This is like the 6th appearance of Big G in the Marvel Universe, and boy was it exciting. Check it out!
Galactus.
But this is all about Thor, God of Thunder. Introduced in comic form here:
Look how weak and scrawny he is! Speaks of the changes over time, yeah? Thor's a God of course - but as everyone knows, just a mythical one. So why not make him a super hero in your fictional universe?
No, this is not Thor smashing up a church. But being a Viking God, you'd think he would. A lot. But that would never be allowed in the comics, or any public fiction. While you can tell the tales of Asgard, you could never depict Jesus in such a manner. The Gods Hercules and Ares get the same treatment, though they're nowhere near as popular as Thor. I first learned about Norse mythology reading Thor comics as a wee lad and for that, I give thanks - they were serious reading, with big words and cool concepts (Ragnarok) and I would encourage every child to read comic books. At least the ones from the 60's and 70's. The comic books these days... I don't know. Lots of boobs.
Many super heroes have entered our cultural mythology, with Superman chief among them. These are our true new Gods, and they are way cooler than Jesus, who, like Thor, is just another God, and all a God is a mythical super hero. Let us learn from their tales of battle and betrayal, and go forth and spread the good word!
Also too, as long as were pointing out mythological influences:
It would be an awesome project to try and get some super crazy religious Fundie nuts all upset about the "pagan" origin of the names of our days. That's blasphemy, right? Why can't we have proper Christian named days? Jesusday being the day Football is played, amen. And then when all the days of the week were changed and we've entered a Religious Police State, you can say, "Yeah, that was me."
