Over the years of watching the surge of superhero movies, it's almost impossible for me not to correlate certain events, themes, or lines of dialogue to Christian parallels. The irony is that these movies definitely are not made to evoke any of that whatsoever, but when you're talking about superhero "gods," creating and destroying universes, soul stones, etc., these stories, themes, and messages unwittingly evoke parallels to Biblical theologies.
Trust me, there are a lot of connections you can make. Just last year, the entire Loki Disney+ series toyed with ideas of fate, predestination, living outside of time as a god, and even, to some extent, creation and the beginning of all things. That show wasn't trying to take a direct stance either way in relations to Christian beliefs; nevertheless, there are times you must tread carefully as a viewer when listening to these stories that infringe on what is truth, even though it's all in the name of fun. I'm not trying to sound judgmental here. I loved the Loki show so much (the ending was a bit of a letdown, but still good). When I hear what some of these superheroes are saying, I can't help but make connections in my mind. And I wanted to share my three favorite connections superhero movies make to Christian beliefs even though they weren't even trying to make those connections whatsoever.
No. 3 - Thanos' arrival in Endgame
My third-favorite connection was rather recent. And this connection has a far different feel than the other two (shameless plug: keep reading my blog!). It's a bit more abstract, and the thought process is actually the opposite of the truth, but it's still something I think is very good for Christians to remember and, hopefully, for non-Christians who read this to be a little intrigued to ponder it a bit.
Avengers: Endgame was the culmination of the greatest movie event in cinema history. It was also the end of a two-part story, the first of which sees Thanos victorious in his plans to destroy half of existence in Avengers: Infinity War.
At the beginning of Endgame, the Avengers track down Thanos and kill him, but it's too little, too late; that is, until they discover the quantum realm. They go back in time to recollect stones from the past and undo what Thanos did in Infinity War. But of course, the Thanos from 2014 sneaks into the present day to stop their plans to reverse everything.
Before the big fight, Thanos and some of the Avengers have an interesting conversation. Thanos tells Cap, Thor, and Iron Man how his thought process was to wipe out half of life to allow the other half to thrive. He says, "As long as there are those that remember what was, there will always be those that are unable to accept what can be. They will resist."
Thanos later says he knows he must "shred this universe down to its last atom," and create a new universe teeming with life that "knows not what it has lost, but only what it has been given." And he thinks this approach is the solution to creating a grateful universe. Cap snaps back and says it would be a universe "born out of blood," but Thanos thinks it'll be fine because the new lives he creates will never know.
What does this have to do with Christianity?
Here in the present-day real world, before Christ's return, Christians who are taken to heaven will have memories of their life on Earth. Now, to what extent is debatable, but scriptures in Revelation 6: 9-10 suggest that people currently in Heaven still experience sorrow, particularly those who were martyred. It's not for certain, but some thought processes in Christian circles suggest that memories will be different after the return of Christ, and after God creates a new heaven and a new Earth. It's hard to imagine living in a perfect paradise for eternity with sad memories at that point, so my personal inclination is we will have our memories either partially amended or completely erased. Some scriptures suggest we may only have all of our sorrowful memories erased. Hard to say, and no one on Earth right now can say with certainty, but it's easy to catch the gist of what will happen.
To me, the scenes in Avengers: Endgame with Thanos talking about the problem with preserving half of existence is fascinating. The idea that God preserves the memories of Christians (pre-Christ's return) absolutely makes sense to me. Remembering what Jesus did for us and realizing what he saved us from (hell) will truly give Christians a sense of gratitude and thankfulness. This is why Christians are not going to just be like the angels, but above them. When God created the heavens, the Earth, and angels at the beginning of what we understand as time, those angels have nothing to compare the paradise they were given. I personally think that's the reason a third of the angels fell; Lucifer convinced some to think that they could have something better. If only the angels knew at that point what would happen, they might've declined Lucifer's offer, but they just didn't know any better. This is also why I believe that there never will be another fall again. When Christians get to heaven, we will always know what Jesus did for us. This also is a great example of what it means to have free will and what having a relationship with God truly means. If there wasn't free will, there would be no appreciation.
Thanos' problem (aside from being a fictional villainous character, of course) was he wanted to force appreciation on the universe, but that doesn't work; in fact, it usually leads to resistance, as the Avengers showed. God doesn't operate in such a way that he simply demands our love and appreciation for who He is, but he led by example through his son Jesus, which shows true love. Thanos only is showing control, and I'm sure any parent reading this knows that control is not how you achieve and real relationship.