Saints of the new Millenium, Assemble!

It is no secret that I am super excited for The Avengers. It appeals to the comic book fan, the Joss Whedon fan, and the action movie fan in me all at once. One of the things that sets Marvel comics apart, for me, is the humanity of the characters. DC's Batman, and Superman are all seemingly the god figures of a mythology, but Spider man, the X-men, and The Avengers are all very human with very human flaws. Portraying our heroes with some sort of tragic flaw adds a layer of relation to the character because we are all flawed beings. We all have our weaknesses, and unlike Superman's Kryptonite, our weaknesses are from within ourselves.

So that leaves me asking which Avenger am I? Which weakness do I carry in my faith and how I live my life? Am I:

Tony Stark/Iron Man: (addictions aside) Am I the flashy one? Do my arrogance and aloofness leave me segregated from my fellow heroes? Is it hard for me to accept their help or acknowledge they are right and I am wrong? Do I think that I am somehow more qualified than the rest of the world?

Thor: Is it a different kind of pride that I have? Do I think I am invincible? Do I lack humility?

Bruce Banner/The Hulk: Is there something within me that I fear so much that i simply run? Is what I think to be my weakness actually my gift and strength? Do I hide my light from the world and thus fail to work to save it?

Steve Rogers/Captain America: Do I feel purposeless? Do I feel like i belong to another world, or another time, and that my gifts have nothing good to offer this world?

or am I something else entirely?

In what is sure to be a tense moment in the movie the main antagonist (that we know of) Loki is asking "How desperate are you that you would call upon such a creature?" referring to if not one but all of the members of the superhero team brought together by Nick Fury. I am sure we often find ourselves asking God the same question, referring to ourselves, or sometimes to others. It usually sounds something like "I am not worthy." (hopefully some of you read that in your best Monty Python accent!) The point is not that we are not worthy but we were chosen despite that! Despite our weaknesses and flaw we have been given a task to be stewards of the world and to be a light of love when there is no hope! When Jesus picked his apostles He did not go find the most upright citizens in town, he picked the weak, working men, some who would deny Him. He had to know they would fail him, but He called them out anyway because He knew their potential. So Christ assembled his team, and has called us to so assemble.

The orders are simple: make the world better, by loving one another.
Clothe the naked, feed the hungry, shelter the homeless, care for the sick.
Love each other as you are so loved. Sin or no sin, we are all deserving of that love.

As Catholics we have a unique set of individuals to look to for inspirations. The Saints! From the Early Church to Modern Day there are stories of flawed men and women answering the call to make the world a better place. These are the heroes who existed and walked the same Earth we do, with the same struggles, and felt called to serve. They let their gifts shine as a light to the world in times of darkness.

We have the same call. John Paul II himself said in his World Youth Day address: "Young people of every continent, do not be afraid to be the saints of the new millennium! Be contemplative, love prayer; be coherent with your faith and generous in the service of your brothers and sisters, be active members of the Church and builders of peace." Read the whole thing here (It's a good one)

ASSEMBLE!!

If that doesn't sound like a call to form the Justice League I don't know what does! WE can be the heroes, WE can be the Saints, WE can inspire the future generations to take care of one another. What we don't have to do is be flawless about it. Fall down, get back up. Easy as that.