Tuesday, July 26, 2022
Elder of Ziyon
Even though I have been re-titling old public domain comics, I am not a big fan of the genre. Just today I learned about a truly Jewish superhero, Seraph, from the DC universe.
Here he says hi to Superman.
Seraph was introduced in Super Friends #38, see the bottom of the cover:
His real name is Chaim Levon, a schoolteacher in Israel.
His list of superpowers is based on Biblical stories:
The Ring of Solomon gives him wisdom and allows him to teleport short distances.
The Mantle of Elijah protects him from harm.
The Staff of Moses can extend to whatever length he needed, and can transform into a serpent, create earthquakes, and manipulate water and energy.
His long-hair grants him the superhuman strength of Samson.
But most interesting superpower is a direct line to God. Seraph can request spectacular miracles from "a higher power" as he needs them.
Even more interesting is his weakness, which is what makes him so Jewish: "All his powers and artifacts will be rendered unusable if Seraph commit sins or abuses his powers. It won't return until the next Yom Kippur."
He has to repent on Yom Kippur!
There is a Marvel superhero, Sabra, who was also born in Israel and her real name is Ruth bat-Seraph. Clearly there is no relation between her and Seraph, but perhaps her name is an homage to this superhero who was created a few years earlier.
(h/t Yoel)
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