 1 states clearly that the plants and animals were created fully formed and were to reproduce “after their own kind.” Second, the character of God as revealed later precludes His using such a wasteful process in order to create living things. Christ says that God cares for the birds (Matt 6:26) and not one of them falls to the ground without Him knowing it (Matt 10:29). Would a gracious loving God use such a cruel method a evolution to accomplish His cretion? Several times in Genesis 1 we have the phrase, “And God saw that it was good.” (Vs. 10, 12,18, 21, 25, 31). How could God have pronounced such an awful method a evolution a “good” with its record of hundreds of millions of years of cruelty and death?
So what world view do comic portray? As one example, when I was a teenager I came across a fascinating comic book scene of a giant hand clutching a starry nebula a “renegade Oan” named “Krona” tried to observe the origin of the universe (Green Lantern #40, 1965). The result of this forbidden behavior was an explosion which unleashed evil on the universe. In GL #43 one reader wrote, “In Krona’ seeking of the secrets of the origin of the Guardians I found some similarity between the story and the Bible....Could that have been the hand of God as He created the universe?” The editor’s response: “The author did indeed intend his tory to be taken as you took it.” As a young Christian I was happy to have this supposed validation of my comic book reading habit. However, there are important differences between this (and most) “comic cosmology” and the Biblical world view. Evolution usually taken as a given. And while in this particular story, there was a “God” that created the universe and “life” it was not the caring and personal God of the Bible but more like that of the deists, who believe God created the universe and then was not involved further with it—unlike the God of the Bible.
In summary there are different views of reality or world views that compete for the modern mind. The pantheist (or New Age), the materialist and the Biblical are three of the most important in today’s society.
Originally printed in Christian Comics & Games Magazine #1 1996
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