I think just about the best endtimes fiction I've read is the Brothers Grimm tale of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves.I thought he was joking, and just indicating that he didn't put much stock in the endtimes fiction that currently fills our local Christian bookstores. But no, he was serious, and as he explained I saw why. Of course the analogy was imperfect, but it was interesting :).
Snow White lived in a world that was marred and under a curse, and one day her prince came and set things back right again. Similarly we live in a stricken world marred by the fall. Death, disease, and suffering were not part of the original creation, but a consequence of sin. We await a day when our Prince will come and set things back right again. What a beautiful hope!
Some day my Prince will come
Some day we'll meet again
And away to his castle we'll go
To be happy forever I know. . .
Posts
23 comments:
Wow! I never would have thought of Snow White being an analogy to the return of Christ but that was interesting.
So which type of escatology do you subscribe to? Or would you rather not reveal that openly on your blog?
My mind is not entirely made up but I have definitely moved away from end times fiction based on "newspaper exegesis" as my brother liked to call it. ;)
Another area of study for another day...
BTW, I replied to your e-mail this evening so be sure to check when you get a chance. :)
We had a pastor one time who told us every basic story today is already in the Bible. The struggle between good and evil, etc.
Hmmm, do I want to reveal my eschatalogical views online? *thinks to self* It doesn't bother me ;). To be honest, I'm not firmly planted in any of the four camps, as I don't feel that I have done enough study on the topic to warrant a firm plantation. I have studied eschatology to a small degree, though.
I am definitely not dispensational pre-mil (but I love my dispensational brothers and sisters in Christ!), nor do I identify with historical pre-mil. I lean heavily post-mil, but haven't discounted a-mil. My pastor also happens to be post-mil, so his sermon was from a partial-preterist viewpoint.
Ashley, that reminds me of a Tolkien quote. I can't find it on google! It was something along the lines of: every story is a small retelling of the Great Story.
Frodo: "And that's the way of a real tale. Take any one that you're fond of. You may know, or guess, what kind of a tale it is, happy-ending or sad-ending, but the people in it don't know. And you don't want them to."
Sam: "No, sir, of course not. Beren now, he never thought he was going to get that Silmaril from the Iron Crown in Thangorodrim, and yet he did, and that was a worse place and a blacker danger than ours. But that's a long tale, of course, and goes on past the happiness and into grief and beyond it - and the Silmaril went on and came to EŠrendil. And why, sir, I never thought of that before! We've got - you've got some of the light of it in that star-glass that the Lady gave you! Why, to think of it, we're in the same tale still! It's going on. Don't the great tales never end?"
Frodo: "No, they never end as tales. But the people in them come, and go when their part's ended. Our part will end later - or sooner."
That's actually not the quote I was thinking of, John - though it is a good one :). I was thinking of something Tolkien said in an interview, when asked if LOTR was an allegory (which he denied). I can't find it, though. . .
Okay, okay, Becky, I said the analogy wasn't perfect. . . ;-) And I think Snow White's fights with evil while she was awake were more what he was referring to, though I'm not sure. I agree that we have plenty to do before Christ returns :).
Actually, zan, I'm a relative newbie - only twice, as it turns out. But the first time it felt like coming home, or finding a long-lost brother, and I lamented a misspent youth...
I have a minister friend have up Tolkien after he realised he'd read LOTR more than the Bible...
oops - "who gave up"
That's neat! It's not a perfect analogy, like you said, but nothing ever is : )
But this is where my commentary must end, because I've never read LOTR (I can't even follow the movie) and I'll have to get back to you about the escatology! I know what I believe, but I need to be sure I get all the terms right before I post them here, possibly incorrectly! *going to refer to our Dictionary of Theological Terms*
Jessie, I thought we were kindred spirits! Not like LOTR? *sigh* We need to talk. Checking terms is always a good idea, I agree :).
I must admit that I saw FOTR before reading the books *guilty look*. I then proceeded to spend that Christmas break (freshman year in college) reading The Hobbit and then LOTR. My mom had read us The Hobbit years earlier, but I had never read LOTR (Brother Dear had).
We drive up to Indiana every Christmas, and I can't read in the car without feeling sick to my stomache. Let's just say that I read anyway, had a splitting headache and felt nauseated, but kept reading, because I couldn't put the books down!
I could pretend to look insulted at your suggestion that Snow White should have been blonde, but it was too amusing :). I loved your bit about not taking food from an old woman who looked like she had been beaten by a stick. We had quite a good laugh about that one :).
Yes, Susan, sorry. Even kindred spirits can fail us! But you had to know the truth sooner or later, no matter how ugly or sad it is.
But I must say, that I do think I would follow the movie better if I had read the books, and that if you all keep up this praise of LOTR, I might actually try to read them! (No promises here, but maybe.)
And (unfortunately?) I got all sidetracked in the Dictionary of Theological Terms and kept reading about other topics than the ones I inteded on looking up! It wasn't fruitless, but it didn't accomplish my goal either. In other words, I still can't tell you my right terms yet : )
You should read them, Jessie! They were worth the splitting headache I acquired. I really need to go back and read them again! I've read FOTR twice, but alas, school prevented me from completing them all a second time :(.
I get sidetracked too when I'm looking things up :). I'll let you slide. . .
For some reason, I couldn't get through LOTR books. I watched all the movies once in the theater, and read FOTR. I read half of Two Towers and never finished. I should pick them up again... They are in the same category as Jane Austen books, ones that I should enjoy, that everyone tells me to read, but for some reason I can never finish them. (And you wondered why "Emma" has been so long in my "Currently Reading" section of my blog.)
My dad used to read all three LOTR once a year. :-)
I agree with Zan, Ashley. Emma is not as easy a read as some of Jane Austen's other novels. I think P&P or Persuasion are the two best "first read" options. Then maybe you'll come back to Emma and love it!
I think I've mentioned this before, but when I read Emma the first time, I was still unused to the whole people-marrying-cousins and especially the girls-marrying-men-twice-their-age culture of the time, so I completely didn't see the end coming (her husband is 16 years older than her). Same with Mansfield Park, although the surprise there was that she married her cousin. Now, though, Mr. Knightley is one of my favorite Jane Austen heroes - ranked just lower than Mr. Darcy :-D.
You spoiled the ending!!
*guilty look* I thought you'd seen the movie??? Sorry! Becky and I have also discussed the age gap between Emma and Mr. Knightley before, and I thought you had seen that. Oops.
That would be an interesting post. . . but the whole topic is so arbitrary, really, that it wouldn't make for a very "concrete" post :). I remember once hearing someone make the case that men shouldn't marry women older than them because Adam was created before Eve. Wow, that's a huge leap in logic ;). I've always wanted to marry a man older than me, but I don't think it's a Biblical mandate!
I don't mind the idea of marrying an "older guy," but my idea of older is around 30. But then, I've thought the same for a few years, so does that mean it should now be "around 32"? ;) The Emma ending just surprised me because I cluelessly thought of him as a "father figure" to her. I was young, okay. . . And blonde ;)
I think you're absolutely right that it really depends on the maturity of both the man and the woman.
Reply to Ashley.
I wouldn't get too worked up about knowing the ending. Austen books aren't really about the plot anyway; they're more about the characters and how they interact. There's a reason that people claim she invented the "novel of manners," as most of her books are classified.
Anyway. I would agree that P&P is a great first read (it's my favorite of her books, though Sense and Sensibility, Emma Thompson version, is my favorite of the movies.) Persuasion is good, too. I'd also recommend Northanger Abbey, so long as you make sure you understand that it's a total spoof on the Gothic novel.
Happy reading!
In Christ
Hehe I was kidding. I had seen the movie, way back in high school so it's been a while. The reason why I started with Emma is because 1) I've seen the movie, and 2) my sister gave me the book for Christmas so I feel obigated to read it.
I married an older guy - 9 months older. When I first started dating him I was so proud to be dating a sophomore. Hehe
Yeah, Paul really robbed the cradle ;). Nine months is a huge age gap, Ashley. You're probably going to have all sorts of problems. Think of the "generational divide" - a real biggie.
Have I mentioned that I have spare copies of most of Jane Austen's novels (all but MP)? :-D Feel free to borrow next time you're over. . .
Hey Susan,
I've been reading your blog for the last few days and I have really enjoyed it. You guys seem so much like me, with your love of books, your fondness for names, your long hair, your dresses, your big families...I could go on and on, but I wanted to comment about the books you were talking about. My mother bought a beautiful copy of The Lord of the Rings (all in one book)when she first got married. She kept it put safely away so none of her brood could tear it up. Several years before the movies ever came out, my older sister and I, having read practically everything else in the house,found it,and started on that. I loved it and we would fight over the book. It was terrible not knowing what was going to happen to my beloved characters, while I had to wait for a chance to take the book.
I also am a fan of Jane Austen. Northanger Abbey is the first one that I read, and it is still my favorite. It's a good choice, if you've never read anything by her before, because it's so short.
Hi, Angie,
I'm glad you stopped by :). I'm glad you're enjoying my blog, and I hope you'll come back! It sounds like we do have quite a bit in common. Just to clarify, I'm actually not from a large family - my family only has 3 children - but I pray that God will bless me with a houseful someday :).
My sister and I read Lord of the Rings for the first time together, and also had to take turns reading :). It's a delightful read! And all of Jane Austen's works are excellent :-D.
MaxiMove LTD are a family run removal company offering home removals and same-day collection and delivery services at a competitive price. It's our goal to listen to our customers and put their requirements first and to provide you with an efficient, reliable and personalised service ensuring your moving day runs smoothly.
Rubbish clearing St Helens
Post a Comment