With the growing popularity of graphic novels, it was inevitable that evangelists would seek to use them as a tool. Below is a New York Times article from February 10, 2008, about Ajinbayo Akinsiku, author of The Manga Bible: From Genesis to Revelation.
Ajinbayo Akinsiku wants the world to know Jesus Christ, just not the gentle, blue-eyed Christ of old Hollywood movies and illustrated Bibles.
Mr. Akinsiku says his Son of God is “a samurai stranger who’s come to town, in silhouette,” here to shake things up in a new, much-abridged version of the Bible rooted in manga, the Japanese form of graphic novels.
“We present things in a very brazen way,” said Mr. Akinsiku, who hopes to become an Anglican priest and who is the author of “The Manga Bible: From Genesis to Revelation.” “Christ is a hard guy, seeking revolution and revolt, a tough guy.”
Publishers with an eye for evangelism and for markets have long profited by directing Bibles at niche markets: just-married couples, teenage boys, teenage girls, recovering addicts. Often the lure is cosmetic, like a jazzy new cover.
Click here to read the entire article.
FYI: Ajinbayo Akinsiku is a Brit born to Nigerian parents; he is not Japanese.
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