Legion

January 26, 2010 by Beth Davies-Stofka

Continued from Page 1

Of course, way back then, one man, Noah, found favor with God, and because of that, he and his family survived the exterminating flood. But this time God means to finish the job altogether. Charlie's voiceover at the beginning of Legion asks why God might want to kill us all. Apparently it's because He has grown "tired of all the b.s." I'm sure that's something every one of us can relate to!

When asked why God has ordered our extermination, Michael speaks of how violent we are, how we kill each other over dirt and rocks, race and creed, and words in old books. This resonates. We are all really tired of that b.s.! That's exactly how stupidly wicked we are!

So then the question becomes, why doesn't Michael want us all dead? Why has he decided to defy God? It turns out Michael hasn't lost his faith. He thinks we're worth saving.

All manner of movies these days try to talk about faith. But Legion is really kind of special in the shout-out it gives to faith. It recognizes the faith we feel when we discover goodness in others. It recognizes our lonely and dogged persistence to do good things. It honors our everyday acts of kindness. And it encourages us in our refusal to give up no matter how lost the cause seems to be. Lots of movies try to talk about faith, but few are quite as direct and sincere as Legion is. In Legion, faith is the message emerging through the cacophony of cliché.

So keep your eyes open for that late-night TV appearance of this movie. It might be a little too silly, a little too immature, a little too casually racist, to merit a visit to the theater. But the American mosaic of desert, diner, guns, bullets, explosions, and questions about the love of God and the faith of angels will be a delightful little diversion some evening as you sit in your living room, tired of all the b.s. Keep your eyes open.

Beth Davies-Stofka teaches courses on comparative religion and the philosophy of religion. She has also been an online columnist and critic and contributes regularly to the Patheos site.

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About Beth Davies-Stofka

Beth Davies-Stofka teaches courses on comparative religion and the philosophy of religion. Her teaching and research focus in two areas: the challenges that violence and human suffering present to theological ethics, and explorations of philosophy and...

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