Every Gift is Important

They were all Marvel titles, and I read nearly everything Marvel produced (except for Dr Strange, I never could figure that guy out). However, prior to discovering Marvel, I was a DC fan. The main hero at DC was Superman, and I read all the various Superman titles – Jimmy Olsen, Lois Lane, even stories about his dog Krypto. I also read Batman, of course. But my favorite DC title was the Legion of Super Heroes.

The Legion of Super Heroes was a collection of super-powered teenagers from the 30th century. Most of the Legionnaires had single powers, but a few members had multiple or extensive powers. First, there was Superboy. (Although he lived in the 20th century, he could spin super fast and travel through time – but I’m sure you knew that already.) Superboy had the whole package. He could fly, see through walls, and burn things with his eyes. He was also indestructible. And he had super-cold breath that could turn an ocean into ice.

There was another Legionnaire named Mon-el who had the same powers as Superboy. He was thought to be a relative of Superboy who had also escaped from Krypton just before it blew to bits. Another Legionnaire, Ultra Boy, had all the above powers, but he could only use them one at a time. He could fly and look through walls – but not at the same time.

And that was about it for the total-package heroes. The other members of the Legion only had a single power. For example, there was Triplicate Girl. She could make three of herself. That is, until one of her was killed in a titanic struggle with Computo the Conqueror. After that, she called herself Duo Damsel (naturally).

Then there was Bouncing Boy. He could inflate himself like a giant balloon and bounce rapidly from place to place. Unfortunately, he once got stuck in his inflated body and could not deflate himself. After that, he took up a lot more room on the space ship.

But the most interesting hero of all was Matter-Eater Lad. He could eat and digest any substance with super-speed. You may be wondering what good that power was, but there were times when several Legionnaires would be trapped in a cave or a prison and Matter-Eater Lad would eat their way to freedom. He was a valuable guy in a pinch, and he never gained an extra pound.

It has been a long time since I read a Legion of Super Heroes comic book. But I thought about them a while ago when I read this passage in I Corinthians.

“God made our bodies with many parts, and He has put each part just where He wants it. What a strange thing a body would be if it had only one part! Yes, there are many parts, but only one body. The eye can never say to the hand, ‘I don't need you.’ The head can't say to the feet, ‘I don't need you.’ In fact, some of the parts that seem weakest and least important are really the most necessary.” (I Corinthians 12:18-22)