A friend of mine and I were discussing the musical Wicked over email, and the conversation led on to the subject of magic in such books as The Chronicles of Narnia and The Wizard of Oz. Magic is a controversial topic among some Christians, especially among adults with young or teenage children; some parents say that what their children read is up to them, whether it be Harry Potter or Twilight, but that's a different discussion. The other two main camps are the ones who say that all representations of magic in fiction are evil or dangerous, and therefore books containing them should not be read; and those who say that magic has its place in children's literature, if used correctly. So the question is really, is all magic equally bad?
The most common use of magic is in what we call fairytales. They've been around for centuries - the originals of the Disney movies we see today, like the story of the Beauty and the Beast, Snow White, Rumpelstiltskin, and a myriad of others - and mothers have told them to their children for years. They are less popular now in that form than they used to be, but the Disney productions are every bit as loved. They contain a great deal of magic, but it is not the same as is portrayed in the Biblical account of Saul consulting the witch of Endor: at least, the magic of the "good characters" is not. "Magic" is the label placed on the power that the fairies possess and use against the witches and other evil creatures, and it is meant, not to advocate black sorcery, but to illustrate the beauty and power that Good has. And does Good, God's perfect Goodness, not have power? Does it not have the power even to do miracles? And is it not also beautiful? These two things are combined in the words "magic" and "magical" - they are why we call things like a clear winter night, or moonlight on a lake, or hundreds of scarlet and orange leaves in an autumn wind, 'magical'.
These children's stories have much deeper truth in them than we give them credit for when they use magic. Not only do they show the power of Good, but they also contrast it with the sorcery of Evil. In the 21st Century, we logical thinkers often forget the fact that there are powers out there that we don't see; power from the Devil, that Father of Lies, but a greater, eternal power from the throne of God. Whether the creators of fairytales knew it or not, they were expressing very Christian facts when they spoke or wrote their stories. Does not Paul himself say that we "wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms"? This is what parents forget in banning the truthful, honest fairy-stores from their bookshelves. Children ought not to be deprived of those higher, overarching truths.
Now, as a caveat, I will add that stories which support sorcery are by no means edifying reads. That is to take a fairytale and twist it out of its truth, and many modern authors and authoresses have done just that in their novels - and even children's stories. But tales like The Chronicles of Narnia (which I have often heard attacked) are fairytales with a larger scope; look at the power of Jadis, which turns creatures into stone, and then look at the power of Aslan, which can turn stone into life again. That is an illustration of the truth of Evil and Good, and a powerful one, at that.
Showing posts with label Light. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Light. Show all posts
I Shall Be Your God
"'But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days,' says the LORD: 'I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,' for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,' says the LORD. 'For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.'"
This is the beautiful covenant promise that God lays out for us through the prophet Jeremiah (Jeremiah 31:33-34) and that is reiterated by the author of Hebrews in the New Testament. It was given originally, of course, to the Israelites, but now we know that it has been given to Christians and is the covenant brought by Christ - rejected by the Jews and offered to the Gentiles. Not only was this a radical thing for the Hebrews of Jeremiah's day to hear (if they had been listening), but it was a still more dramatic thing to be presented to the Gentiles as something in which they could participate. For the Jews, having as they did Moses' famous tablets of the Commandments and the constant reiteration of the Law, this must have been strange indeed - to hear that the Law would be written upon their hearts instead of on stone, and placed in their very mind instead of merely in the mouth of the priests and prophets. To hear that there would be utter remission, utter cleansing, of sins, instead of the daily killing of animals in the Temple. To hear - yes, to hear that the Holy God would truly put away and not remember their iniquities!
Though most of the Jews did not see it as we do now, this change from old covenant to new was as different as a shadow is from the real thing. But how much greater must the new covenant have been for the believing Gentiles, who had never even had the shadow! Except for the relatively few proselytes before Christ, it had pleased God to let the Gentile world live in darkness, and now suddenly, through the preaching by the apostles and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, a light was being shown to them. The perfect law, that no pagan philosopher or teacher could fully grasp, was to be placed in the believer's heart and mind; the far-off God, who "covers Himself in light as with a garment," was now showing to the darkened nations that He would be their God, and they would be His people.
This is the covenant that we as believers dwell under now, and it is a beautiful and glorious one...but one that we often take very much for granted. I think that perhaps looking at how strange and brilliant it must have been for the believing Jews and Gentiles of the early Church might show us how to appreciate it more.
This is the beautiful covenant promise that God lays out for us through the prophet Jeremiah (Jeremiah 31:33-34) and that is reiterated by the author of Hebrews in the New Testament. It was given originally, of course, to the Israelites, but now we know that it has been given to Christians and is the covenant brought by Christ - rejected by the Jews and offered to the Gentiles. Not only was this a radical thing for the Hebrews of Jeremiah's day to hear (if they had been listening), but it was a still more dramatic thing to be presented to the Gentiles as something in which they could participate. For the Jews, having as they did Moses' famous tablets of the Commandments and the constant reiteration of the Law, this must have been strange indeed - to hear that the Law would be written upon their hearts instead of on stone, and placed in their very mind instead of merely in the mouth of the priests and prophets. To hear that there would be utter remission, utter cleansing, of sins, instead of the daily killing of animals in the Temple. To hear - yes, to hear that the Holy God would truly put away and not remember their iniquities!
Though most of the Jews did not see it as we do now, this change from old covenant to new was as different as a shadow is from the real thing. But how much greater must the new covenant have been for the believing Gentiles, who had never even had the shadow! Except for the relatively few proselytes before Christ, it had pleased God to let the Gentile world live in darkness, and now suddenly, through the preaching by the apostles and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, a light was being shown to them. The perfect law, that no pagan philosopher or teacher could fully grasp, was to be placed in the believer's heart and mind; the far-off God, who "covers Himself in light as with a garment," was now showing to the darkened nations that He would be their God, and they would be His people.
This is the covenant that we as believers dwell under now, and it is a beautiful and glorious one...but one that we often take very much for granted. I think that perhaps looking at how strange and brilliant it must have been for the believing Jews and Gentiles of the early Church might show us how to appreciate it more.
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