Spy x Family has resumed airing, and I’m enjoying the visuals for the opening and ending. I think what makes Spy x Family so widely loved is because of its central theme on family. Most anime these days explore the themes of romance and friendship, but not so much on the family, at least in the sense of the household.
If you follow the historic lectionary, this week’s epistle reading mentions that all families are derived from the fatherhood of God:
For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named,
Ephesians 3:14-15
The world we live in today props itself up against the family, emphasising the identity of the individual over that of the household. Single parents, divorces, cohabitation, and the ridiculous notion of “furbaby families” are celebrated and normalised. The prevailing message is that families are a nuisance; children hold down career progression, living with your parents is a bad thing as opposed to moving out and living on your own, etc. Many seethe at the Christian notion that the noblest thing we can achieve in this life is to find a spouse, start a family, be fruitful and multiply.
However, the wide appeal of Spy x Family shows that deep down, everyone knows that the household is a good thing. Beneath the facade of the strong independent woman, or the austere MGTOW hedonist, lies the innate desire to participate in this structure that God has built into the world.
The family is the building block of civilisation, managed by the father, or patriarch. As it grows, it builds societies, and develops cultures. As more and more households multiply, the role of the patriarch who keeps them together extends into government. It’s how kings came to be.
The faith is kept and lived through the family. Before the Scriptures were written, the faith was taught and passed down by oral tradition through the Patriarchs, who served as bishops to their descendants. The Church today is also called the household of God, of which we are born into by Baptism.
This show can be a great meditation on the Fourth Commandment, and a reminder of how all authority comes from God, which starts from the family.
