The Bible and the Headlines:

PROTECTED CONTENT

If you’re a current subscriber, log in below. If you would like to subscribe, please click the subscribe tab above.

Lost your password?

Username and Password Help

Please enter your email and we will send your username and password to you.

← Back

 News You Can Use – Dare Devil

By David Bachelor, PhD

The ancient Greeks had a myth about a young man named Icarus. This youth was given wings by his father who warned Icarus not to fly too high. Icarus ignored his father’s warning and tragedy ensued. This week, a modern Icarus reached his terminal altitude. Social media followers around the world are mourning his tragic descent.

The first to cover the story was The South China Morning Post on July 28th with the headline, “Frenchman in Hong Kong Dies After ‘Extreme Sports’ Fall from Luxury Mid-Levels Block.” This Frenchman was not trying to fly but instead had climbed to the 68th floor of Hong Kong’s Tregunter Tower. This modern Icarus, “…was last seen knocking on the window of penthouse in an apparent attempt to seek help before he lost footing.” The man fell before he could be admitted into the building.

On July 31st, CBS News names the Frenchman in their feature, “Remi Lucidi, Daredevil Who Climbed Towers Around the World, Reportedly Falls to His Death from Hong Kong High-Rise.” The article notes that Lucidi, aka “Remi Enigma” on social media, had over 10,000 followers who tuned in to view selfies that “show him on top of towers, cranes, bridges and spires around the globe.” His last post was an aerial view of Hong Kong’s skyline at night.

All the articles about this story contained Lucidi’s selfies. The captions to these photos paint a picture of a person who disdained the normal means of self-preservation. One caption read, “Remi Lucidi can be seen walking fearlessly around the edge of the 300-metre-high structure without a harness or any other support.” A picture of Remi’s feet near an abyss was captioned, “The daredevil had no qualms about standing on the edge of deadly drops.” His voyeuristic followers expected Remi to ascend “…anything that caught his eye without the aid of a safety harness.”

The word “dare devil” is used repeatedly in the media coverage of this story. In the Bible, it is the devil who does the “daring” at high elevation. In Matthew 4, the devil took Jesus to the “penthouse” of the tallest building in Jerusalem (Matt 4:5). With Jesus on the precipice, the devil dared Jesus to jump saying, “”If you are the Son of God throw yourself down because the Bible says the angels will catch you” (Matt 4:6). Jesus did not take the bait. He told the devil, “The Bible says not to set tests for God (Matt 4:7). Despite this setback, the devil was not through with Jesus and high elevation. The devil took Jesus to the top of a very high mountain where it was possible to see “all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor” (Matt 4:8). The devil offered all these skylines to Jesus and dared Jesus to worship him instead of God (Matt 4:9). Jesus kept his balance and told the devil, “The Bible says to only worship God” (Matt 4:10). Having failed at these high-altitude high jinks, the devil went away.

Icarus fell when he disregarded his father’s warning. Media accounts do not yet say whether Remi Lucidi was warned by his dad. One thing Jesus modeled for his followers: At high elevation, follow your Father’s advice.