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A New GnosisMystico-Erotics of the “Next Age Superhero”: Christian Hippie Comics of the 1970s

A New Gnosis: Mystico-Erotics of the “Next Age Superhero”: Christian Hippie Comics of the 1970s [This essay examines comics aimed at the “Jesus People movement” as it emerged in southern California between the late 1960s through the late 1970s. The focus on Christian Hippie Comics includes Al Hartley’s Spire Christian Comics, and True Komix, the official comic book of The Children of God, a Christian-based cult born of the Hippie era. Following Jeffrey Kripal, my analysis unearths a libidinal structure to Christian Hippie Comics in their conjoining of the numinous and the erotic. The essay posits that such “tantric” elements in Christian comics may be surprising given Christianity’s traditionally repressive attitude toward forms of sexuality; however, as I suggest, these tantric motifs reflect the Asian influences of the hippie culture which these comics targeted for conversion to Christianity. The resulting comic style includes elements of a tantric revisioning of the Gospel aimed at the hippie youth of the day.] http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png

A New GnosisMystico-Erotics of the “Next Age Superhero”: Christian Hippie Comics of the 1970s

Part of the Contemporary Religion and Popular Culture Book Series
Editors: Odorisio, David M.
Slonaker, Amy
A New Gnosis — Jan 1, 2023
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22 pages

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Publisher
Springer International Publishing
Copyright
© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023
ISBN
978-3-031-20126-4
Pages
59 –81
DOI
10.1007/978-3-031-20127-1_4
Publisher site
See Chapter on Publisher Site

Abstract

[This essay examines comics aimed at the “Jesus People movement” as it emerged in southern California between the late 1960s through the late 1970s. The focus on Christian Hippie Comics includes Al Hartley’s Spire Christian Comics, and True Komix, the official comic book of The Children of God, a Christian-based cult born of the Hippie era. Following Jeffrey Kripal, my analysis unearths a libidinal structure to Christian Hippie Comics in their conjoining of the numinous and the erotic. The essay posits that such “tantric” elements in Christian comics may be surprising given Christianity’s traditionally repressive attitude toward forms of sexuality; however, as I suggest, these tantric motifs reflect the Asian influences of the hippie culture which these comics targeted for conversion to Christianity. The resulting comic style includes elements of a tantric revisioning of the Gospel aimed at the hippie youth of the day.]

Published: Jan 1, 2023

Keywords: Jesus People; Christian Hippie Comics; The Children of God; Jeffrey Kripal; Mystico-Erotics

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