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The Avengers and Being Vulnerable


When the Avengers movie came out I wanted to go see it. I guess it is the kid in me. I saw the movie and enjoyed the special effects, predictable lines and funny moments. The movie is what it is an action flick with lots of special effects. After the movie was over something occurred to me about the characters in the movie. What occurred to me was the isolation of all of the main characters. Captain America, The Hulk, Iron man, Hawkeye, SHEILD and the Black Widow for all of their individual courage, power, wealth and skill are isolated. They have no idea what it means to function as a team much less how to interact with each other. They show no sign of weakness or need for others. In fact the characters would rather fight each other rather than their common foe.
For all of their power, ability and skill the characters seem to be motivated more from a sense of unworthiness. Iron Man for all his witty verbal jabs seems to operate out of a sense that he truly does not deserve a team because that would assume that he is weak. As the movie unfolds the characters must learn an important lesson. That the key to being a team is found in the courage of being vulnerable. It is in being vulnerable about their weakness, guilt and shame that they discover what it means to be whole. It is in being weak that true strength is found.
In Ezekiel 11:19 the prophet proclaims that God will give those in exile a heart of flesh that will replace their heart of stone. One might think that a heart of stone would be equated with a heart that is cold or unfeeling. Yet, the real issue with a heart of stone is that the only way to replace it is to destroy it. A heart of flesh is moldable and shapeable. When a force like exile is applied to a heart of stone it will be crushed. When a force like exile is applied to a heart of flesh it does not shatter. The heart of flesh might look different after the impact of some kind of trauma but it can be reshaped. It might not look the same but it will not be crushed. A stone heart is dogmatic and unwavering while a heart of flesh is shapeable and moldable.  
          This sounds counter intuitive. One would think that during a difficult time being stone like would be a positive or desired attribute. When things are topsy-turvy one might conclude that going with the general wisdom of being unwavering is the best. After all times when times get hard we think we must become unbreakable. Ezekiel suggests that what is truly needed is the ability to be vulnerable and admit weakness, shame or guilt.
          In looking at the lives of those who followed Jesus in the New Testament it would seem that being vulnerable is still an issue. Saul does not become Paul until he admits weakness (Acts 9). Peter does not become a leader until he admits his shame and guilt (John 21:15-17). John is willing to be vulnerable and stay near the cross and in doing so he is “the disciple who he loved” (John 19:26-27). Mark, in his book, informs us that the person who truly gets Jesus and his message is a Roman soldier that is vulnerable enough to admit that Jesus was surly the Son of God (Mark 15:39). Jesus was vulnerable. He lived in the volatile Roman controlled Palestinian territory. There was injustice, violence and oppression of all kinds. Jesus could have remained isolated. Instead Jesus embraces the vulnerable and offers them a word from God that is graceful, loving and healing.
          Being vulnerable is difficult. It is scary. Yet, even the fictitious  Avengers figured out that it was in being vulnerable that they discovered the real change required to become a team. Perhaps we might take a clue from Ezekiel and ask ourselves what kind of heart do we have. A heart of stone or a heart of flesh? A heart that is unwavering or a heart that is vulnerable and moldable? 
After thinking this through I found this really great talk by Dr. Brene Brown on shame and guilt. 

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