Batmanism

Batman begins is the ONLY superhero movie that I have watched more than once. When you consider that I have watched Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels at least 10 times and Pulp Fiction 15, you get the idea of where these movies rank.

Everyone in the movie seems to be spouting all kinds of condensed philosophical poppycock. I groan everytime Liam Neeson pauses his sword swinging to ejaculate more oriental sounding balderdash. Inspite of this forced gravity, the movie still managed to soar on spandex and memorex. Hurrah for cool gadgets that can coat a city block with Bat Guano and leave not a few smears from terrified pedestrians.

And of course Katie Holmes, who incidentally delivered the movie's only credible attempt to be taken seriously : "It isn't who you are on the inside, it is what you do that defines you".

This ranks right up there with Uncle Parker's last gasp about Great Power and Great Responsibility, but falls short of Morpheus' revelation that "The matrix is the world that has been pulled over your eyes". Kudos to the Polish bros and their wicked word play.

Here you have a lass that seems to stand in sharp contrast to all the feedback from Christian women who insist that it isn't what a man does, but who he is that matters to them. Somewhere along the way, another schism has appeared between the perspectives of the royal priesthood and that of the world.

Before I blindly hop on the side of the royal priesthood, I must state that just becos the RP says so does not make it so.

We have an obligation to test everything with questions like: Has the concept of Works become so anathema that we have to avoid words alluding to it. eg 'doing' 'deeds' 'done'. Could this not be the same ditch that tripped the zealots of the mosaic law into declaring it unlawful for a man to carry his mat on Sabbath?

So how do we reconcile the manifold declarations in scripture that every man shall be judged according to his deeds / what he does, with this popular notion that it matters more who we are than what we do.

Perhaps an answer is found in Jesus' horticultural exposition: "A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit"

I won't spell everything out, but I think it will be a lot harder for me to get a movie date after this post.

Comments

[Carpe Diem]

Wondering why you feel that in the evangelical circle works/deeds has become anathema?

[Themarxx]

Yah, better clarify. I did not specifically say that it had become anathema. Only asked if it had indeed become something of a taboo. yah, should have put a question-mark instead of a period at the end of that sentence. typo. lol.

I admit that I do feel a teenie twinge of evangelical 'saved by grace' discomfort whenever a discussion on Christian deeds crops up. but that is just me.