Monday, April 21, 2008
Messing With Scripture, and My Head
The idea of of using comic books to tell the gospel story and communicate Christian messages, is about as far from a new one as you can get. And yet, The NYTimes felt it compelling enough to report upon at some length.“We present things in a very brazen way,” said Mr. Akinsiku, who hopes to become an Anglican priest and who is the author of “The Manga Bible: From Genesis to Revelation.” “Christ is a hard guy, seeking revolution and revolt, a tough guy.”You can well imagine that someone who is as much of a fan of comics as I am would be attracted first to this story and the the subsequent discussion.
I wish I could say I loved this idea, but I cannot. I would like to offer several reasons. For one, look at the art - manga art has never been a favorite with me. I tend to avoid the superhero comics that are going manga - there are full-on manga versions of most of the traditional superheroes and while some of the writing is stupendous, the art leaves me wanting. But that is just a matter of taste.
Secondly, note how they are discussing a specific interpretation of Christ. That is problematic to me and it brings me to the third and the heart of my objections.
Christ is such a complex and compelling character that in a very real sense He is beyond our literature. Authors who insist on depicting Him, and do so well, do so with very limited experiences, defined by the role Christ is playing in some other characters life. Christ may dominate the story but He is a secondary character.
The comic medium in particular, though this is changing - not always for the better, is a medium that specializes in two-dimensional characters. Richness of character development is not a hallmark of any visual medium which advances the action, for visual reasons, at the expense of character. Go ahead, name a movie with deep character development where anything actually happens other than people sitting around talking to each other - I dare you.
This may tell stories very well, but it reduces the Biblical narrative to story, when it is almost wholly about character. What is important about David, is it that he bedded Bathsheba and had her hubby killed, or is it how he responded and reacted to those actions, particularly in the Psalms? The story is the backdrop for the character, not the other way around. In comics characters exist almost purely to move the story forward.
So, is this newest Bible comic a good thing or a bad thing? If consumed in the context of a relationship with someone that can help the reader grasp the complete narrative and the characters, a relationship that models the character of Christ, as best as possible, then yes it is a good and worthy tool. If consumed in a vacuum it will damage the gospel irreparably.
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