It is being widely reported that today, may 21st, is the Judgment day. These proclamations have been made before and will be made again but that’s not the point of this post. I thought that we could use this occasion to mention and recommend some books where God has died or has been killed. This isn’t an attempt to be provocative but merely an attempt to use an unlikely filter to mention some good and interesting stories.
In Preacher by Garth Ennis, God is shot dead by The Saint of Killers, arguably one of the best comic characters of all time. A soldier in the Confederate Army who got sent to hell where his hate was so all consuming that he caused Hell to literally freeze over. He returns to Earth as the Angel of Death after killing the Devil before eventually confronting God and shooting him.
In Towing Jehovah by James Morrow the huge corpse of God is found floating in the Atlantic Ocean. From Atheists who want to destroy the body (because it’s existence proves they were wrong) to the supertanker Captain who logs the voyage all of these characters come to terms with living in a post-God world.
God is Dead by Ron Currie Jr. opens with God, a Sudanese woman, being killed. This is a novel of linked short stories that is like a post-apocalyptic novel where the event is the death of God.
Though it isn’t a book we should also mention the movie Dogma. God, again on Earth in the form of a human, is in a coma and has to be killed to restore order.
All of these stories are interesting and are worth your time. The death of God is never treated as cheap nihilism or a stunt. The significance of the event is never lost in these stories and I think readers initially put off by such a concept as the death of God would be surprised (though admittedly Preacher isn’t for everyone) at how sympathetic and thoughtful the treatments are (again, excluding Preacher).
Are there any other stories where God is killed?
Excellent choices- I’ve read the first two. Preacher is southern supernatural noir, very gritty, and worth reading. Towing Jehovah is hilarious. James Morrow is a master of speculative fiction, and his Bible Stories for Adults and This is the Way the World Ends are also great reads for apocalyptic fun.