Church hopes 'Narnia' will pack pews

[sonicx]

LONDON (Reuters) - For Christian church leaders, Disney's "Narnia" blockbuster film could be the ideal way to pack the pews.

Evangelical publishers have sent out special packs to churches, Methodists prepared themed sermons and one Anglican church is giving out free tickets to single parents for "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe".

---

For churches, the movie being given its world premiere in London on December 7 is a golden opportunity to tap into mainstream culture and popularise religion.

The evangelical publishing company Christian Publishing and Outreach (CPO), which distributes material to 20,000 churches, approached Disney and was granted permission to use two images from the film for its "Narnia" packs.

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"This could be as successful as 'The Passion of the Christ' in triggering dialogue. There is a Christian parable in there," he (John Buckeridge, editor of Christianity Magazine) told Reuters.

http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=entertainmentNews&storyID=2005-11-25T130423Z_01_WRI546923_RTRUKOC_0_UK-RELIGION-NARNIA.xml

[Rufus T. Firefly]

1. I have no idea what they're talking about.

I never read the book. And now I'm pretty glad that I didn't.

:skims through article:

Okay, it's "good vs. evil." Like Harry Potter?

[truebrit71]

4. I read the book as a youngster, and whatever hidden message C.S.Lewis...

...had intended me to see, or whatever religious fervor it is the fundies want me to become encapsulated with totally, totally went over my head....

[phantom power]

14. It gets more obvious in the later books.

The last book is downright eschatalogical

[reprobate]

53. Didn't you really mean 'Scatological'?

[TallahasseeGrannie]

16. I don't think CS Lewis

intended for children to see any hidden meaning in his work. It is over the head of just about everyone unless you set out to look for it.

[jwirr]

42. I think that the fundies hate the books and the movie. They

think it is satanic. It is the old mainstream religions that are interested in C.S. Lewis. The message of the books is symbolic and if you know nothing about Christianity you will not see the symbolism.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

5. Read the book. It's great, and there's nothing obviously

Christian or religious about it. It's there only if you choose to look for it.

[chopper]

38. snuh

there are some pretty overt bits in it tho. at one point aslan basically admits to being jesus christ.

[MountainLaurel]

58. Yeah, that crucifiction invoving Aslan isn't obvious at all

:eyes:

[mcar]

6. It's religious in tone but not overtly

and that's not what makes it so good. It's very much a fantasy, good vs. evil, weak defeating the strong story.

When I first read the series to my older son nearly 10 years ago, I had no clue of the religious undertone until the end of the last book. Now that I'm reading it to younger son, I can see the threads in it but it's totally not an issue for a non-religious person. It is a wonderful story.

The thing that cracks me up is that it's in the same genre as Harry Potter and has many of the same themes. The fundies that I know initially wouldn't let their kids watch or read Harry Potter because it was about witchcraft (horrors!). But they were allowed to see Lord of the Rings, which had wizardy and magic, and now Narnia, which certainly has lots of magic.

Why? Well because Tolkein and C.S. Lewis were "christian" and J.K. Rowling is "atheist."

[sonicx]

10. Actually, I believe J.K. Rowling is a Christian too

Perharps that's why she annoys the fundies. A Christian who makes "witchcraft" look "good."

[TallahasseeGrannie]

19. I found the Lord of the Rings

to have a lot of what I think was gratuitous violence. Nice music, though.

[leesa]

25. It's exactly the same as Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings stuff.

They despise Potter and are orgasmic over this stuff. Fundies are so easily led by the nose and they entirely lack logic.
I found the Narnia series very dull, but I never liked Lord of the Rings either...never could finish that trilogy and I can read damned near anything.

[Poppyseedman]

8. Comparing Hairy Pooter books to C.S. Lewis writings

is a little like comparing Leo Tolstoy to an Ann Coulter book

[Puglover]

17. Oh puhleeze

a little hyperbolic in your comparison don't ya think?
:eyes:

[Poppyseedman]

50. Just a little

[TallahasseeGrannie]

20. Huh?

Elaborate? Which one to you think is the Ann Coulter?

I think they are both awesome authors, although I don't have a big fantasy appetite.

[TallahasseeGrannie]

13. I think the allegory

is more for adults than kids. Kids take it at face value. It's a little more than good v. evil, though. The lion character is a Christ figure whose death atones for evil happenings in the plot.

I just liked the concept of walking through the closet into another dimension.

[Crunchy Frog]

23. I agree. When my grandmother first read me

The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, when I was around 8, I didn't have the slightest clue that there was anything religious or Christian in it.

When I read it as an adult, after having learned something about Christian mythology, it jumped out at me that this was a Christian allegory. I wasn't offended by it though, I actually thought it was kind of neat.

And yes, the concept of walking into a closet into another dimension, the fauns and other mythical characters, the talking animals, the greedy little boy getting hooked on Turkish delight. The whole story is very magical and alot of fun.

I really hate to see the fundies doing everything they can to take the fun out of these stories and turn them into yet another weapon in the culture wars, to beat people over the head with. I like to think that C.S. Lewis would be horrified at how these books are being used. These stories are not heavy handed tools to bludgeon people into accepting Christianity.

[TallahasseeGrannie]

27. It is the nature of fundies to find weapons

for their faith in all kinds of things...the Passion of Christ...the 'war on Christmas,' Sciavo, etc.

It's up to the rest of us to understand that and not let them hijack yet another part of our lives.

Regarding the allegory, I'm always excited when I figure out ANY allegory and I think I'm a genius!

[Inland]

29. I dunno. Reading it as a young teen, I found the allegory

so blatant and tiresome that I couldn't finish the damn thing.

[TallahasseeGrannie]

36. You had unusual insight

for a young teen.

[KittyWampus]

30. Good vs. Evil ala Lord of the Rings

[Orrex]

32. Not like HP

Narnia presents the "good vs. evil" conflict in the basically black-and-white terms so beloved by fundies and other non-thinkers. Harry Potter, as far as I understand it, treats the conflict in a more nuanced fashion, much like the way the real world works.

I haven't read the Narnia books in decades, but what I've read of Lewis in the interim makes me never want to read his crap again. His apologetic works are as vapid as any I've encountered, Mere Christianity being by far the worst, yet they're held up as paragons of the genre.

Ick.

[TrogL]

60. C. S. Lewis is an old school conservative

Mere Christianity is fine writing and an excellent explanation of Christianity for the thinking man, unfortunately with a few glaring exceptions that are easy to spot.

His section on homosexuality is loaded with logical fallacies that are easy to spot. I read this section wondering "what was he thinking"?

[Orrex]

62. But it fails for the reason that all apologetic work fails

Namely, it's only convincing if you're already convinced. If you approach from a position of honest neutrality, you'll come away saying "this gives me no reason to believe." But if you're already a Christian and looking to pat yourself on the back for believing, that Lewis is just the ticket.

His prattling about "morality" as "natural law" early on in the book is some of the worst pseudointellectual writing I've ever read.

[esvhicl]

2. Demonize "Potter" but idealize "Narnia"?

Wow! Doesn't make that much sense to me...

Just goes to show how religion is so much about manipulation of the facts.

[ticapnews]

24. I wonder if the religious nuts would have gotten all upset over "Potter"

if The Onion hadn't printed that satire, that so many of them took seriously...

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

3. Too bad. All this Bible-thumping over this movie doesn't really

suggest what the Narnia Chronicles are about. C.S. Lewis was never a fundie; he was a very intellectual high-church Anglican, and the stories are wonderful fantasies that you can interpret as Christian allegories if you want to -- but you definitely don't have to, since none of that is obvious at all. You pretty much have to be looking for it. Lewis hung out with Tolkien. I always took Narnia as a fantasy like LOTR.

[TallahasseeGrannie]

15. Yes, the fundamentalists

are hijacking the series, practically salivating over the fact that it is a Christian allegory.

BUT in my opinion, having read all his books and a number of bios, CS Lewis would have come down hard on their brand of "Christianity."

[jwirr]

44. Ironic! Their interpretation of the Bible is literal and they refuse

to see any of the allegories in the Bible. If they would bother to see the allegories in the Bible they would see how wrong they are about life.

[TallahasseeGrannie]

51. Very ironic

because they really only are literalist about "selected" passages. That "turn the other cheek" thing loses something in the translations, I guess.

[1monster]

37. Lewis and Tolkien were indeed friends. They each encouraged the other

to continue working on and expand their literary works. I have read that a friendly rivalry ensued. One without the other might have meant that we never had THE LORD OF THE RINGS or THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA. And that would have been a shame.

http://www.salon.com/books/feature/2003/12/03/tolkien_lewis/

As to the Fundies, they have made EVERYTHING a battleground between (fundamental) Christianity and anitchristianity.

I wonder if any of them know that long before some two thousand odd years ago stories of virgin births and sacrificed gods were quite common in many prechristian religions? Christianity didn't only commandeer pagan holidays, rename and claim them for their own, they highjacked the whole idea of Christianity from previous (Pagan) religions...

I wonder what the real Jesus would have to say about it all?

[reprobate]

55. " the real Jesus"? Please point to historical documentation of 'him'.

And please don't use Josephus. His writings on the subject are now generally accepted as later forgeries.

But I do agree that 'christianity' was hijacked from earlier pagan cults, notably from the cult of Dionysus, which was brought to greece from egypt, originally the cult of Isis/Osiris. The same themes, the same outcomes: virgin births, persecuted by the power structure, executed and reborn as a god/man. Same religions, different names.

I suggest the book "The Jesus Mysteries" by Freke and Gandy. It shows the history and genesis of the cult from Early mideastern civilizations to now.

[1monster]

67. Hey, there's a Jesus who lives on the next block from me, although he

pronounces his name as Jay soos.

I assume that the Christian religion was based on a real person, a real human person. Whether or not he bore any resemblance to the Jesus of the current Bible is unknowable.

Have you ever heard of the Gospel According to Phillip? That piece paints an entirely different view of Jesus and his followers, one that sounds truer to life.

Did he exist? I can't prove it any more than you can disprove it.

[ananda]

7. corporatism of christ

It sounds like the churches are looking for potential donors... err.. members... and they're needing to latch onto a recruiting gimmick. Hence, Narnia.

If you can't win em through hate by demonizing Harry Potter, see if you can get em in through a warmfuzzy fantasy. Riiight.

[redwitch]

9. The Narnia series was much beloved by my youngest son, now 15

And the movie looks absolutely gorgeous, I hope it is as good as the previews. I plan to see it, hopefully not with a theater full of wingnuts, but if they don't talk during the movie, I guess it won't bother me much.

[LizW]

11. I don't get it

I didn't see much of an overtly Christian message in the books, at least not one that would get the fundamentalists in such a fervor.

Has anyone seen a preview of the movie? Is it much different than the book?

[Whoa_Nelly]

26. Lewis was a Christian apologetic, going from atheism to Xtian conversion

in 1931. His writings became pretty much sacrosanct within the Anglican church, and he is somewhat deified by many who have used his writings to draw more converts into the church. There are many articles about his life and his soulful move from atheist to Xtianity, and so even fundamentalists embrace him to some degree and draw a line of separateness regarding the demonization and denouncement of Harry Potter books and movies while embracing and supporting Lewis' literary works as true Xtian allegory.

Below is a snip from one of the many articles about Lewis:

<snip>
Who is C. S. Lewis?
C. S. Lewis (1898-1963), tutor and professor of Medieval and Renaissance Literature at Oxford and Cambridge Universities, was a writer of prose and poetry in the areas of his academic field, literary criticism, fantasy, and Christian apologetics. While his literary efforts have enjoyed critical acceptance, it is as an apologist for the Christian faith and a writer of fantasy for children that his fame continues almost forty years after his death. For countless persons, he has been responsible for explaining Christianity in a manner that has not been achieved by any other writer.

more: http://www.nycslsociety.com/About/About.html

[StrongbadTehAwesome]

75. well...kinda...

Lewis became an atheist out of anger toward God when his mother died and later converted back to Christianity.

Many fundamentalists like to gloss over his earlier belief and tout his re-conversion as ultimate proof that all atheists are wrong and stupid. However, as his Christian apologetic works leave obvious logical gaps, it's pretty clear that his neither his de- nor re-conversion were based on critical thinking.

Edited because I keep using <these> for html tags.

[TrogL]

12. But ... but ... but ... but ... there's witches in it!!

...and talking animals and all sorts of Anti-"Christian" things.

OK, I'm kidding but I can see how someone could get confused.

I'm just worried that fundie pressure will cause the filmmaker to make drastic changes to bring it into line with fundie theology (which has little or nothing to do with Christianity).

[TallahasseeGrannie]

21. I've read that they are very true to the book

so I'm looking forward to the films.

BTW I can't wait until you change your sig line. That woman is the most hateful piece of work I've ever seen. She is obviously insane.

[TrogL]

59. Welcome to my world

She's not an isolated case amongst the religious right.

Watch some footage of Freddie Phelps, or listen to your typical televangelist of the Benny Hinn persuasion.

[Crunchy Frog]

18. I love the books, and have since childhood but,

they've never made me interested in becoming Christian, and they've never made me want to go to church.

Actually, generations of people have read and loved those books, while remaining happy heathens. The only way they'll get people into church is with the help of a heavy duty propaganda campaign.

[TallahasseeGrannie]

22. Crunchy frog?

Oh my! Unfortunate memories of walking up my driveway one day last May.

[CatBoreal]

28. A Happy Heathen Fan of the books here....

You can claim the alegory to be Christian if you want, but I think the books speak more to universal truths than to one set of religious dogma.

Can't wait for the fundies to get to the last book, where a worshipper or Tash, not Aslan enters the 'promised' land because he was good and just, not because he was a 'believer'.

[TallahasseeGrannie]

66. I thought that was the whole fundie concept

salvation vs. good works?

[Poor Richard Lex]

31. Aslan is the God/Christ figure

he is a lion in the books and in the first he dies and comes back to life, which is an allegory to the crucifixion of Jesus. Beyond that I didnt see much else in those books that was religions (read them as a kid).

I do find it strange that the fundies would reject Harry Potter (I have a "friend" who wont let her children see it b/c of the church) but are willing to embrace the narnia stories which are very similar in their use of magic, etc.

[Crunchy Frog]

35. The fundies do and believe whatever their religious leaders

tell them to. They don't use their own brains, the let let Pat Robertson and James Dobson do their thinking for them. If it serves the political interests of these guys, you'll see the fundies turning Rudy Giuliani into a righteous holy man. Critical thinking is absolutely foreign to these people as far as I can tell.

[Orsino]

40. And the fundies have a nasty surprise awaiting them...

...in the last book, in the resolution of the "Tashlan" heresy.

[TechBear_Seattle]

70. How so?

Tashlan, the syncretic fusion of Aslan (the true deity of Narnia) and Tash (the totally false, demonic deity of the quite Muslim in culture and appearance Carlomans), was nothing more than a Donkey dressed up in a lion skin (a jackass religion, if you will.) Tashlan was created to deceive; those who believed in Tashlan were utterly destroyed when Aslan destroyed Narnia after the Last Battle. Those who stayed true to the True Aslan were saved, carried bodily to Aslan's home, the West Beyond The West, where they met the heroic and faithful Narnians of the past, fully alive and in glowing good health.

What is not for the fundies to like? This is exactly the same End Times scenario that makes them wet.

[KittyWampus]

33. Making LWATW Overtly Into "Christian" Is Just A Marketing Ploy....

both for the movie producers AND also the preachers and congregations.

[TallahasseeGrannie]

39. Well I don't deny that it is a Christian allegory

but it stands alone without it. And it is a massive marketing ploy.

[Whoa_Nelly]

41. Lewis was an apologetic Christian, and The LWATW was about Christianity

See post #26 re: Lewis' personal biography and his conversion from atheism to Christianity.

The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe is not a reach regrading Christianity. It's an allegorical recounting about the power of Christ and children.

About The LWATW:

<snip>
Aslan is an allegorical representation of Jesus Christ in the Christian religion. The novel's depiction of Christ's death and resurrection is a clear allusion to the biblical story of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. Lewis couches an old, familiar story in a new, vibrant setting in order to help us look at the story from a different angle. Specifically, Lewis wants to capture the attention of children. Lewis seeks to remove children from the oppressive church and Sunday school and to transplant them to a new, fantastic world. There, Lewis can introduce basic concepts of the Christian religion, using an exciting background, with fun characters and talking animals. Aslan the lion lives a similar life as Christ the man, but by using this allegorical device, Lewis can present the story to children with far more immediacy and vividness than could be obtained in any but the most breathtaking reading of the Bible.

more: http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/lion/canalysis.html

[Peace Patriot]

49. Yup, I think you've nailed it. Marketing by the filmmakers and the power-

hungry preachers.

But the Chronicles of Narnia (if it's faithful--ahem--to the book) is a far different kettle of fish than the Passion of Christ. The Passion of Christ had no magic. None. Zero. Zilch. And didn't even use the good storytelling (a magical element) of the New Testament to engage the audience. I've never seen such a dull movie.

Both Lewis and Tolkien used superb storytelling and overt magic and fantasy to connect Christianity (or current readers in a Christian culture) to more ancient traditions of Goddess worship--the Goddess as both the wellspring of life and the fount of learning (of human knowledge and creativity). I don't really know if they were doing this consciously, or to what extent they were conscious of it, but it was most certainly 'in the air' at the time (with the writings of Robert Graves, for instance--"The White Goddess"--and Frazer's "The Golden Bough")--and, like so many artists throughout the Middle Ages and into modern times (including Rowling), ancient traditions going back to the Greeks and way back before them, of the esoteric nature of knowledge and the curious position of the human race, stuck in "middle earth" between the heavens, the angels and other higher beings, and the unenlightened matter out of which we evolved, are revealed in their writings. The magical spells of stories, ballads and poems was a way for the Troubadours of the Middle Ages, for instance, to convey this ancient tradition without getting burned for witches. The Troubadours in particular were into the worship of women. Lewis definitely is (his science fiction trilogy is full of it--AND of his struggle to reconcile patriarchal church with ancient goddess--especially the middle book, "Perelandra"); Tolkien not so overtly (but his enchantment with nature is a sign of it). Gandalf's death and rebirth (transformed) in the LOTR is similar to the Lion's in Lewis's book--both could be called Christ myths, but then Christ's death and return itself is a re-telling of more ancient stories of Mythris (that survived in Europe as the legends of the Fisher-King--who dies, or is sacrified, for the fertility of the land.)

Knowledge was "esoteric" in the Middle Ages because of the Church's suppression of practical science, and its participation in despicable acts like the burning of the Alexandria Library and the murder of its last philosopher, Hypatia (415 A.D.). It became extremely hostile to learning in the 3rd and 4th centuries, associating it with Goddess worship and Paganism, but the enlightened traditions represented by the Alexandria Library would not die. They just went underground (thus becoming esoteric, or hidden).

However, there is a more ancient development of the notion of knowledge as somewhat dangerous and only safe in the hands of an elite corps of enlightened people (the Pythagorean tradition). It seems that certain insights--into mathematics, for instance--were a bit scary. Imagine being the first to person to perceive the rules of geometry! And I tend to think that there was something going on back then regarding the use of the knowledge developed by smart and insightful people--who developed ideas for their own sake--by tyrants and dictators, for instance to make weapons of war and to oppress people. There was great tension between the Pythagoreans and ruling tyrants. The Pythagoreans may have been trying to hide the most important components of what they knew from misuse. (I can't help but be reminded of nuclear fission, and what it has wrought, and how dangerous it is in the hands of the ambitious and the power-hungry.)

Carl Sagan despised this aspect of the Pythagoreans--their notion that some parts of knowledge needed to be protected by an elite--but I wonder if that wasn't a rather superficial reading of their behavior. I suspect that the Pythagoreans got "burnt" by some tyrant. They were very influential in the ruling governments for a time, then were banned and persecuted. They lived simple lives in communes, and that alone may have irritated the power-mongers. (And there are damn strange legends of Pythagoras himself--for instance that he had a golden thigh, and could be in two places at once.)

"Wizards" are the result of the Pythagorean tradition.

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

34. It will be interesting to see...

If Disney has given money to any of these churches that are promoting the movie. Wouldn't surprise me in the least, for verily I say unto you:

In some of these churches, it's all about the gelt.

[Bob3]

43. I suspect they will be very disappointed

After all this is a movie - you get to drink soda and eat popcorn and raisenttes during a movie - and it's dark and the seats are comfortable. I hardly think people are going to pour out of this movie and into a Church. For one thing name me one damned church that has popcorn or soda. And lets not get started on the seats - wood mostly and you're not careful you'll slip to floor as you're trying to nap during the sermon.

This movies may spawn a dialog but if Church leaders are actually expecting an increase in attendance based on CGI effects, well they are more desperate than I thought.

This reminded me of a old church saw: "When the weather is good, attendance will go down, when the weather is bad, attendance will go down. When there is a shortage of bulletins, attendance will exceed all expectations."

[Sabriel]

45. How about the anti-Islamic (not-so-subtle) overtones?

That's the most disturbing aspect of the series to me. I don't mind my daughter reading the Christian allegory, because it's fairly easy to discuss and mediate with her, but the frankly racist anti-Islam parts are harder to deal with.

Anyone else have input on this aspect?

[TallahasseeGrannie]

52. Gosh...you know

I have not read the books after 911 and my "Islamic consciousness" was raised. I will need to either re-read or see the film before I comment on that. I think you are probably correct.

[hyphenate]

46. I don't give a goddamn

if they "see" the Christian parable in the story. The story was written for children mostly, and NOT as a blatant example of Christian thought. They're fucking around what was originally intended as a fairy tale. They should be shot.

[TallahasseeGrannie]

68. Oh there is no doubt that it is allegory

so I don't think we need to shoot them..

However, in Lewis' own words:

"Some people seem to think that I began by asking myself how I could say something about Christianity to children; then fixed on the fairy tale as an instrument; then collected information about child-psychology and decided what age group I'd write for; then drew up a list of basic Christian truths and hammered out 'allegories' to embody them. This is all pure moonshine. I couldn't write in that way at all. Everything began with images; a faun carrying an umbrella, a queen on a sledge, a magnificent lion. At first there wasn't even anything Christian about them; that element pushed itself in of its own accord" (Of Other Worlds, p. 36).

I have discovered, upon research, however, that Narnia is not getting the broad approval from the fundies we might think. Have a look at this rather disturbing site:
http://www.balaams-ass.com/journal/homemake/narnia.htm

[Demeter]

47. Unless They Laid the Christianity On Thick As A Blanket, It's Gonna Flop

C.S. Lewis was very arcane with his message, and it won't translate to the cinema unless they shovel it with a trowel. And it wasn't pertinent to the storyline, either.

Any port in a storm, I guess. Them poor, benighted, persecuted quasi-Christians. I feel so sorry for them. No amount of psychotherapy (except deprogramming) will ever help them out of their self-imposed Hell.

[sofa king]

48. The only Christian message I got out of those books...

...Was that the "musselmen" are evil.

That might be the only message there needs to be for the entire Christian community to back it as if it were their own.

[rfrrfrrfr]

54. Although its there if you ACTIVELY look for it.

I never got that out of any of the books. It never even occured to me mostly becuase I was so wrapped up in the story to begin with. The Lion The Witch and The Wardrobe were my introduction to high fantasy and science fiction. I loved those books.

This summer when I went to see episode three they had the trailer in the theater and they didn't even have to tell me the movie title. Two seconds in I knew exactly what the title was going to be.

C.S lewis was a great author whether or not you are religious minded or not.

[revolve]

56. My God, Its A Freaking MOVIE

Do you want to censor it because it may have christian under themes?
Its about morality and ITS NOT REAL so get over yourselves and you hyper reaction to anything remotely against what you believe.
The parents will determine what impact this has, if they are good parents and not the movie.

[Name removed]

57. Deleted sub-thread

Sub-thread removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

69. I agree. See it, or don't. Read into it whatever you want, and let others

do the same. If you get some religious inspiration out of it, that's good if that's what you wanted to find; or enjoy it as a fantasy like LOTR if you want. And if other people want to get all fundie about it, let 'em; that's their right -- even though I doubt C.S. Lewis would particularly approve. And, BTW, there's nothing new about Christian allegory in literature; Christ figures abound -- Melville's Billy Budd comes to mind. Will the fundies start pimping Melville, too?

[tll]

61. Narnia chapsticks from Wal-Mart

make me sad... I loved, loved these books growing up. In fact, was first exposed to them when my kindergarten teacher read Wardrobe aloud in class -- I went to a Montessouri school, I don't remember religious themes entering into it. Nor did I see the Aslan/Jesus bit until re-reading it later in life. And how about the Narnia take on the afterlife (The Last Battle, now there was a shocker of an ending)?

I agree; it's what you choose to make it; the parallels are there if you want to look for them. I wouldn't be too, too uncomfortable unless Lewis expressly wanted his books to be used in this manner, as church marketing material. Especially when it's for BOTH pew-packing and chapstick peddling (then I'd be really, really disappointed).

The lessons in the value of being "good and just" transcend this denomination or that, or even religion in general, and I'd hate to see individual churches trying to coopt that in a heavyhanded manner.

So I'm not the only one who checked her bedroom closet for lamp posts back in the day?

[GirlinContempt]

63. Well, I'll be interested in seeing it

However, I have my doubts that non-believers will see this movie and convert

[Crunchy Frog]

71. I know I'm looking forward to seeing it

and I doubt VERY much that I will convert because of it.

It's also been a long time since I've read the books. I think I'm going to have to go out and get a new set, since I ended up giving my last set to my nephew.

[GirlinContempt]

72. They're worth having!

I know the books didn't convert me.
I think anything that doesn't set out to convert, but to share some of the wonderful teachings of any religion or group to people regardless of their belief can be worthwhile.

[Chovexani]

64. I saw the movie 2 months ago for free at an born again megachurch

Hey, it was a free fantasy movie, that's all I needed to know. :P

At any rate, there was a discussion group afterwards (not mandatory, but I went anyway for shits and giggles), and the fundies in attendance pretty much all said the same thing as this article...they want to use it as an evangelizing tool, especially to kids and teens.

Problem is the movie just isn't that good. If it had come out 20 years ago when we were starving for great fantasy, then maybe I could see it becoming a phenonmenon...problem is we're living in the age of Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter, the bar for fantasy movies has been set super high and this Narnia movie at least, while mildly entertaining, just falls flat of the bar. Put it this way: if I had to pay 10 dollars to see it (average price of movies here in NYC), I may have been more disappointed.

Full disclosure: I always hated the Narnia books as a kid, they just never appealed to me the way LotR and other fantasy did, so a fan of the books might obviously feel much differently about the movie.

Hell I'm just waiting for the inevitable clash between the fundie part of the fandom and the slash fangirls. :popcorn:

[Silverhair]

74. You did NOT see the new movie. You saw a much older one.

There was a much earlier 1967 BBC production of it. That was what you saw. The new version of LWATW has special effects fully as good as Harry Potter.

To say that a movie that is not even in the theaters yet (And has not begun to recover costs.) would be available for any church to let people see for free is idiocy.

[Chovexani]

76. Do test screenings and focus groups not exist on your planet?

Because, here on Planet Earth, they happen regularly, particularly in cities of the size I live in.

This church has participated in special advance screenings of several movies with a Christian bent (or that were heavily marketed toward Christian audiences), including Prince of Egypt and Passion of the Christ.

[lovuian]

65. Have you guys ever seen the TBN logo??? Interesting one!!!

the Pat Robertson channel Trinity Broadcasting has a very interesting LOGO very comparable to Narnia...

if you read the logo and bear with me my Latin is poor
rex regum et fiduleum means like Faith in our Lord King

I have always found it interesting to see that Logo
a Lion with a crown

if you were a Christian company wouldn't it have a different Logo

These guys get into symbolism and Narnia plays into that the Big Battle and its against a Witch...(wicked woman)

Narnia is witch hunting in its symbolism to them... and they are growing disturbed at the popularity of harry potter...

[salvorhardin]

73. The Lion is a very old symbol in Christian mythology

It probably predates Chrstianity but I think the Christian origins come from Revelations 5:5 — "And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof."

I could be (probably am) wrong about the origins of it though.

[Dervill Crow]

77. I thought Narnia was a bit idolatrous, myself.

And a witch! The whole "magic" thing really bothered me when I was a young perfect Christian mom. Thank god/dess it was just a phase.