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Five Theological Points in "Wonder Woman" We Can Agree On

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When the Apostle Paul came to Mars Hill, he looked for common ground between Christian and Greek theology. He explored theological agreements before moving on to the unique insights and doctrines of Christ. He quoted from the religious playwrights and poets of popular Greek culture, pointing out where they got it mostly right.

"In him we live and move and have our being" is from Cretica by Epimenides and "we are his offspring" from a hymn to Zeus by Aratus."

Paul talked about truth and beauty in pop culture, and we can too. With that in mind, let's look at five theological insights Christians can agree with in Patty Jenkins's sensational Wonder Woman movie.

1. Humanity is made in the divine image, and therefore are beings of intrinsic, inherent worth.

In Wonder Woman's cosmology, Zeus made humanity "in his image"… inherently good creatures designed to be wise and beautiful. We're told the same thing in Genesis: God made human beings "in his image" and they were "very good" ( , ). Human beings are beautiful, wonderful creatures, and their lives are worth protecting. They should be treated with respect, kindness, and love. Let's celebrate this massive pop culture juggernaut, which promotes this theological truth: human beings are made in the divine image and are worthy of respect.

2. Humanity is also broken and terrible, selfish and destroyed.

Wonder Woman (Diana Prince) discovers human beings often make the choice to embrace evil, violence, and greed. Although they have been corrupted by an evil being, there is evil in the very core of each one of them. She discovers saving them is not so simple as destroying one evil being; the evil in the hearts of humanity must also be destroyed. Even character Steve Trevor admits, in a moving speech, that the evil is in his heart. He's part of the problem. Scripture is clear on this topic. Human beings have become corrupted by sin, and we have fallen short of God's glory. The payout for that sin has been and will continue to be death. This is a terrible truth and it is refreshing to see a movie not only embrace it, but to show us Diana grieving this truth.

3. Doing the right thing sometimes requires sacrifice.

Various characters make sacrifices to fight evil in Wonder Woman's comic book universe. Whether it's Queen Hippolyta (Diana's mom) giving up her only begotten child to send her off into man's world to save them from themselves or Steve Trevor's friends agreeing to fight not for money (as they usually do), but because it's the right thing to do. There is even a moment late in the film where it is made clear that sometimes one must sacrifice one's life to protect others. What an example for our world today.

4. God sent us an example to emulate.

Wonder Woman inspires the people around her (and us) to become better humans and to choose the light over the darkness. Her example causes people to sacrifice for one another. In her fictional, origin story, she was created by Zeus for this purpose. It's a beautiful parallel to what we're told of Jesus, that He was sent by God the Father to leave us a godly example ( ).

5. Only love can save the world.

Wonder Woman concludes with one big takeaway: only love can save the world. The Bible tells us that God himself is love ( ). The greatest commandment is love! (See ) God sent Jesus to save the world because of His great love for all the people in it ( ). In Christian theology, love is the motivating cause of salvation, the way through which salvation is effected, and the person who makes it possible. The world can only truly be saved by one love...God's love ( ).

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About The Author

Matt
Mikalatos

Matt Mikalatos has been a missionary for nearly 20 years, serving in the United States and overseas. He's the author of seven books, the most recent of which was Sky Lantern, a touching story about love, loss, and fatherhood. Before full-time ministry, Matt worked at a comic book store and was a high school teacher. He loves comics, movies, and novels. Matt co-hosts the StoryMen Podcast and is always working to find the best way to talk to more people about Jesus. For more of Matt's writing, go to norvillerogers.com.