Legion, the movie: why it is so dangerous
RelationshipLast night I went to the cinema with my son and his friend. I almost didn’t go, planning to drive to the clinic and spend some time working on the computer and hanging out with my dog, Spot, who is recovering from a hit-and-run just before Christmas. But, at the last moment, I decided to accompany myself to the theater. They decided to see the movie. “Legion” – an apocalyptic type thriller.
In “Legion”God has had enough of humanity’s repeated failures and has decided, once again, to destroy the earth.
“And I will establish my covenant with you, and never again will all flesh be exterminated by flood waters, nor will there be any more flood to destroy the earth.”
–Genesis 9:11
True to his word, God does not send a flood to destroy the earth. This time, he sends the angels after him. The characters in the movie understandably mistake these angels for demons. After all, they possess human bodies, distort their bodies, have razor-sharp teeth, walk on walls and ceilings, kill innocents, and do things that are far more demonic than angelic. But, Michael sets the record straight. Yes, that is THE Michael, the archangel of God who, apparently, rioted and came to earth to try to save mankind from the wrath of God. He not only has to face the entire heavenly host (seeking the whole world as demon spirits), but also the archangel Gabriel.
And what is Michael’s plan? To save an unborn child. No, his mother is not a virgin. In fact, she makes it quite clear that she is far from it. There is no sweet and innocent type Mary here. She confesses that at one point she even went to the clinic to abort her baby, but was stopped by an overwhelming feeling of being swallowed by the darkness that she interpreted as how she must feel about death.
By the end of the movie, Michael has defeated Gabriel, Charley (the mother), the baby, and Jeep, a somewhat simple man who is not the baby’s father but who has taken it upon himself to protect Charley and her baby (think Joseph’s role with Mary and Jesus), leaves for the desert with a truck full of weapons of mass destruction hoping the baby will grow up and lead the world from darkness to light.
“Legion” obviously borrows heavily from the “Terminator” and the “Matrix” movie series. But, my goal here is not just to provide a regular movie review, but to point out the many, many major theological errors in this film. Having said that, I realize that the creators were not trying to enact the actual Apocalypse written in the book of Revelation, but I do see a disturbing and dangerous trend in these “Hollywood meets the Bible” movies being made in recent years.
I know, I can already hear my critics say, “But they are just movies, meant only to entertain.” I beg to differ. I believe they are propaganda tools created by the enemy to erode the belief system of Christians and to prevent the unsaved from becoming Christians in the first place. Before you start ranting about me being another overzealous Christian bent on saving the world, let me explain why I feel that way.
First, let’s see “Legion”. Archangel Michael riots against God, disobeys his orders and decides that he is going to give God what he needs, not what he wants. He seems to remind me of another fallen angel who presumed to place himself above God. He has many names, Lucifer, the dragon, the serpent, the devil, Satan. However, in the end, Michael’s decision pays off and God rewards him for his disobedience. Michael comes to earth and cuts off his wings, thus becoming “human” and is no longer an angel. The symbolism here is very much like Jesus coming to earth and divesting himself of all divine powers, becoming a mere man.
Throughout the film, angels bent on destroying humans, especially the unborn baby (think King Herod trying to destroy baby Jesus and the Terminator trying to destroy Sarah Connor) possess the bodies of humans (think agents taking over bodies in the “Matrix” movie series). I have issues with angelic beings sent by God to kill humanity’s “future hope” for a couple of reasons.
“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
–John 10:10
Perhaps he could have accepted demon angels in this role, but not the heavenly host.
“For he will command his angels over you, to guard you in all your ways.”
–Psalm 91:11
Psalm 91:11 just doesn’t sound like an army of beings bent on destroying humanity.
At one point in the film, a man is hung upside down on a cross… another symbol of evil, not good. This was also apparently carried out by the heavenly host in an effort to draw out the innocent and gain access to the restaurant where the baby’s mother and former archangel Michael (and others) are hiding.
Then, of course, there’s the whole matter of an unborn child who is destined to be humanity’s hope. I’m sorry, didn’t that happen already? If I’m not mistaken, the Messiah has already come. He was born of the virgin Mary. He died on a cross, right side up, I might add, for our sins. He rose from the dead after three days, and now he reigns in heaven sitting at the right hand of the Father.
So where is Jesus anyway at “Legion”? No mention of him at all. Was it not our intercessor? Didn’t He already pay the penalty for our sins?
Now, I’ll be the first to admit that if God were to look at me, look at my sad failures and my disobedience to his written and spoken word, I wouldn’t be worth saving. The thing is, he doesn’t look at us. He is looking at Jesus, the sacrificial lamb, the substitute, our substitute. He does not look at us but at the one who paid the death penalty for our sin even though he was sinless.
The audacity of this film, in the name of entertainment, to suggest that his sacrifice was not enough, that there has to be another “know” other “hope for humanity” it’s an incredibly dangerous and silly road to walk. Add to that the suggestion that God has lost faith in man, but Michael hasn’t (so Michael is another savior for humanity?) and you end up with a very confusing hypothesis of God, angels, heaven, salvation, etc.
If our salvation is not complete, then there is no hope for humanity.
Perhaps the reason why Jesus is not on “Legion”It’s because this movie was made post “The Da Vinci Code”the hit 2006 film adapted from a book of the same title that became a worldwide bestseller with more than 80 million copies sold to date.
In “The Da Vinci Code”, Jesus married Mary Magdalene and had children. The author, Dan Brown, seems to support the Gnostic theory that Jesus was simply a human prophet, and not the only begotten son of God. If this were true, then Jesus would have lived, married, had children, died, and been buried — end of story; without resurrection, there is no salvation for humanity.
Now, there are a couple of little flashes of light in “Legion”. In the end, mercy triumphs, and through Jeep, the simple is used to confound the wise. But, the problem with these quasi-biblical books and movies is that there is a curious mix of biblical truth with outright evil.
The enemy is smart. In the name of entertainment, both the saved and the unsaved will flock to see these movies and read these books. He knows that our minds are fertile fields. All he has to do is plant a seed. A seed of doubt will grow just as well as a seed of faith. In fact, it’s probably better because it will receive more nourishment in this confused world than the seeds of faith, unless you give them more care and attention.
i can remember later “The Da Vinci Code” having a heated debate with a fellow Christian who said it didn’t matter. That if Jesus were human after all, it wouldn’t hurt his faith. In fact it would make him stronger because he could identify with him more if he were a man and not God.
The problem is that then there would be no salvation. If Jesus was just a prophet, just a teacher, just a good man, then we are doomed to eternal damnation.
“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
–Romans 6:23
Praise God, he was so much more than that. Praise God, he is my redeemer and he still lives today. Praise God for he is my light and my salvation.
My biggest complaint is that in the antagonist vs. protagonist, white hat vs. black hat, good vs. wicked Stage, “Legion” it firmly places God in the role of the bad guy. It puts God in the role of destroyer instead of the role of creator and savior.
God is not waiting in the wings, hand on the trigger, ready to exterminate humanity. God does not want a single person to perish. His mercies are forever, and he looks at us, always, with eyes of love, not seeing our mistakes, our disappointments or what we have done wrong, but seeing his son in our place.