There was an interesting programme on the Beeb tonight, expounding Michael Ward's contention that CS Lewis' Narnia tales contain a hidden code. It's well accepted that the books are woven through with Christian allegory, which is unsurprising given Lewis' Christian faith. Ward's theory is that in addition to these allegorical references, Lewis also wove themes based on medieval cosmology through the works. No doubt any such reference to planets and such will have some seeking to change our view of Lewis' and his theology. Personally I think it simply attests to his creativity, and enjoyment of the craft of story telling.
How many of us would question the theological seriousness of say a well known Christian songwriter, who wrote a beautiful and complex love song, containing a romanticised reference to the moon? Would we rant about their having abandoned their faith and converted to some weird cult of reading horoscopes; or would we simply see it as using poetic language?
My view? Lewis the master apologist, story teller, and poet has simply left us a great work of children's literature...that continues to reveal more about it's writer, more than fifty years after they were written.
No comments:
Post a Comment