“God Loves, Man Kills” was revealed in 1982, on the top of the Ethical Majority’s energy. Claremont and Anderson got down to touch upon the rise of televangelism – the latter invoked Pat Robertson – and underline its hypocrisy. Christianity’s teachings are of affection and forgiveness, however its loudest followers voice solely hate. And boy, oh boy, does Stryker hate.
His forces, the Purifiers, are launched by executing two mutant siblings. To get rid of any subtext, each the kids (Mark and Jill) are Black, and Magneto discovers their corpses strung up like lynching victims. Why does Stryker hate mutants? His personal son was one — so he killed the boy at start after which his spouse Marci too for creating an “abomination.” He proudly declared himself freed from sin and that God supposed him to wage struggle on the mortal spawn of Devil: mutants.
Of the X-Males, Stryker takes explicit umbrage at Kurt Wagner/Nightcrawler, who resembles a blue-skinned demon (regardless of being a practising Catholic). When Stryker asks, “You dare name that factor human?!” Kitty Pryde solutions again, defending Kurt’s humanity.
Claremont and Anderson’s theological critique is sort of as previous as Christ himself. It has been made by Martin Scorsese (“The Final Temptation of Christ”), Al Franken (“Provide-Facet Jesus”), Philip Pullman (“His Darkish Supplies”), and much too many others to record.
What makes it stand out is that it transpires in a Marvel superhero comedian. The X-Males had lived in a world that “hates and fears” them for some time, however “God Loves, Man Kills” makes it really feel extra actual as a result of, in actual life, extremist non secular teams are the go-to refuge of hateful zealots. Simply take a look at ongoing assaults on the LGBTQ+ group proper now.
The button that “God Loves, Man Kills” pressed was simply too scorching for “X2.”