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When I was ten I was obsessed with Superman. The Man of Steel was my hero. I could not get enough of him. I would spend hours in front of my parent's television watching the movies. And when the movies weren't on, it would be Superfriends. Well, Superfriends or Scooby Doo. (If only Superman had been given a cameo role on the latter, instead of Batman & Robin or the Harlem Globetrotters, my childhood might have been happier.) But, I digress....back to Superman.
Super Dreams
Not only did I have the action figure that made a punching motion when you squeezed his knees together, but I had the Superman underwear match!
I was so captivated I even believed I was Superman.
On summer afternoons I would tie on my very own cape and fly, soaring high over the Metropolis skyline. I can only imagine how ridiculous this looked to my neighbors.
Mainly because I wasn't really flying I was running around my backyard with my arms stuck out straight ahead of me (If you've ever done this, you know that running with your arms in this position makes it difficult to maintain your balance.)
And not only was I not even flying, my cape wasn't even a cape. Instead, it was beach towel with the logo of the insurance company my mom worked for. And it was pinned around my neck using a safety pin that at one time held my diapers around my waist. You know the kind, about two inches long with a plastic yellow duck as the latch.
And I wasn't afraid to wear the duck pin either. Why? Because I was Superman.
When you're Superman, you can pretty much wear whatever you want and not to have worry about anyone talking trash.
All Grown up?
That was a number or years ago, though. Since then, I have grown up. I have graduated from college and been working for few years. I have matured. If you were ask me today whether I still thought I could be Superman, my answer would be much sensible and levelheaded. The answer would be "No, of course not". And I think you know where I am going here, because the answer is pretty obvious:Instead, I would be Spider-Man.
When I was teen, I needed a reality check. The whole story of Superman is a stretch. An alien who is sent to earth and, under the effect of the sun, has superhuman powers? That is about as far-fetched as thinking a man could survive under water and communicate with sea creatures!
Spider-Man, however, is an entirely different story.
Spider-Man was just a normal guy--normal guy who accidentally got bit by a genetically engineered super spider. Not only it is plausible, but completely possible! It could happen to anyone. It could happen to me! All I need is to be in the right place, at the right time, with the right escaped super-spider, and BAM!. . . I am Spider Man.
Pieces of Ourselves
Really, though, I think the reason I have wanted to be a superhero from such a young age is the same reason every person has wanted to be one:Superheroes best embody our greatest qualities. They are strong. They are fearless. They are selfless. They are compassionate. They are caring. They are loving. They are human. They hurt for the people they love, and they long for their love to be returned.
Superheroes best embody our greatest qualities
We identify with them. We want to be them. We sit in theaters watching the visual narratives of their stories unfold, and we see in them pieces of ourselves. In our minds we project our own image on the big screen, stopping the subway train just before it plunges into the river, saving the day. We watch the credit rolls, wishing the world really did have a hero like the one in the movie we just watched.
What we do not always realized is that the world did have a superhero, and He first stepped onto the soil couple thousand years ago. But instead of a fictional hero sent from a far off planet to a Kansas Farm, or one created by a freak insect bite in a New York City, our hero was sent from heaven to a manger in Bethlehem. He came to earth for no other reason than to save everyone from an evil more dark than any comic book villain ever imagined. That man was Jesus Christ.
Jesus wasn't your typical Superhero. He had no logo
on His chest or spotlight beacon in the sky.
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Truly Heroic
But Jesus wasn't your typical superhero. He wore no cape or costume. He has no logo on his chest or spotlight beacon in the sky. He didn't have a wise crackling sidekick with a catchy tagline. And He didn't try to hide His identity to protect himself or his family. He boldly proclaimed who He was, fearless of the danger it would later bring upon himself and his friends.
Jesus didn't come to earth and not know why He was here. He didn't just find out what God intended of Him once He got here. He left heaven knowing full well what he had to do. He knew everything that would happen to Him--and He still came. You see, instead of possessing superhero attributes, He was strength. He was fearlessness. He was selflessness. He was compassion. He was love. Everything He did and everything He said defined those attributes.
So the next time you head to the theaters to catch the latest summer blockbuster starring a web-slinging, faster-than-a-speeding-bullet caped crusader, remember this : The world doesn't have a flashy superhero -it has you and me. We may be the closest thing to Jesus some people ever experience.
And so we are called to be strong and fearless and selfless and compassionate and loving. We are called to stand up for what is right, fight for the weak, show mercy to the poor, and help the sick. We are called to be the heroes..
Are you up to it? I sure hope I am.
-by Brian Coates
Super Dreams
Not only did I have the action figure that made a punching motion when you squeezed his knees together, but I had the Superman underwear match!
I was so captivated I even believed I was Superman.
On summer afternoons I would tie on my very own cape and fly, soaring high over the Metropolis skyline. I can only imagine how ridiculous this looked to my neighbors.
Mainly because I wasn't really flying I was running around my backyard with my arms stuck out straight ahead of me (If you've ever done this, you know that running with your arms in this position makes it difficult to maintain your balance.)
And not only was I not even flying, my cape wasn't even a cape. Instead, it was beach towel with the logo of the insurance company my mom worked for. And it was pinned around my neck using a safety pin that at one time held my diapers around my waist. You know the kind, about two inches long with a plastic yellow duck as the latch.
And I wasn't afraid to wear the duck pin either. Why? Because I was Superman.
When you're Superman, you can pretty much wear whatever you want and not to have worry about anyone talking trash.
All Grown up?
That was a number or years ago, though. Since then, I have grown up. I have graduated from college and been working for few years. I have matured. If you were ask me today whether I still thought I could be Superman, my answer would be much sensible and levelheaded. The answer would be "No, of course not". And I think you know where I am going here, because the answer is pretty obvious:Instead, I would be Spider-Man.
When I was teen, I needed a reality check. The whole story of Superman is a stretch. An alien who is sent to earth and, under the effect of the sun, has superhuman powers? That is about as far-fetched as thinking a man could survive under water and communicate with sea creatures!
Spider-Man, however, is an entirely different story.
Spider-Man was just a normal guy--normal guy who accidentally got bit by a genetically engineered super spider. Not only it is plausible, but completely possible! It could happen to anyone. It could happen to me! All I need is to be in the right place, at the right time, with the right escaped super-spider, and BAM!. . . I am Spider Man.
Pieces of Ourselves
Really, though, I think the reason I have wanted to be a superhero from such a young age is the same reason every person has wanted to be one:Superheroes best embody our greatest qualities. They are strong. They are fearless. They are selfless. They are compassionate. They are caring. They are loving. They are human. They hurt for the people they love, and they long for their love to be returned.
Superheroes best embody our greatest qualities
We identify with them. We want to be them. We sit in theaters watching the visual narratives of their stories unfold, and we see in them pieces of ourselves. In our minds we project our own image on the big screen, stopping the subway train just before it plunges into the river, saving the day. We watch the credit rolls, wishing the world really did have a hero like the one in the movie we just watched.
What we do not always realized is that the world did have a superhero, and He first stepped onto the soil couple thousand years ago. But instead of a fictional hero sent from a far off planet to a Kansas Farm, or one created by a freak insect bite in a New York City, our hero was sent from heaven to a manger in Bethlehem. He came to earth for no other reason than to save everyone from an evil more dark than any comic book villain ever imagined. That man was Jesus Christ.
Jesus wasn't your typical Superhero. He had no logo
on His chest or spotlight beacon in the sky.
-----------------------
Truly Heroic
But Jesus wasn't your typical superhero. He wore no cape or costume. He has no logo on his chest or spotlight beacon in the sky. He didn't have a wise crackling sidekick with a catchy tagline. And He didn't try to hide His identity to protect himself or his family. He boldly proclaimed who He was, fearless of the danger it would later bring upon himself and his friends.
Jesus didn't come to earth and not know why He was here. He didn't just find out what God intended of Him once He got here. He left heaven knowing full well what he had to do. He knew everything that would happen to Him--and He still came. You see, instead of possessing superhero attributes, He was strength. He was fearlessness. He was selflessness. He was compassion. He was love. Everything He did and everything He said defined those attributes.
So the next time you head to the theaters to catch the latest summer blockbuster starring a web-slinging, faster-than-a-speeding-bullet caped crusader, remember this : The world doesn't have a flashy superhero -it has you and me. We may be the closest thing to Jesus some people ever experience.
And so we are called to be strong and fearless and selfless and compassionate and loving. We are called to stand up for what is right, fight for the weak, show mercy to the poor, and help the sick. We are called to be the heroes..
Are you up to it? I sure hope I am.
-by Brian Coates
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