By the Way: Are you sitting comfortably?

By Medicine Hat News on May 26, 2018.

As he said these things, he called out, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

— Luke 8:8 [ESV].

I don’t read nearly as much as I used to — at least not only for the fun of it. Not that I don’t enjoy reading the Scripture verses for the week, and then poring over commentaries on what I just read in preparation of what I am going to say about them on Sunday morning. I do enjoy that, but reading theological commentaries is a part of what I do as a pastor. It has been quite some time since I’ve sat down with a non-theological book and just read it purely for the escapism that, for instance, a well-written fictional story can provide.

That’s nobody’s fault but my own, really. I am far too easily tempted away from such healthy activities by forms of entertainment that require much less effort to pursue, particularly after a long day. That remote control is just too darn handy, I guess.

My interest in reading was rekindled, however, at a recent study conference held in the beautiful town of Canmore. The keynote speaker was a pastor/professor from Cambridge University who was asked to speak on the life and works of the late British authors, C.S. Lewis (“The Chronicles of Narnia”), and J.R.R. Tolkien (“The Hobbit”/”The Lord of the Rings”). As it happens, the professor was not there primarily to extol the literary genius of these two men, but rather to impress upon us the long human tradition, and the extraordinary power, of story-telling as it relates to the Christian faith.

During the course of his lecture, and using Lewis and Tolkien as his chief examples, this Cambridge professor revealed to us the secret of good story-telling. According to him, good story-telling rests not so much on the entertainment value of what is written on the surface of the story; though that is important as it serves to hold the reader’s attention. Instead, good-story telling uses what is written on the surface as a kind of veil, lightly concealing the true meaning of the story. The task of the reader, then, is not simply to be entertained, nor is it to deconstruct what is written in order to wrest the intended message from its author, but to discover the deeper meaning of the author’s message lying beneath the written words.

So, as much as I enjoy books and movies such as “God’s Not Dead” and its sequels, the direct Christian messaging of those books and films, while familiar and comfortable, leaves very little for one to ponder. On the other hand, books and films, such as “Narnia” and “Hobbit”/”Rings”, are bursting with veiled Christian imagery and themes, which are detectable enough for those who have “ears to hear.” Both classic tales include an origin story, a fall from grace, heroic feats by the most unlikely of characters, redemption, and a final deliverance from evil.

In other words, Lewis and Tolkien, using their God-given gifts for story-telling, manage to proclaim the Gospel message without the use of familiar theological language. Without even addressing the Triune God directly, they nevertheless pay tribute to Him through the characters that represent His various attributes. They tell their tales in such a way that it is nearly impossible not to repeatedly turn them over in our minds until patterns start to develop, and the story’s true meaning begins to emerge. And, as a result of such deep discernment, the truth of the message buries itself deeper into the human mind, and into the human soul.

Indeed, Jesus himself preferred story-telling as his chief method of communication, as evidenced throughout the Gospels. He would often tell a story, or a parable, in order to reveal an important truth to his followers; precisely for the same reason that gifted story-tellers have written their stories all through history. We, as the recipients of those stories, or of Jesus’ parables, are meant not only to listen to them, but to ponder them on a level much deeper than the superficial, and we become bound to their message.

In the process of listening, and then pondering, we unconsciously meld these stories into our very being. There they don’t just lie dormant, and ultimately useless beyond their entertainment value. Rather, as these stories take root in our being, they begin to grow and to mature as they morph into the revealed truths of who God is for us, as well as who we are as His beloved sons and daughters.

“He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” Amen.

Rev. Pastor Shane Hein is from St. Peter Lutheran Church.

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