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Narnia |
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Narnia |
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Whatever you might believe, this study about the Narnia books is absolutely amazing and so interesting. Read it and see what you think!
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The movie opens with a glimpse of the cruel, violent world of reality. Air raid sirens shriek through the night as Nazi bombers drone overhead, dropping their deadly bombs. The Pevensie family heads for the bomb shelter, well aware of the ongoing dangers that threaten in war-torn London. Soon afterwards the four children board a train and head for safety at a country mansion owned by a mysterious old professor. They are about to discover the thrilling world of fantasy.
As most of us read long ago in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis, the four children explore their new home and grope their way through a magical wardrobe into the cold, wintery world of Narnia. Here -- as in the ancient myths that had captivated Lewis' heart -- animals talk, witches bewitch, curses turn flesh into stone, and the veil between physical reality and spiritual fantasies fade away. Myth and truth merge into more compelling illusions, while good and evil are redefined to fit the new story. "The book is about imagination," says Roger Ford, the production designer of Disney's version of Narnia. "So the imagery is provided by the child's and the reader's imagination." But, unlike books, movies implant ready-made images. "The challenge of a film-maker is to live up to and exceed the people's imagination," continues Ford, "and really transport them to another time and place." [4]Today's digital magic fulfills that function all too well! But where does this movie transport the minds of our children? What kinds of enticements does it feed to their human nature and emotional appetites? What suggestions will leave lasting imprints in their memory? Those are the question that Christian parents need to ask. And one word answers all three: the world of the occult.
The enticing pagan worlds nurtured by C.S. Lewis and his myth-making friends were not inspired by God's Word or Spirit. Their stories grew out of lifelong immersion in the beliefs, values, rituals, languages and lifestyles of former pagan cultures.
The white witch, Jadis --
the self-professed Queen of Narnia -- emerged from that pagan worldview,
not from a Biblical frame of reference. Her ritual sacrifice of Aslan has
more in common with the ancient blood sacrifices to cultural gods (whether
Hindu, Mayan, Inca or Babylonian) than with the crucifixion of our Lord.
Small wonder the movie director chose a sacrificial setting for Aslan that
looks strangely like the ancient ritual stones and pillars at Stonehenge,
now a gathering place for the world's fast-growing networks of neopagans.
[5] Unlike Jesus, our Lord, Aslan negotiates the terms of the "ancient magic" with the white witch. And unlike God, Aslan attributes the ultimate victory to the humans, not to his own plan and power.
"The future of Narnia rests on your courage," the lion told Peter before his sad departure. Soon afterwards, this commissioned knight in shining armor would ride into the fierce battle on a snowy white unicorn, wielding a glimmering sword.
Does this picture remind you of the Armor of God or the Sword of the Spirit? If so, it's a misleading match. That victorious Sword is the eternal, unchanging Word of God. It has no place in the myth of Narnia.
To illustrate this discrepancy between Biblical truth and Narnian fantasy, we will use God's armor as an outline. It disproves the popular assumption that Narnia is a Christian allegory -- a notion Lewis himself denied. According to Christianity Today, "not only was Lewis hesitant to call his books Christian allegory, but the stories borrow just as much from pagan mythology as they do the Bible." [6]
In fact, those who want to see Aslan as Jesus Christ would have to do some mental gymnastics. The two opposites simply will not match unless God's truth is conformed to the human imagination. Sad to say, such spiritual compromise is happening every day. And the better the counterfeit, the more deceptive is its power.
God's Armor -- a summary of the true Gospel -- is made up of six parts. 1. The Belt of Truth -- The vital truth about God and His plan for redemption 2. The Breastplate of Righteousness -- The truth about our need for the cross and God's righteousness 3. The Sandals of Peace -- The gracious gift of the Prince of Peace to those who walk in His Truth and Righteousness 4. The Shield of Faith -- Putting all our trust in the sovereign power and love of our King and His Word. 5. The Helmet of Salvation -- Keeping our eyes fixed on the hope of His victory today and forever. 6. The Sword of the Spirit -- His Word, hidden in our hearts, and wielded against any enemy to peace that might come against us.
These parts become all the more significant in light of the fact that Jesus, at various times, identified Himself before His disciples as Truth, Righteousness, (Prince of) Peace, our Salvation and the living Word. [7] When you put on God's armor, you "clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ." (Romans 13:12-14) He becomes your hiding place and your shelter in the storm. Hidden in Him, you can count on His victory, for He not only covers you as a shield, He also fills you with His life.
1. God's TRUTH How do we find it? Chuck Colson point to C. S. Lewis as our guide. "...what really makes [Lewis] so compelling," writes Colson, "is his ability to blend reason and imagination in his works. As he wrote, 'For me, reason is the natural organ of truth, and imagination is the organ of understanding.' He is right. The imagination sees what the mind might take only to be as abstract truth. So Christians and non-Christians alike can appreciate both Lewis’s endlessly creative imagination, and the way he grounded even his works of fantasy in absolute truth." [8]But Colson and Lewis seem to define truth from a humanistic rather than a Biblical perspective. God's Word warns us repeatedly that neither the imagination nor man's reason or logic will lead us to His truth. "Lean not on your own understanding," He warns us in Proverbs 3:5-7. "Do not be wise in your own eyes." And the faithful (but despised) Old Testament prophet Jeremiah shows us the result of humanist thinking -- both then and now: "They obeyed not, nor inclined their ear, but walked every one in the imagination of their evil heart..." (Jeremiah 11:8)Ted Baehr, founder of MovieGuide agrees with C. S. Lewis. “The movie... is a great tool for the Church to help people understand the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ," he wrote. "Very, very few people will see the slight divergences that the movie takes from the novel." [9]The last statement may be true. Caught up in the thrilling high tech fantasy, few are likely to notice the changes in the script. But the first sentence should raise concern. How will this movie help people understand the truth of the Gospel? What is actually true in this so-called "Christian allegory?" Dr. Baehr gives a partial answer in the following summary. What gross distortions of the supposed "truth" do you see here? [9] Since Adamson's focus was on "empowering... the children," it makes sense to give them (rather than Aslan) credit for the ultimate victory. It also helps explain Aslan's twisted message: [3] While that statement should disturb those who love the Gospel, it matches Narnia's ancient prophecy very well. To us, the word "prophecy" implies God's omniscient (foreknowledge of future events) revelation of what lies ahead. Because we know Him and trust His Word, we take seriously the precious Old Testament prophecies concerning the coming Messiah. Everything God has told us will or has already come true! Jesus came and gave His life for us! He will come again for His people! But Narnia's prophecy promises no such Savior. In stark contrast, it promises that four humans will come and save the land. What a sham to call this deceptive story a picture of truth! If that appalling lie colors our understanding of the Gospel, we will see ourselves as co-saviors. We will pat ourselves on the back, rather than humbly and joyfully praise our God for His amazing grace in our weakness! Translated into the language of the gospel, this view implies that Jesus' death and resurrection was not sufficient to save His people. Instead, God depends on us to accomplish His salvation. That untruth has already become a vital marketing ploy in today's man-centered Church Growth Movement. The following comment by Joseph Pearce (Tolkien's biographer and author of a new book about C. S. Lewis) illustrates the persuasiveness of these myths. It applied to Lewis as well as Tolkien:
Do you see the strange reasoning? If the mythical realm of magic "makes the unseen hand of providence felt by the reader," what message does it actually teach? What new "truths," feelings and perceptions do people "take home" when they leave the theater? - Or when they read the book? Remember, the two blend together in the minds of Narnia fans. For example, what truth or deception does this brief conversation from the book transmit to a child? Peter asks, [11] Our wise God has a far different view of the human imagination than either Tolkien or Lewis, and He is well aware of its power to inflate lies and distort truth. Therefore, He warns us repeatedly that "the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth." [Genesis 8:21]
To better understand the twisted Gospel taught through this mythical series, Part 2 of this Narnia series will look at the strange creation story told in The Magician's Nephew, the book that precedes The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe in the 7-set Chronicles of Narnia.
Endnotes: 1. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe (2005) Video Clips & Multimedia 2. Director Andrew Adamson talks at http://dvddungeon.com/news/news.php?id=42073. Full-Length Trailer at http://movies.aol.com/movie_exclusive_the_chronicles_of_narnia 5. http://www.roarofnarnia.com/ask_the_professor.aspx (link not working on 12-6-05)6. "Into the Wardrobe and Straight to Hollywood," Christianity Today (11/07/05), www.christianitytoday.com/movies/special/narnia-news.html 7. A Wardrobe from the King - Chapter 2 at www.crossroad.to/Bible_studies/Wardrobe/chapter2.html 8. Chuck Colson, "Lewis Revisited" (12- 9-05) at www.pfm.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=BreakPoint1&Template=/CM/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=175109. ‘Absolutely Thrilling! Disney's Chronicles of Narnia at www.assistnews.net/Stories/s05110091.htm10. The Letters of J. R. R Tolkien, Humphrey Carpenter, editor (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1981, page 201.11. According to Jewish and Gnostic myths, Lilith was the first wife of Adam. A model to radical feminists, she was banished from the Garden of Eden because she refused to submit to Adam. Like Satan, she was counted among the powerful and demonic figures that opposed God. Meanwhile, Adam was given a new wife, Eve. There's much more to this story, but since it belongs in the realm of occult Jewish mysticism and Gnostic tales, it's best not to delve deeper into such dark fables.12. C.S. Lewis, The Complete Chronicles of Narnia (Harper/Collin Publishers), pages 77.
Article compliments of Berit Kjos of http://crossroad.to
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