The popularity of C.S.Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia continues to grow. Sales of the books, now over 100 million, increase every year and The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe was recently voted the most popular Children’s Book ever in the UK. Meanwhile the film of the book has been officially classified as one of the all-time top grossing movies worldwide. This has opened up a whole new audience, most of whom have little contact with the church or are even aware that the books are infused with Christian ideas. With production of the next two films under way, and planning for the remainder of the series in the pipeline, this global phenomenon presents an extraordinary opportunity for the gospel.
However Christians face a real challenge in seizing this opportunity effectively. For apart from The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, many of us are less familiar with the remaining Chronicles and are even less sure about their connection with the Christian message. So, following Lewis’ own ‘outline of Narnian history’, let us go on a brief journey through each of the books, highlighting the central biblical themes that he has woven into the fabric of the stories.
The Magician’s Nephew
“This is ... a very important story”, wrote C.S.Lewis, “because it shows how all the comings and goings between our world and the land of Narnia first began”. Digory and Polly are tricked by their Uncle Andrew into magically enter another reality and encounter Jadis, the White Witch. Following them back, she creates havoc in London, before the children, three grown ups and a horse are accidentally drawn out of our world and find themselves witnesses to something extraordinary happening.
Key Ideas: Creation and Kingdom - Aslan creates a new world - sky, stars, flora and fauna, heavens and earth, and fills it with talking creatures. He does this through his word by singing it into being. With the first hint of rebellion against his authority beginning to arise, he appoints a man and a woman as its first rulers to look after and care for the land and its inhabitants.
The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe
Almost 900 years after Aslan created the land, the banished White Witch returns to Narnia and establishes her evil rule. Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy arrive through the
wardrobe to find a land of Endless Winter. They meet up with talking creatures who have remained faithful followers of Aslan and, apart from Edmund, journey to join up with Aslan to battle against the Witch and her army. As a result of Edmund’s treachery, however, nothing less than the death of Aslan is required to set things aright.
Key Idea: Fall and Redemption - Sin has spread over the whole land, which is under the power of evil, and judgment lies heavy upon it. In order to break their grip,
Aslan fulfils the demands of the ancient Law by willingly sacrificing himself in another’s place but is miraculously brought back to life. He forgives and frees others and re- esetablishes humans as rulers over the land.
The Horse and his Boy
Fourteen years into the children’s reign of Narnia, in the far off land of Calormen, a boy named Shasta lives with an old fisherman whom he believes to be his father. Meeting up with an aristocratic horse, Bree, and then a high-spirited girl, Aravis, and her horse Hwin, the four set out on a perilous journey. On their way they have to pass through a dangerous city, desert and mountains, periodically encountering a strange presence along the way, helping to ultimately protect Narnia from attack by its enemies.
Key Idea: Promise and Fulfilment. Despite the devious plans of evil people to thwart Aslan’s prophetic purposes, mysteriously and providentially he arranges circumstances, draws strangers together, and directs their steps so that the promise can be fulfilled. He also secretly accompanies, strengthens and protects them, before finally revealing himself to them in person and making known to one of them his royal identity.
Prince Caspian
Some 1600 years later Miraz, the brother of Caspian IX, usurps the throne, suppresses all knowledge of Aslan and Narnia’s history, and forces the faithful remnant in the land
into hiding. The original four children are drawn back into Narnia and find the land in ruins. Meanwhile, through some humble Narnians, Prince Caspian, the rightful heir to the throne, discovers the true story of its beginnings and resolves to regain the kingdom. As he and the children are brought together by Aslan, they begin the fight to liberate the land.
Key Idea: Apostasy and Restoration. Over time the nation has forgotten and wandered away from its true roots, and those who have assumed power actively suppress knowledge of that truth. Despite this, the truth is passed on courageously by some faithful ordinary people, who come together to fight against Aslan’s enemies, until his authority over the land, and its rightful human ruler, are restored.
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
Three years into Caspian’s reign, the boy king decides to search for the seven lost lords who were sent to explore the Eastern Seas but never returned. Lucy, Edmund and their cousin Eustace are magically pulled on to the Dawn Treader, a Narnian ship, with Caspian and Reepicheep on board. As they travel to each of the islands they are confronted by a series of tests and in the process they grow in their understanding of themselves, their character, and the way Aslan is involved in their lives.
Key Idea: Conversion and Mission. With the nation at peace, the focus now is on fulfilling an obligation to Aslan to engage in a rescue mission to the ends of
the known world. Early into the journey, one of its members undergoes an extreme conversion experience at the hands of Aslan. In the process of fulfilling their task, by word and signs Aslan teaches different lessons to various members of the team.
The Silver Chair
Fifty years pass before Eustace and school friend Jill are carried away into Narnia. They are commissioned by Aslan to find Prince Rilian, son of the ageing King Caspian, who has been spirited away by a deadly serpent who turns out to be the Green Queen. Aslan gives them four signs which if followed will help them in their quest. On the way, they are joined by a doleful companion, Puddleglum, and after many terrifying and life-threatening encounters, finally discover and free the Prince from the evil clutches of Green Queen.
Key Idea: Vocation and Faithfulness. An unlikely threesome is called by Aslan out of their familiar surroundings with a special commission, potentially at the cost of their lives. He empowers them through his spirit and instructs them with his word so they can achieve his purposes. Only through constant and discerning obedience in the face of almost insurmountable evil are they able to smash its strongholds and free its victims.
The Last Battle
Two centuries later, a rebellion begins against Tirian, the last king of Narnia. All but one of the children, Susan, are drawn into fight against first Shift the Ape who partly
succeeds in passing ]off his dupe Puzzle the Donkey as Aslan and then against the warrior Rishda Tarkaan and his forces, Everything builds to a gigantic climax in which Aslan brings the very land of Narnia to an end and opens a door into his own country for those who are truly faithful to him. “Now at last they were beginning Chapter One of the Great Story which no one on earth has read; which goes on forever; in which every chapter is better than the one before”.
Key Idea: End-of-the-World and Heaven. A long time has passed since Aslan’s last appearance and, with imposters scheming to deceive even the faithful, there are growing rumours that he has already returned. This leads to a series of struggles between the forces of good and evil, ending in a final victorious confrontation. As Aslan draws time and space to a close, only those who love him are taken into his glorious country and those who deny him fall away into darkness.
This list of key ideas only scratches the surface of the biblical resonances that can be found in The Chronicles of Narnia. For example, a detailed reading would detect many
parallels of the death of Jesus throughout the books. Even so, we retain a certain reluctance to setting out the key ideas in the way we have done. We are hesitant to give the impression that C.S.Lewis draw up a list of basic Christian truths and then deliberately worked out stories to illustrate them. He emphatically denied this. On the contrary the stories came first, drawing the specifically christian elements along with them because his whole imagination, way of thinking and life was saturated with a biblical worldview.
We are also reluctant to highlight the key ideas set out above because it could lead people to look for exact or literal parallels between the Narnian and biblical stories. Even
though there are numerous biblical echoes, from Genesis through to Revelation, it is because we wanted to avoid this danger that we have not provided references to specific Bible passages. For what we have in the Chronicles of Narnia are rather partial and evocative analogies between the two. For example, Lewis did not intend a one-to-one correspondence between Aslan and Jesus but rather echoes between the two that the open minded reader might discover and say “Aha!’. As he wrote: "This was the very reason why you were brought to Narnia, that by knowing me here for a little while, you may know me better in your world.”
What is important, then, is to encourage people to read the books, and see the films, as stories first so that, like the parables of Jesus, they can enter in through the back door of their minds and open up their imaginations to thepossibility of another world. Realising that people were increasingly living within a closed secular mindset - one that ruled God out or kept him at a distance - he saw the importance of telling stories that could break them out of this and help them begin to glimpse the existence of a supernatural reality.
In other words, it was through seeking to entertain people that readers would be placed in a better position to entertain the possibility of the gospel. Them as they begin to ask
questions about the deeper meaning of the stories, we have the opportunity to help them explore that further. In his encounters with enquirers, whether children or adults, Lewis himself modelled how this should take place. It is best done through genuine conversation with people about both the enchanted world of Aslan and the Narnia story and the way it points to the even more wonderful world of the Greatest Story Ever Told.
The upcoming release of the film of Prince Caspian provides us with a God-givendoor of opportunity to do this.
Robert and Linda Banks are the authors of the Bible-based Discussion Guides for small groups to The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe and now Prince Caspian, as well as a Narnia Party resource for churches and schools, published by and available from The BIble Society NSW.
