THE GOD OF THE AVENGERS

By Elizabeth

            The Marvel film Universe mentions both God and Science within exalted contexts.

            The Universe has its own Science around which everything seems to revolve. This can seem to make Science the ‘god’ of the Universe. But that raises an interesting question: how does God fit into the picture? (no pun intended). How do the characters view God? Is Science the ‘god’ of the Universe?

            Unlike the Star Trek Universe, man has not done away with God. Many of the characters reference him in a positive light, some negatively, and some ambivalently. Is he seen as merely a social construct, inevitably to be mentioned but one day destined to fade into antiquity? Or is he seen as the loving, guiding God of the devout Christian?

            These questions are never answered, nor are they meant to be. Marvel is not attempting to solve the God-problem. Our society, while generally proclaiming itself a Christian nation, is generally undecided about the existence and nature of God, and many people are professed atheists. The Marvel films are meant to entertain this society, and they do so quit well. Those who go to see these films, even the Christians, are not looking for Theological exegesis amongst all the Hulk smashing, laser blasting, and tower crumbling. So it is, in fact, refreshingly surprising that the films mention God as often as they do, and as positively as they do. Captain America, in the first Avengers film, says in response to Thor’s status as a ‘god’, “There is only one God, ma’am, and I’m pretty sure he doesn’t dress like that.” We laugh and we applaud Cap’s traditional values, but that does not mean we should start labeling The Avengers as a ‘Christian film’, or even promote the movie because it has a ‘good message’. We should promote the movie because it is a good movie, and adequately accomplishes its published goal: fun entertainment.

            Ok, so God is mentioned positively: thumbs up to Joss Wheedon! But that is just one character in the context of an entire universe. So, is it still possible that Science is the god of the Marvel Universe?

Many characters within the movies, and to a great extent Howard Stark, speak of Science as the means to accomplish world peace. They believe that through enough scientific advancements, mankind will no longer experience war, poverty, or divide of any sort. The earth will become a veritable paradise.

    This is not a new belief either, invented by Stan Lee or any of the creators of the Avengers. It is an old philosophy, stemming from a hope that man may one day cease to live in turmoil, and find a perfect state within which to rest. BUT....every time Tony Stark, Bruce Banner, Eric Selvig, or any other Marvel Mad Scientist invents a new piece of technology, war breaks out with ever greater ferocity, and peace seems ever further away. I can not speak to the philosophy of the Marvel creators, but it seems to me that the events within the Universe are ever proving this philosophical-paradise-based-on-Science wrong. That while the characters may uphold Science as the holy end all, it is ultimately a tool: a tool for good or evil, and this must lower its status beneath that of a god. So some characters may view it as a sort of god, but it is not ‘the god’ of the Marvel Universe. It seems, in fact, that there is none.

            Is this a bad thing? Surely a movie that wants to mention God should give some defense or explanation about him? But ought it? God is an undeniable aspect of life, whether he is known personally or through social situations, and it is to this undeniability in men’s lives that The Avengers gives a salute. It is not an attempt to evangelize, but a simple acknowledgement of a fact that most movie franchises often choose to ignore: God, or at least the idea of God, is real and present in our society. So don’t analyze a fun action adventure film like the Avengers from a positive or negative Theological view. Analyze it for what it is: an action adventure movie that does not attempt to answer Theological questions.