Is he Christ? Is he Moses? Superman’s religious and ethical undertones add to his mystique
Superman was born Kryptonian, raised Methodist and sketched into existence by two Jewish teens in 1930s Cleveland. Faith and morality are his DNA.
There are no overt religious references in Superman comics. But over eight decades, he’s been viewed as a divine entity, a savior figure — his sacrifice Christ-like, his will to lead as strong as Moses parting the Red Sea, and his compassion akin to a bodhisattva, an enlightened being who guides Buddhists on the spiritual path.
While scholars, comic book writers and fans alike are struck by the religious undertones in Superman comics, they say what separates Superman from the ever-growing pack of superheroes is his singular ability to bring hope in a hopeless world.
James Gunn’s ‘Superman’ sparks conversation
As fans celebrate Superman Day on Friday, marking the 87th anniversary of the original superhero’s birth, they are also eagerly anticipating James Gunn’s film “Superman” set for release on July 11. This version starring David Corenswet, the first Jewish actor to play Superman in a major film, promises a return to a version of a vulnerable Man of Steel who is rooted in values espoused by most faiths — goodness, compassion and hope.
The film has sparked a conversation about the place of Superman in the world and his personal code of ethics after several recent depictions of superheroes as anti-heroes. Corenswet said in a recent interview to Fandango that what captivates him about Superman is how he chooses to see good in people and not dwell on the negative.
“Why think about all the terrible things when we can focus on the good things we did today?” he said.
In the same interview, Gunn said his Superman will reinforce the character’s core value of preserving life at any cost.
“He believes that the sanctity of life is of the utmost importance,” Gunn said, noting the contrast with Superman’s archnemesis Lex Luthor, who values scientific advancement over life.
Symbol of hope and positive masculinity
It was precisely this benevolent, hopeful version of Superman that inspired Robert Revington, who teaches at the Vancouver School of Theology at the University of British Columbia, to go skydiving in a Superman costume on his 28th birthday. And yet Revington, a Christian, balks at Christ-like portrayals of his favorite superhero.
“I like Superman and I like Jesus,” he said. “I don’t necessarily want to conflate the two. To me, the best depiction of Superman is as a symbol of hope.”
Revington also sees Superman’s relevance today as “an example of positive masculinity.”
“He’s this version of strong, but compassionate masculinity, which several prominent figures don’t necessarily embody,” he said.
Revington and many others’ beloved iteration of Superman appeared in “All-Star Superman,” a 12-issue series published by DC Comics between 2005 and 2008. The superhero saves a young person who is about to take their own life with the endearing message: “You are stronger than you think you are.”
Grant Morrison, who wrote those comics, has said his view of Superman was shaped by Giovanni Pico della Mirandola’s “Oration On The Dignity of Man,” which argues that humans ought to be more virtuous than angels.
Superman speaks to our better angels
Humans, Morrison said in a 2008 interview, become what they imitate, which is why he made Superman an inspirational character.
“We live in the stories we tell ourselves,” he told Newsarama, a comic book website, and can choose to be “the astronaut or the gangster. The superhero or the super villain. The angel or the devil. It’s entirely up to us.”
As a result, said Matthew Brake, founder and editor of Pop Culture and Theology, Superman “is an idea that can inspire us to be our best selves.”
Superman’s character is also shaped by his upbringing as a Kansas farm boy, raised by kindly parents — Jonathan and Martha Kent. They are portrayed as Methodists in the comics.
Superheroes, in recent decades, have received less-than-flattering treatment. In “The Boys,” a comic book turned Amazon Prime series, the Superman-like character, Homelander, is a government-sponsored hero whose smiling exterior conceals the heart of a sadist.
“Invincible,” a comic turned television series from Robert Kincaid, author of the “Walking Dead,” features Omni-man, a Superman-like character who turns out to be an alien invader bent on conquest. The main character, Invincible, is Omni-man’s son, and must choose between protecting the Earth or taking his father’s side.
“Dune,” the famed sci-fi book adapted into blockbuster movies, warns of superheroes’ fraility
“Heroes are painful, superheroes are a catastrophe,” Dune’s author Frank Hebert once wrote. “The mistakes of superheroes involve too many of us in disaster.”
A relatable superhero
But Superman has cemented his place in pop culture not just as a beacon of hope, but also as a character relatable to many, regardless of race or ethnicity.
Gene Luen Yang, who has written several Superman comics, is best known for his 2020 graphic novel “Superman Smashes the Klan,” a story about a Chinese American family moving to Metropolis in 1946 and facing discrimination from the Klan. The story follows the Lee family as they confront the white supremacist group with Superman’s help.
Yang sees his own experience as a Chinese American mirrored in Superman’s story.
“The idea that you have to hide who you are or that you’re caught in between cultures,” he said. “Superman has two names — Kal-El, his Kryptonian name and Clark Kent, his American name. I had a Chinese name at home and an American name in school. So even though I’m a practicing Catholic, I was more drawn to his Jewish roots because that’s where I could relate more.”
Yang sees Superman as the original superhero who inspired almost religious fervor in the geekdom, featuring cosplayers who reenact scenes as a Christian might reenact biblical episodes around Christmas or Easter. A trip to a comic convention is like a pilgrimage where followers collect original art and “all kinds of relics.”
Stories in pop culture also draw from older storytelling traditions, often rooted in religions.
“In some ways, you can think of religions as communities that are built around stories that last centuries,” Yang said. “The idea of self-sacrifice, the idea that you do good deeds without the desire to gain recognition. That’s the whole point of secret identities.”
While his Catholic faith is an important facet of his life, Yang said he never forced religion into his Superman comics.
“I write more about my life and my lived experience of faith, with the doubts and the ragged edges,” he said.
Characters like Superman, while not themselves religious, provide a portal to the sacred through the profane, said A. David Lewis, a Boston-based graphic novelist and comic book writer.
“I love that people take something from popular culture and find some level of spirituality or find a greater connection to some divine source through it,” he said. “But I would never say Superman is just of the Jewish or Christian people. Like some of the best narratives out there, Superman gives us access to something transcendent.”
Superman’s strong Jewish roots
Samantha Baskind, professor of art history at Cleveland State University, is Jewish; she sees numerous parallels between Superman’s story and the history of Jews. Superman’s solitary flight from Krypton in a little spacecraft is reminiscent of how Moses’ mother placed him in a papyrus basket and left him on the Nile, seeing it has his best chance of survival.
Some also compare Superman’s backstory to the Kindertransport, she said, referring to a rescue program that transported nearly 10,000 children, mostly Jewish, from Nazi-controlled territories to Great Britain in 1938 and 1939.
In Superman’s Kryptonian name, Kal-El, chosen by his original Jewish creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, the “El” in Hebrew connotes God. In DC Comics, Superman also frequents the “Bottle City of Kandor,” a Kryptonian city shrunk down and placed in a bottle, representing a fragmented piece of Krypton’s history. Baskind said to her it is reminiscent of how diaspora Jews visit Israel.
“There’s also the thinking that Siegel and Shuster created Superman because they were these two, skinny, young Jewish men who couldn’t go out and fight Hitler, but Superman fought Nazis on the cover of their comic books,” she said. In some early editions, Superman held Hitler by his Nazi uniform as he begged for mercy.
Appeal to the religiously unaffiliated
Despite the religious undertones, Superman’s appeal to those growing religiously unaffiliated remains strong, said Dan Clanton, professor of religious studies at Doane University in Nebraska. He says it’s because Superman’s story “truly encapsulates American civil religion.”
“This idea that there are practices and beliefs that provide all, regardless of religious identity, with a sense of being part of something bigger than themselves,” he said.
Neal Bailey, a contributor for over a decade to Superman Homepage and an atheist, believes Superman at his best is a “philosophical pragmatist” solving the most complex problems with the least amount of harm.
“He actually goes beyond religion to see our commonalities,” he said. “Superman wouldn’t care about people’s religious beliefs. He would care more about whether they are living up to their human potential.”
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