Religion and The Crow

For some, The Crow itself is their system of worship, their religion. Websites dedicated to The Crow is their church. The mountains of comics, novels, and other paraphernalia are their Bible. Discussion rooms centered around The Crow are their congregation. James O'Barr, in their minds, is the pastor presiding over it all. People who claim Christianity as their belief, seem far and few in the world of The Crow. For many people who claim to be Christian, The Crow is in direct contrast to their belief, so they stay away from it. It is interesting that many atheists or people, who believe in forces other than God or Jesus, constitute the fan base of The Crow. They believe more in the power of the Crow than in the higher power God or the messiah. Sadly, humans, in some cases, are creatures that need to see something to believe it. There is nothing hidden about The Crow. It is all out there in front of us. The avatar answers only to his or her call to seek revenge. There is no scripted ceremony that has to take place on a pre-determined day. The avatar's service is available at any given time. I think this is a very large draw for persons that can not accept an unseen God. Why those of us who are Christians seem to be drawn to The Crow is twofold. The theme of The Crow is a direct contradiction to what we have been taught to believe. According to the Bible a person cannot be resurrected for the purpose of revenge. Thus, for some of us, the premise of the Crow is very intriguing. The idea of "what if" is very powerful. Along those same lines, we are fascinated by the idea that God might allow such an act to take place. Many people, with whom I have spoken, find it odd that I claim to be Christian, yet enjoy stories characteristic of The Crow. I always tell them that God gave me a rather large imagination and The Crow allows me to stretch that imagination. As unbelievable as it may sound, it helps to keep me grounded and reinforces my belief in God. Many of the principles awarded to The Crow are also Christian. The act of love being so powerful that it overcomes death has long been a Christian symbol for Jesus. Setting the wrong things right was a mission established, many centuries ago, by Jesus. There are many pictures of Eric Draven (Brandon Lee) in a Jesus-like pose. He is standing with his arms outstretched as if beckoning to a higher power. I look at The Crow as a mortal man's way of, outwardly, expressing his belief in the power of death and love. The Bible is permeated with many tales of death and love. It is almost like the two go hand in hand. You combine these two elements and you are going to spark the interest of a very diverse mix of people. You will have Christians, non-Christians and atheists, alike, all drawn together by two powerful components. The one thing that leads some people to create their own religion within and based on The Crow, is the error of taking it more seriously than it was intended. Then it becomes something that can not be touched or altered. In a sense, it really does become a religion. Many battles have been fought over the centuries for the very same things that many Crow followers hold sacred. Everyone must have something in which to believe. This is essential in order for us to find a purpose, on earth, as human beings. Whatever we choose as that belief should give credence to what we all know to be right and honorable.

Take care

LLcruize