Brooke Brown, Author of Faith & Fiction
"The Lord allows my words to dance in ways my feet cannot. If I create rhythms that bring others hope, it is only then that I honor His gracious gift."
Thoughts on Faith and Fairy Tales
If we as Christians stand on the belief that all of Jesus’ miracles are real, then would it not make sense that God gave humans imagination so we could better understand His great power?
So often when Christians come in contact with a fairy tale that contains a magical world filled with wizards, fairies and witches, they condemn it for being evil and “not of God.” My faith means everything to me, but this judgmental notion breaks my heart because it stuffs God Almighty into a proverbial box. If such stories are written or put on screen to awaken a child’s imagination, why couldn’t the Creator of the human mind place His image in an author’s mind so His message could reach a child’s heart?
C.S. Lewis became a master at weaving his faith into his many beautiful and quite magical fairy tales. As he, himself said of The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, “It was not a Christian story until Aslan came bounding into it.”
“Aslan” is the high king of Narnia; a mighty lion with great power, a fierce roar and the mind of Christ. His self-sacrifice in exchange for the life of one who did deserve to die, called forth the deepest Narnian magic that would restore him to life in time to conquer evil. Through Aslan, most children will leave the wardrobe understanding the depth of the King’s love.
The land of Narnia always rests in the back of my mind each time I set out to create new worlds for my readers to venture into. These are Lewis’ words that echo in my head while the wheels of my imagination begin a new journey: “ I don’t say, ‘Let us represent Christ as Aslan,’ I say, ‘Supposing there was a world like Narnia, and supposing, like ours, it needed redemption, let us imagine what sort of Incarnation and Passion and Resurrection Christ would have there.”
If my tales of whimsy and the supernatural can lift a reader’s eyes toward Heaven the way Narnia lifted mine, then I’ve done my job well.
Next time you find yourself in a bookstore or library, pick up a fairy tale and ask yourself these questions:
Does good triumph over evil?
Are there any selfless acts of love in the story?
Do you have a greater sense of hope when the story ends?
If you answered yes to all of them, then here’s something for you consider: If a fairy tale doesn’t fit the “Christian” mold, but it contains those three elements, does the story not still point to the Creator of our imaginations?
If you are still skeptical of the value of fairy tales, I invite you to download my full research paper on The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe film. It may change your mind.
So often when Christians come in contact with a fairy tale that contains a magical world filled with wizards, fairies and witches, they condemn it for being evil and “not of God.” My faith means everything to me, but this judgmental notion breaks my heart because it stuffs God Almighty into a proverbial box. If such stories are written or put on screen to awaken a child’s imagination, why couldn’t the Creator of the human mind place His image in an author’s mind so His message could reach a child’s heart?
C.S. Lewis became a master at weaving his faith into his many beautiful and quite magical fairy tales. As he, himself said of The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, “It was not a Christian story until Aslan came bounding into it.”
“Aslan” is the high king of Narnia; a mighty lion with great power, a fierce roar and the mind of Christ. His self-sacrifice in exchange for the life of one who did deserve to die, called forth the deepest Narnian magic that would restore him to life in time to conquer evil. Through Aslan, most children will leave the wardrobe understanding the depth of the King’s love.
The land of Narnia always rests in the back of my mind each time I set out to create new worlds for my readers to venture into. These are Lewis’ words that echo in my head while the wheels of my imagination begin a new journey: “ I don’t say, ‘Let us represent Christ as Aslan,’ I say, ‘Supposing there was a world like Narnia, and supposing, like ours, it needed redemption, let us imagine what sort of Incarnation and Passion and Resurrection Christ would have there.”
If my tales of whimsy and the supernatural can lift a reader’s eyes toward Heaven the way Narnia lifted mine, then I’ve done my job well.
Next time you find yourself in a bookstore or library, pick up a fairy tale and ask yourself these questions:
Does good triumph over evil?
Are there any selfless acts of love in the story?
Do you have a greater sense of hope when the story ends?
If you answered yes to all of them, then here’s something for you consider: If a fairy tale doesn’t fit the “Christian” mold, but it contains those three elements, does the story not still point to the Creator of our imaginations?
If you are still skeptical of the value of fairy tales, I invite you to download my full research paper on The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe film. It may change your mind.
Download "A Lion's Tale" here.
