Steve Gerber planteaba algo interesante respecto de la religión del DCU desde la aparición de Zauriel en JLA. Basicamente lo que dice es que, desde su aparición, en el DCU no hay agnosticos, no es cuestión de
.
So, where was I?
Oh, right — I was saying that the first time someone told me about Zauriel, back when he debuted in
JLA, I thought it was just about the
worst idea for a character I’d ever heard.
One of my reasons would probably have occurred to you immediately. I’m an agnostic. The introduction of a
real angel from the
real Heaven into the DC Universe could only be interpreted, I thought, as an endorsement of the Big Three brands of middle eastern monotheism. The political, social, and cultural repercussions of such an endorsement were troublesome enough, but they were the
least of my concerns about Zauriel.
For any writer (okay,
this writer) whose inclination might be to
expand the scope of the DCU’s mystical and spiritual possibilities, Zauriel might easily have represented the ultimate dead end. How could any realm grander than Zauriel’s Heaven or a being more powerful than Zauriel’s God be portrayed in a DC comic without insulting every believer of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam? And if an all-powerful, all-knowing, omnipresent God is a character in a superhero book, why doesn’t He show up every time a supervillain robs a bank? Oh, and if there are guardian angels like Zauriel, why doesn’t every superhero
have one?
Even
those issues, however, weren’t what disturbed me most about the character.
Everyone reading this blog, much like the schmuck writing it, lives in a real-world universe full of mysteries. Little mysteries, like, “Why is all dryer lint purple?” and “Why can’t we all just get along?” Bigger mysteries, like, “Why is gravity so weak compared to the other forces of nature?” And humongous mysteries, like:
- Is humankind alone in the universe, or are there other allegedly-intelligent life forms?
- Does God exist?
- What happens after we die?
In terms of the DCU, the first question was answered in 1938, on the very first page of
Action Comics #1. Superman was born on the planet Krypton. Thus, ipso facto, there was — at least until Krypton exploded — other intelligent life in the universe. In the almost 70 years since, hundreds if not thousands of extraterrestrial heroes and villains have appeared in the DCU, operating in public as often as not, and making no effort to disguise their origins.
Think about that for a moment. In the DC Universe, unlike ours,
every single person on Earth
knows beyond all doubt that life exists on other worlds. The DCU’s Joe Shmoes live in a universe where stories like, oh, “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” or “Star Wars” or “Battlestar Galactica” or “Star Trek” would hold no special fascination, even for children.
(I’m not singling out DC, by the way. It’s equally true of the Marvel Universe. We got Skrulls in the second issue of
Fantastic Four. So Reed, Sue, Johnny, and Ben haven’t had to ask the “alone?” question since 1961. Nor, today, does anyone else among the MU populace.)
In the DCU, the second question was answered unambiguously with the introduction of Zauriel.
Now think about
that for a moment. Ever since Zauriel appeared on the scene,
every single person in the DCU has
known beyond all doubt that the God of Abraham exists and that His angels are watching over us. And, while the intricacies of the system have been left a bit fuzzy,
every single person in the DCU
knows that there’s a Heaven and a Hell. Not “believes” —
knows!
In other words, with the advent of Zauriel, the DCU was, effectively, sucked dry of whatever mystery remained. With all the big questions answered, doubt vanishes; both spiritual and scientific inquiry are rendered obsolete; the exploration of outer — and inner — space becomes pointless. What’s left to search for? The meaning of life? Maybe we don’t know, but
we know God knows, and, at least in a rudimentary sense, we know where God can be found — physically. We’ve got His home address.
So, naturally, when editor Joey Cavalieri suggested I write the
Zauriel one-shot as one of the lead-ins to
Doctor Fate, I hesitated — for a second, maybe two. Then I said “yes”.
What can say? I guess I like a challenge.
Tomorrow, I’ll discuss what changed my mind about the character and how that affected the upcoming one-shot. I think you’ll find it interesting.
