‘God’s Gang’: Animated Series Offers Up Interfaith Love In A Polarized World
It’s become an old cliche to say that we live in a polarized world. At first glance, the cartoon “God’s Gang,” made in the Holy Land and aimed at young people, might seem like a tool of conservative Christian evangelism — possibly with an American tinge — enough to make both parents and children run a mile.
Yet look closely and you’ll see it’s leading a quiet counter culture on YouTube. Creator Nimrod-Avraham May, who grew up in Israel, insists the show is not a statement about religion or about the fraught politics of his homeland.
“It’s all about love,” he said.
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“God’s Gang,” which follows a Christian, a Jew, a Muslim and a Hindu in their efforts to, as the show’s publicists put it, “unite the world through peace and adventure,” has a global team behind it. Its creators are spread across 15 countries, and its audience boasts an even bigger reach. The first episode, which dropped last November, attracted over 10 million views. It’s available in digestible chunks, well-suited to a viewership weaned on social media; the first episode clocks in at around 13 minutes, and the second one, which aired last week, at close to five minutes.
For May, who spent his career working in marketing for huge media companies including Disney, a sense of urgency drove the creation of “God’s Gang.” This was partly informed by the state of the world but also by a spiritual awakening that the world’s religions share the same core and the same deity, manifested in different forms.
In the past, religion and superheroes have had a low-key coexistence. Given that superheroes are the epitome of gods among men, it makes sense that some faith groups have tried to co-opt them. The Marvel comic “Francis, Brother of the Universe” (sponsored by the Catholic Church) makes the man of Assisi’s saintliness his sole superpower, while the hero at the center of “The Illuminator” learns his abilities are directly tied to his level of Christian belief.
Greg Garrett, who teaches creative writing, film and theology at Baylor University and is the author of “Holy Superheroes,” highlights that this is not the norm: “Faith is often simply treated as an element of a hero's motivation or expression. Daredevil’s and Nightcrawler’s Catholic faith, and Faiza Hussain's Muslim faith (in “Captain Britain and MI13”) are all seen as powerful and determinative — these characters are who they are and do what they do at least to a large degree because of what they believe.”
He added: “Conservative evangelism has tended to be parodied, not celebrated. In ‘The Boys,’ it’s presented as hypocritical and hate-driven, with characters that are either dupes or schemers.”
For May, making “God’s Gang” deities or saints was never on the table. He recounted wryly how this has gotten him into trouble with his Jewish friends: “The character NinJew is very small and nerdy with thick glasses, which they think is a stereotype, but I didn’t want the characters to be muscular. He’s favourable because he’s very human and his deficiencies can be his proficiencies. It’s based on real life.”
Marvel also wasn’t an influence on the animation. May was raised on “Scooby Doo,” “The Harlem Globetrotters” and “Fat Albert,” whose bright colors influenced the look of “God’s Gang.” “Looney Tunes” also played a role in the short format, which May said is designed to “give an instant high.”
In terms of religious representation, was the team daunted by the pressure to get it right, or by potential ire coming from many sides?
“We have advisers,” May said, “including two imams, who approve every script and every social media post. They advise on things like which holidays are best to celebrate and which clothes only appeal to the rich instead of common believers.”
The capacity for people to criticize a show whose message is love and co-existence shouldn’t be underestimated in the current climate. The second episode, “What’s Cooking?” — where the four try to figure out what to eat for lunch — makes it clear that culinary differences between them must be respected, and that living together isn’t about eliminating them. (The answer? French fries).
Yet this goes against the grain of the multiculturalism debate in countries like France, where secular assimilation, or “laicite,” is arguably a national religion in itself. What’s more, the animated series doesn’t touch the poisonous sectarianism between Hindus and Muslims or Muslims and Jews. To those with strong opinions on the politics of India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi or the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, this could seem like anemic fence-sitting. May is philosophical about it.
“We’re not going to please everyone,” he said. “Even with just two people you can have 20 different opinions. All we can do is forge ahead and promote this sense of common values.”
Are people becoming more receptive to faith in this sphere? Garrett is skeptical.
“I suspect maybe now more than ever, there still seems to be some reticence to lean too deeply into race, politics and religion with comic characters for fear of pushing some people away,” he said. “People may find it hard to identify with characters who represent the opposition, or even the enemy.”
However, he adds, “Maybe here’s where these characters can help us — menaces to the Earth that remind us we're more alike than different and that we all inhabit the same small blue planet, may help us connect.”
May is more upbeat.
“Our audience is growing by around 6,500 a day,” he said. “People can see we’re trying to be messengers of light. I was expecting much more negativity, but some of the comments have made me cry with joy.”
Maddy Fry is the editor of the Westminster Abbey Review magazine and the founder of U2 and Us on Substack. She writes about politics, religion and pop culture, with bylines in The Guardian, The Independent, The Telegraph, Time, The New Statesman and The Huffington Post. She also enjoys drinking stout, listening to U2 and telling you why you are wrong about the “Star Wars” sequels.