"Enemy-occupied territory---that is what this world is. Christianity is the story of how the rightful king has landed, you might say landed in disguise, and is calling us to take part in a great campaign of sabotage.”
~C.S. Lewis
~C.S. Lewis
C.S. Lewis has a knack for making things sound exciting. Christianity as a tale of espionage sounds so much more intriguing than how we tend to view it on a daily basis. Perhaps much of that is due to the fact that we are so self-absorbed that we tend to ignore the opportunities God has placed before us.
But I would offer that some of our boredom is due to the fact that many of us have heard the story over and over again.
Someone coming back from the dead three days after dying a gruesome death doesn't even strike awe or wonder in us anymore. We nod and smile and go on, thinking that, all in all, our faith is rather unexciting in many ways.
That's one reason I believe that it's so important to have Christian fiction. For me, it strikes upon that same excitement Lewis conveys above.
The idea of God making Himself human and dying for the very people who have turned their backs on Him should inspire us--especially considering we're the ones saved by His action.
And while I don't always see that in my day-to-day life, well-written Christian fiction can refresh that joy and excitement all over again. It brings home the reality of spiritual warfare, shows the darkness that lurks in the world--and myself--and makes the light shine all the brighter.
I understand that there's a lot of cruddy fiction out there that masquerades as Christian. It reduces the greatest story of all time to something only for perfect people. Refusing to acknowledge the evil in the world and in ourselves, it denies the redemptive power of One who is greater than anything we could ever write. It might be written poorly or have plot holes or be stale or predictable or perhaps they forgot to hire an editor.
But there's some good stuff out there, too. I urge you to give it a chance.
Authors, I'll leave you with the words of another theologian for your food for thought:
Wow, this was excellent. You seriously could not have put it better. I often wonder why my Christian walk grows so...lackluster? It is, like you said, the greatest story of all time. Sometimes I imagine, what if we were reading about what Jesus did, as if He was a character? After all, that's what we do we in movies -- go to celebrate stories of fictional redemption. And we often get more excited about the Avengers and Spiderman than God Himself! It's insane. Anyways, I hope that made sense, haha! And I love the quotes you used. C.S. Lewis has a gift...I strive to see the world how he does.
ReplyDeleteThanks! And your comment was very thoughtful, so no worries!
DeleteIf I can ever become half the writer that Lewis was, I'll be extraordinarily surprised. And if everyone thought like him, the world would be a far better place.
Thanks for the comment! It's always great to see new faces!
This is a neat discussion. Christian fiction can be so powerful when it's done right and damaging when it isn't. I am guilty of feeling a bit bored with some of the biblical stories because I've heard them so much, but Christian fiction definitely breathes new life in them.
ReplyDeletestoritorigrace.blogspot.com
Welcome to the blog!
DeleteI agree--it's sort of a two-edged sword because poorly written fiction can reflect poorly on the faith as a whole.
Thanks for the comment!