60 years of Daredevil: First Catholic Marvel Hero

Picture a blind man who performs stunts, fights crime, and is Catholic. That is how to describe Stan Lee’s masked vigilante Daredevil best. Daredevil is commonly known as “The Man Without Fear”, “Hornhead”, and “The Devil of Hell’s Kitchen”. His identity is Matt Murdock, a criminal defense lawyer. He grew up in a crime-ridden Irish neighborhood called Hell’s Kitchen.

One day, Murdock was blinded by radioactive waste that fell from an out-of-control truck after he pushed a man out of the path of the oncoming vehicle. While he can no longer see, his exposure to the radioactive material heightens his remaining senses beyond normal human ability and gives him a "radar sense."

He was raised by his father, Jack, a boxer and marine veteran. His mother left them to become a religious sister. Being a single father, Jack teaches his son to form a better life through his unconditional love for him.

Like many comic book heroes, Murdock was not immune to tragedy. Rather, Matt experienced the loss of his father at the hands of gangsters as Jack refused to fix a fight. Matt would navigate some of his youth as an orphan training his senses and honing his physical abilities with the help of his mentor Stick.

It’s a bit ironic that Marvel created a Catholic hero, yet it has the devil in its title. Like many imperfect people, Murdock relied heavily on his faith. Frank Miller, who took over the comic line, is credited with developing the Catholic faith of daredevil.

"I decided [Daredevil] had to be a Catholic because only a Catholic could be a vigilante and an attorney at the same time," Miller recalled.

Chip Zdarksky would supplement Miller’s explanation. He said, “Matt is compelled to do good, and he thinks isn't doing enough of it as a lawyer. To do more good, he feels he has to break both the law and the tenets of his faith, two codes he holds dear. Thus, he self-flagellates by making his vigilante self a "devil." The self-important hypocrisy (and the self-endangerment) of his actions are specifically Catholic.

He continues, "[Daredevil is] just a man of conflicts. That's what makes him so interesting to write. He's the good Catholic boy who dresses as the Devil. He's the lawyer who holds up the law who goes out every night and breaks the law. The man of peace who's violent. There's so much to play with there."

The beloved Catholic character has seen himself being a lawyer by day and a masked hero at night. Daredevil can teach us that God’s mercy is always waiting for us to seek. It also teaches us to follow our conscience.

He can also teach us to overcome the fears that are within us. Charlie Cox, the star of the Netflix series of the same name, once remarked, “Daredevil was known as 'The Man Without Fear,' and I just thought, 'Well, I don't think that's very interesting.' I don't think it's very interesting to watch someone who's incapable of feeling fear. It also removes from the palate my favorite character attribute, which is courage. If you're not afraid, you can't exercise courage.”

He also teaches us to fight for the common good. He has defended allies in the comic universe and wasn’t afraid to stand up to crime as a lawyer and masked hero.

Happy 60 years, Daredevil.