This is a movie I've watched recently that blew me away. When I saw the trailers for X-Men: Days of Future Past, I thought it looked un-promising.
I thought, "Oh, they're making another X-Men movie, and it looks so typical that I don't even need to go see it." But I was wrong.
I am SO glad that I did go see it. I loved it. With me, I can always tell that a movie was really good if I spend hours or days afterward still thinking about it, and this movie definitely did that for me. I thought about the plot and the time traveling and tried to make sense of that, but the main thing I thought about afterwards were the deep, complex themes about life and how we deal with it.
This movie has some great action and comedy throughout, but, being the deep thinker that I am, I mostly adore it because I connect well with its depictions of living in a fallen world, mostly through relating to the character of Young Professor X.
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| from vanityfair.com |
In this movie, a young Charles Xavier is depicted during a time in his life when he is deeply struggling with his superpower of telepathy, a power which makes him able to hear/see/feel what every person in the world does, all the time. It might even better be called "tel-empathy."
I am SO glad that they explored this aspect of the character in this movie, because I've always thought that superpower certainly has the looming potential to devastate the one who possesses it. People, of course, experience joy, love, excitement and more in their life, but with his powers, Xavier sees and feels all the feelings of all the people of the world, a world that is full of evil and suffering and pain. He truly has "seen it all." And in response, he--naturally, I would dare to say--becomes severely depressed.
Though I personally do not possess the gift of telepathy, I as a person possess the "superpower" of regular human empathy. Most people have this power. Yet however much good this power can achieve, this great and necessary gift still presents challenges.
For example, I have difficulty these days watching the news, as I know so many others do too. Even though it is undoubtedly important as a world citizen and Christian to remain up-to-date on what is happening in the world, it can be hard to learn of all the relentless sad stories and all of the evil that affects people. It's usually easiest to just tune it out, to not look at it. But for Charles Xavier, "tuning out" the worldwide pain and suffering of others is not so easy an option.
Xavier turns to drugs to numb his awareness of other people's thoughts and feelings. He tries to stop feeling the pain by any means necessary. This part of the movie was actually really for me hard to watch. As an X-Men fan familiar with the stories, seeing the beloved leader, Professor X, at such a low point is unsettling and even heartbreaking.
The suspense at this point of the movie is based on wondering whether Xavier will ever recover, ever regain hope, ever rise up and help people as only he can.
And the thing is, this "low point," this state of hopelessness, depression, and numbness is what I'd say is a completely natural response to all the pain and suffering and evil that's in the world. Constant awareness of all this pain is naturally overwhelming and depressing. It looks hopeless because it never seems to end, and sometimes it even seems to be getting worse. And even if we were able to hold the awareness of all the darkness and sorrow in the world, we don't have the ability to help everyone.
So at this point, yes: sorrow, hopelessness, giving up... makes sense.
But, praise God, there's more to the picture than that.
The world is actually not hopeless. We actually are not hopeless. Before Jesus left the earth, many days after he had been crucified and resurrected, He spoke to his disciples (see John 16:25-32) telling them that because they have believed that Jesus is from God, God Himself loves them.
They say "yes, we believe you are from God," but Jesus says, "'Do you now believe? Behold, the hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home, and will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone, for the Father is with me. I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.'”
So pretty much He's saying that things are going to get rough (and indeed they are already) but that his followers don't need to be dismayed about it. God wins over evil. God wins over injustice. Jesus conquered death when He died and rose again. Jesus has overcome it all.
Surely there is a future, and your hope will not be cut off. -Proverbs 23:18
This world is filled with evil and turmoil and suffering and sin, but God has seen it, and He has sent a Redeemer! (read Isaiah 59) Jesus took on all of our sin and suffering and pain and has made us able to be one with God again, and He Himself is our peace (see Ephesians 2:14). As individuals, we do not have the power to save everyone, but God has that power, and He has reached down to us to save the world. He offers Himself as a Savior to everyone.
Hope in the Lord! For with the Lord there is steadfast love, and with him is plentiful redemption. -Psalm 130:7
So this brings me to another point of the movie that really got to me.
At one point in the plot of the movie, Wolverine asks (begs, really) Xavier to look into his mind, connect with him, and thereby see and feel all of his darkest, most painful moments. Xavier, still in his suffocating depression, responded in the way I probably would've. In tears, he said, "I DON'T WANT YOUR SUFFERING."
Xavier is given tremendous responsibility in his ability to take on so much pain. This, to me, looks like a shadow, an imperfect reflection, of Jesus.
Jesus before His crucifixion was in agony. He was praying in earnest and sweating blood. He knew that He was about to bear the sin of the whole world and drink the cup of the wrath of God. He prayed, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but Yours, be done.” (see Luke 22:41-44)
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| from charlesanderik2016 |
Hallelujah! Even though Jesus was about to undergo terrible pain and suffering--the pain and suffering that sin has brought upon everyone in the world--He was still committed to obeying God's will, and God's will is that sinners be saved and brought together with Him.
Jesus has taken on our sin and pain that we may be saved and be with God forever where there is no sin or suffering or pain; He will wipe every tear from every eye (Revelation 21:4). Yet while we are still living on earth before Jesus' return, where there is sin and suffering and pain, we endure it all, like Jesus, so that we can know Him more intimately by sharing in His suffering (as indeed, He suffered for our sakes) and so that we may live (and even die) to glorify God and to show His love to others.
Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. -Romans 5:3-5
Since Jesus is in heaven now, we are his hands and feet on earth (read Ephesians 4). By His grace and the power of His Holy Spirit, we are called to see and feel (with our superpower of empathy) the pain of others around us, show them love, and introduce them to Jesus, who gives hope and peace and life.
Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. -Galatians 6:2
Xavier realizes in the movie that he should not give in to his despair but that he plays an important role. He can have an impact on so many people's lives and share hope with them. Even if he can't remove the pain from everyone, he can do so for some, and therefore should. But he needed to be given hope first, and God does that for us. And so we, by the grace of God, should share our hope with others and help others in their pain, just as God helps us in ours. And even though we cannot wipe the tears from every eye, our God can. (How awesome!)
Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. -Matthew 5:4
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. -2 Corinthians 1:3-4
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| from businessinsider.com |
So this amazing movie gave a lot of great messages about being saved from hopelessness and also giving hope to others. God loves us and has demonstrated that for us in sending His only son to endure so much pain for us. This movie has several messages that can be applied to our lives, maybe you can find even more. And of course, when we know God, these messages mean so much more.
So I hope this encourages you to find your hope and peace in God, reach out to those who don't have it, and perhaps look for echos of Jesus in other movies or unexpected places.
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. -Romans 5:13
But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; -Lamentations 3:20
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. -Jeremiah 29:11
Also see Romans 8:19-21 and Galatians 5:5 about hope in this world.
Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed it! Please feel free to add to the discussion in the comments below. Also, if you have any movie suggestions for me, let me know!
X-Men: Days of Future Past. Dir. Bryan Singer. Perf. Hugh Jackman, James McAvoy, Patrick Stewart. Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, 2014. Film.
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