Real Heroes Don't Wear Capes
This week's e-newsletter from the Discipleship Ministries of the United Methodist Church arrived in my inbox and it fit perfectly with our lesson about Boaz in the Book of Ruth. I share it with you as our Tuesday Vespers this week.
November 13, 2025
Do you like movies? We do!
One thing we have noticed over the years is a central theme that runs through nearly all the superhero movies. The hero has a power that they are reluctant to use.
In “The Last Jedi,” an aging Luke Skywalker doesn’t want to go back to help the resistance. He is disillusioned with everything and just wants to be alone on his rocky island. The arguably greatest Jedi knight doesn’t want to get involved.
In “Black Panther,” T’Challa, king of Wakanda, doesn’t want to share vibranium with the rest of the world. The precious element has allowed the Wakandans to develop an advanced civilization; yet, they keep their advancements hidden beneath the cloak of looking like a developing country.
In “Wonder Woman,” Diana, princess of the Amazons, leaves her island of Themyscira to protect the outside world from a great war (World War I). She possesses “the Godkiller,” a weapon given to the Amazons by Zeus to be used only in the event of a war with the evil god Ares, but uses it only as a last resort.
We could go on, but you see the similarities. Each movie has a reluctant hero who only steps up when they see the risk/fear/reluctance being less important than the problem.
OK, we aren’t superheroes. We don’t have any magic weapons or ultrahuman skills that will, in a grand wave-of-the-hand gesture, make all the problems of the world go away. But that does not mean we are powerless.
We don’t have to be the reluctant hero. Rarely do we risk death when we go outside our churches to do a brave act. It doesn’t take extreme courage to walk outdoors and see people who need hope and encouragement.
What can you do today that will set you apart from the average sit-in-the-pew-on-Sunday-morning Christian?
Can you:
- Offer a homeless person a bag with a bottle of water, a granola bar, a pack of wet wipes, a comb and a note with an encouraging verse of Scripture?
- Go to your local public school and volunteer to listen to and encourage a child while they read?
- Help an immigrant (or even someone just new to your town) navigate the road of filling out forms for their child’s school?
- Spearhead a back-to-school activity for your church and train volunteers to talk with guests about your church and how God is at work?
These activities aren’t as grand as saving the planet from complete and total annihilation like in the movies, but for the people whose lives you touch, you will look pretty heroic.
We live in the real world. A world where heroes don’t wear capes. They wear tennis shoes and pumps. Jeans and skirts. Eyeglasses and earrings.
You can be someone’s hero today.
Coming next time: Being popular doesn’t hurt.
Praying for you,
The See All The People Team
Discipleship Ministries, The United Methodist Church
P.S. Remember to share your stories simply by using the hashtag #SeeAllThePeople. Your stories will show at seeallthepeople.org.