By Harry L. Poe
When
"The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe" makes its screen debut in December
2005, millions of people who have never heard of C. S. Lewis will go to see
the picture. Millions will also buy the DVD when it goes on sale after the theatrical
release. If the experience of "The Lord of the Rings" holds true, then
millions more will buy the other volumes in
The Chronicles of Narnia
and read the stories for themselves. Narnia will become a cultural phenomenon
like Middle Earth, and preachers will have an opportunity to engage their congregations
about the movie and the books that can serve as a model for how to examine any
movie or novel.
C.
S. Lewis never claimed to be a theologian. He taught literature and loved stories.
He also understood that stories operate at a much deeper level than logical
arguments. He did not oppose logical arguments. In fact, the argument he presents
in Mere Christianity has persuaded vast numbers of people to take the
gospel seriously. All the same, he understood that logical arguments and stories
serve different purposes.
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Lewis did not write The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe and the other
books in The Chronicles of Narnia series to teach Christian doctrine.
He believed that a story had to stand on its own two feet as a story. To teach
doctrine, a person should use logical discourse.
On
the other hand, Lewis believed that a story told by a Christian who actually
believed the gospel would reflect the essential Christian faith to the extent
that the author had actually made their faith more than a formality. He argued
that the best apologetics did not consist in a lecture or book about why Christianity
is true. The best apologetics involved Christians writing books about all sorts
of subjects from art to physics, with their Christian faith latent within their
discussion.1
As
a literary man, Lewis recognized the power of stories to shape the way people
think and organize their world. In his own life, Lewis had experienced the power
of stories to prepare him to accept the truth of the gospel. Lewis had the unique
background to appreciate this character of stories since he had what Americans
would call a double major in philosophy and English literature and had maintained
what Americans would call an “A” average in his college studies.2
Through
his university years, Lewis had heard all of the standard arguments for the
existence of God, but he had his own argument for why he did not believe in
God. His mother had died of cancer when he was a boy. Logical argument has its
place, but it does not reach into the deep recesses of the emotions.
From
earliest childhood, Lewis had devoured the myths of classical antiquity and
of the Norse peoples with relish. Once he began teaching medieval and renaissance
literature at Oxford, Lewis grew to regard Christianity as just another of the
great myths that spoke of a dying and rising god, like Osiris, Baal, and Baldur.