wfn.org | UMNS# 687-United Methodists find spiritual riches, tools, in 'Narnia'

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United Methodists find spiritual riches, tools, in 'Narnia'

Dec. 9, 2005

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A UMNS Feature
By Josh Tinley*

When C.S. Lewis published his first children's book, The Lion, the
Witch, and the Wardrobe, in 1950, friends and critics alike feared that
the popular theologian had made a poor career move. More than 50 years
later, Lion and the six other novels known collectively as "The
Chronicles of Narnia" are Lewis' best-known and most widely read works.

With the Dec. 9 theatrical release of "The Chronicles of Narnia: The
Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" from Walt Disney and Walden Media,
United Methodists are turning to the classic Christian fantasy for
inspiration and spiritual formation.

"We need to support movies like this," says Mike Quimby, youth minister
at Bemus Point United Methodist Church in western New York. Bemus Point
is stuffing bulletins with official promotional fliers to encourage
members to see the movie and to take their friends.

"Lewis has touched so many people throughout the years with his many
works but most importantly his fiction," says Gavin Finefield, a
Presbyterian pastor in Iowa who is studying Lewis and Narnia with the
youth in his congregation, using resources produced by the United
Methodist Publishing House. "The kids understand it."

"Understanding it" may be what separates "The Chronicles of Narnia" from
J.R.R. Tolkien's more literary and critically embraced "The Lord of the
Rings" (adapted for the screen by director Peter Jackson), to which
Narnia is often compared. Both are fantasy epics by openly Christian
authors that have been turned into popular films. But while the
Christian themes in "The Lord of the Rings" are cryptic at best, The
Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe clearly parallels the story of Christ.
The other six books in the series also echo major Christian narratives
and doctrines.

"I think one important difference between C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien
is how obvious the Christian allusions are," says Jodie P. Boyer, who is
leading a study on Lion through the Wesley Foundation at the University
of Illinois. "Personally, I found Narnia a little 'beat you over the
head' with Christianity, whereas Tolkien's books are much less obvious
with the allusion. Of course, this is to be expected, since the audience
is very different."

The church's response to the big-screen version of Lion is reminiscent
of the response to Mel Gibson's 2004 film, "The Passion of the Christ."
Many consider the prospect of a Christian blockbuster movie an excellent
opportunity for evangelism and Christian education. And unlike the
controversial and R-rated "Passion," The Lion, the Witch and the
Wardrobe is less of a hot-button among critics, clergy, and scholars and
is easier for the average churchgoer to digest.

Six United Methodist churches around the country, including Bemus Point
in New York, have hosted official "sneak peek" events. These events give
people in the community a chance to see clips from the film, to learn
about the making of the movie and to get their hands on promotional
materials.

"The clips from the movie were wonderful, just wonderful," says LeaAnne
Montel, director of children's ministries at Petoskey (Mich.) United
Methodist Church. The sneak peak "was very worthwhile."

Petoskey, Mich., is also home to the annual C.S. Lewis Festival, an
event that has become popular in the build-up to the movie. The festival
was spearheaded in part by Petoskey Church, and the church continues to
be intimately involved in the event. This year, Lewis scholar David
Neuhouser from Taylor University in Upland, Ind., is leading workshops
for children and adults and preaching at Petoskey Church the weekend the
movie hits theaters.

Several other United Methodist congregations are planning Narnia-themed
Bible studies, Sunday school classes and sermon series. The Rev. Greg
Hazelrig, a United Methodist pastor in Mississippi, is doing a short,
seasonal sermon series on Lion titled, "Christmas in Narnia," in which
he will imagine life without Christmas.

"In the book, there is no Christmas until Aslan defeats the witch,"
Hazelrig says, referring to the curse of the White Witch that makes it
always winter in Narnia but never Christmas. "I'm hoping to take that as
a beginning and lead with it throughout the rest of the series."

Visiting Narnia

The fact that The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is a children's story
makes it well suited for age-level Sunday school classes. Edmonds United
Methodist Church, just outside Seattle, recently did a monthlong Sunday
school rotation where the children of the congregation experienced
Narnia firsthand.

As in Lion, the children at Edmonds Church walked through a wooden door
and into a forest surrounding a lamppost where they met and had tea with
the faun, Mr. Tumnus. During a lesson on temptation, they learned how to
make Turkish Delight, the sweet treat the White Witch used to entice
Edmund in Narnia.

Marta Schellburg, associate pastor and director of children's ministries
at Edmonds, put together the ambitious Sunday school rotation. In the
spirit of Lewis himself, Schellburg made sure not to treat the story
like an allegory, in which each character and event has some greater
significance for Christians.

"They picked (the symbolism) up themselves, and that was their gift back
to us," she says. "It was amazing what they were picking up in Narnia:
'You know, Pastor Marta, Aslan died like Jesus - Aslan died to save
Edmund.'"

Though "The Chronicles" were written for children, many United Methodist
youth and adults also have found meaning in Lewis' fairy tale. The
United Methodist Publishing House has published two electronic
curriculum resources based on The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe for
youth. One gives youth tools for exploring the story's Christian themes
after seeing the movie together as a group. The other is a four-week
book study of the book that looks closely at the themes of temptation,
perseverance, hope, and salvation. (See disclosure in story credit line
below.*)

Sarah Arthur, a United Methodist layperson and author of Walking Through
the Wardrobe, a devotional for youth and young adults based on The Lion,
the Witch and the Wardrobe, says narratives such as the Narnia stories
are good ways to re-introduce the Gospel to adolescents.

"A lot of young people we work with in the church are battling apathy,"
Arthur says. "They've heard the basics of the gospel so many times that
it no longer has any meaning for them personally, if it ever did. (Lion)
is the kind of story that demands a kind of 'suspension of disbelief' in
which a young person's usual defenses are down just long enough for his
or her imagination to be touched anew."

Arthur also hopes that her devotional will challenge adolescents to
explore Lewis' other, more mature, works.

Childlike faith

Boyer, who is leading a study with college students, finds that adults
are excited to rediscover stories from their childhood.

"Many of the people in my study have noted that when they read the books
as children, they didn't see the allegory," she says. Though Boyer
agrees with critics who say that Lewis was not a great fantasy writer,
she thinks that the Narnia books are fun and can help adults to have
"faith like a child."

"I first read (Lion) in grade school," says Heather Futrell, a
University of Illinois aerospace engineering student, commenting on
Narnia at the campus Wesley Foundation. "I had no idea that so many
Christian metaphors were throughout the book, and when I started looking
for them, they jump out at you. These books are a great way to expose
kids to a significant portion of the Christian belief, and also inspire
excellent discussions when in a group setting."

"I suppose one could teach a child about God's love and Christ's
sacrifice through 'The Chronicles,' (but) we college and graduate
students picked this book apart and still discovered questions we
couldn't answer," said Kristen Ehrenberger, a graduate student of
history at the university.

Of course, many adults are taking a second look at The Lion, the Witch
and the Wardrobe only because it is now a big-time movie. "Personally,"
Boyer says, "I really like the recent trend in turning books into movies
because they are actually encouraging people to read. I hadn't read
'Lord of the Rings' or 'Narnia' until I found out they were making
movies, and I don't regret the kick to get me reading books that I
should I have read a long time ago."

Churches that miss out on the initial frenzy will have more chances to
bring C.S. Lewis' mythical world into the life of their congregation:
There are plans for big-screen versions of the other six Narnia stories.

*Tinley is a freelance writer in Nashville, Tenn., staff member at the
United Methodist Publishing House, where he was development editor for
two Narnia-related products.

********************

United Methodist News Service
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