http://blog.richmond.edu/heroes/2012/12/18/the-role-of-god-in-the-heroic-journey/ A Commentary on Today's Heroes Tue, 21 May 2013 18:04:42 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.4.1 http://blog.richmond.edu/heroes/2012/12/18/the-role-of-god-in-the-heroic-journey/comment-page-1/#comment-220989 RJDiogenes Sun, 06 Jan 2013 13:52:34 +0000 http://blog.richmond.edu/heroes/?p=2624#comment-220989 Being non-religious, I don't believe in higher powers-- just higher standards. Certainly divine intervention is a common theme in folklore and fiction, since all cultures that we know of have included some form of occult beliefs; these beliefs can still be useful as metaphor in modern fiction (e.g. the image of the little angel and devil hovering over your shoulders as you struggle to do the right thing). However, the idea that a higher power is necessary for heroism shows a terrible underestimation of the potential of the Human spirit. People are heroic because it is Human nature to be heroic. In fact, the plot of this movie, possibly unintentionally supports that belief. The catalyst for the transformation was Jack sacrificing himself to save his sister. The moon did not change Jack into a hero-- the moon changed Jack <i>because he was already a hero</i>. Being non-religious, I don’t believe in higher powers– just higher standards. Certainly divine intervention is a common theme in folklore and fiction, since all cultures that we know of have included some form of occult beliefs; these beliefs can still be useful as metaphor in modern fiction (e.g. the image of the little angel and devil hovering over your shoulders as you struggle to do the right thing). However, the idea that a higher power is necessary for heroism shows a terrible underestimation of the potential of the Human spirit. People are heroic because it is Human nature to be heroic. In fact, the plot of this movie, possibly unintentionally supports that belief. The catalyst for the transformation was Jack sacrificing himself to save his sister. The moon did not change Jack into a hero– the moon changed Jack because he was already a hero.

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