Yet another Narnia thread! (MAJOR SPOILER ALERT!)

I am sure he was using imagery that the folks could relate to. So I am sure that kind of thing would come into play. But it is primarily a story, secondarily a portrait of Christ, and thirdly, it uses imagery that the modern person could relate to, like secret police, but it is not about that. The author lived through wwii and housed children in his country home during the raids on London. He wrote the book shortly after, so it was current at the time.

 

I think he mostly wanted to write an entertaining story, but he definitely wanted to inspire kids to look for Christ. In one of the books some kids are returning to our world and they ask Aslan is he in their world to. Alan's say he is and that is the reason they were brought to Narnia was so that they could know him there and now they had to figure out who he was in there world. A young girl once wrote him an asked who Alsan was in our world, and he told h her to guess who came at Christmas, how died and lived again, who was a lion and a lamb (he appears as a Lamb later) etc.

I think it was one of his primary purposes, but the reason I say it is a story first is because you can't look for allegory in every aspect of the story like you can with Pilgrims progress. I took a Buddhist friend and he was asking me what the wolves meant, and what the monitor meant.
You can't look at it that way, but you will find a sub-story about Christ written into the story. Although the story itself is not a pure allegory, the character of Aslan is. I can't think of any place where the Christ allegory of Aslan breaks down.

So it is about adventure, coming of age, good and evil, and within this context Lewis points us to the real Christ of our world.

[ December 17, 2005, 08:41 PM: Message edited by: Bunyon ]

 

I am curious where the concept is that Jesus' life and death was a battle of good against evil? Jesus sacrificial death was to reconcile us to God by His Propitiation for our sin. In doing so, He conquered satan so that sin is no longer held against true belivers. And that satan has no power over true believers because they were bought with an extreme price - with the blood of Jesus. There will always be "good and evil" in the world, until Jesus comes again.

Aslan did not die for sin, he died to take the place of Edmund. There is a vast difference. The white witch killed aslan. Jesus gave His life and commended His Spirit to His Father - He was not killed by satan. I just do not see the allegory - it does not measure up to the same thing no matter how you look at it.

 

OK, then don't go see it. But I think a lot of folks beleive Satan had a role in Jesus death even though he did not hold the Knife. And evil is not gone from Narnia, you will see that if you go to the rest of the movies.

 

Aslan is allegory, there is no place that I am aware of the his character is not allegorical for Christ. But I agree the story itself is not an allegory.

 

but it's ok if you think that Lewis was using a comparison of mythological gods, witchcraft, and a lion who invoked a magical spell to rise from the dead and compare that to the Gospel message . . .

 

All this C.S.Lewis stuff and Narnia discussion has left me just a bit cold.I wonder if the devil doesn't laugh with glee at the thought that people can have their attention diverted AWAY from the Word of God so easily by allegorical works of fiction and movies based on them.I'm not going to come right out and say that the movie(which I havent seen)and the written works of C.S.Lewis (which I have never read) are wrong or evil.....no....I won't say that.What I will say is that if we spent more time reading and studying our Bibles that reading,studying or watching the works of a mere man we would probably find it far more spiritually profitable in the long run.I haven't got time to read much fiction.I MAY go see the movie(or rent the DVD when it comes out)but if I do it will be to get ENTERTAINED.....NOT instructed spiritually.I have CONFIDENCE in the Word of God.I DON'T have any confidence in ANY secular movie productions or producers.I'll stick with my old KJV for TRUTH.

Greg Sr.

 

eloid... - There was NO SPELL INVOKED - READ THE BOOK!

Until you do - please please **** ** err be quiet

why are you posting this foolishness all over?

 

Silly people. Narnia wont pull a christian away from the Gospel. It might, however, pull some lost or marginal folks toward the Gospel. Only a whacko would let a fantasy be their Gospel.

 

sularis wrote:
eloid... - There was NO SPELL INVOKED - READ THE BOOK!

Until you do - please please **** ** err be quiet

why are you posting this foolishness all over?


because this is about the movie and what kids will be seeing on the silver screen. what you see you remember by far a greater percentage than by what you read or hear.

 

but if that pull is based on fantasy, then fantasy *is* their gospel . . .

 

I haven't seen the movie. However I have read the Narnia series, the Perelandra series, the Screwtape letters, the Great Divorce, Til We Have Faces, and, I think, most of his essays and sermons/speeches. I think the best way of presenting what he did in much of his writing was to 'explore Christianity' as a Christian.

He does the same in the Narnia series, but more as entertainment. It is not meant to be the Gospel, but it is meant to make you look at the Gospel. He never tried to replace it or even picture it exactly. He did always try to make you think about it and take it seriously.

In that, it is my opinion he was enormously successful. And, in seeing from a variety of sources the reactions of people to the movie, I think he is still succeeding, Disney or no.