Comments on: What is the duty of the Christian writer?

By: Random Name

Random Name — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 19:54:17 +0000

#37

These Little Ones, I am assuming (perhaps incorrectly, in which case, I apologize) that you are addressing me.

Or maybe people are just different on blogs? I think this is absolutely true, and very similar to how many people are more aggressive when they drive. People who wouldn’t necessarily shove their way in front of you at a supermarket line or a movie ticket queue, may cut you off as they merge their car on the freeway.

I’m not particularly tough in person so I generally avoid threatening or insulting people when I am face to face with them.

On the other hand, when a person is nothing more than pixels on my computer monitor, originating from thousands of miles away, I insult them with impunity.

Oh, oh. Somebody just knocked on our door…

(This is true. Somebody just knocked on our door, but it was a perfectly nice person who will be a neighbor of ours. Well, that’s what he said, anyway. For all I know, he’s really a member of “The Secret Agenda.”)

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By: theselittleones

theselittleones — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 03:02:39 +0000

Or maybe people are just different on blogs? I find it way easier to be confrontational on blogs than in person. Except with my husband. LOL But I’m working on it.

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By: Random Name

Random Name — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 01:06:51 +0000

I have not figured out how to get the rebels to leave the loyalists to themselves for even a little bit of time. The frail spots in Victoria’s fabric are so weak that if she were left by herself to talk to other Christians for a week, she would fall right off the tapestry.

I had a good friend at one time who was an evangelical feminist (and I am sure not pro-abortion just as Palin is a feminist, assertive, pro-life woman). Every church my friend joined she ended up leaving because she was too assertive for the other woman in the congregation. She was a much more interesting and likable person than Victoria probably is, but I suspect Victoria either belongs to a very eccentric church or a very very tolerant one.

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By: Teenage_Tinkerbell

Teenage_Tinkerbell — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 18:38:27 +0000

David L. I want to be a writer when I grow up, mainly a journalist, becuase I firmly believe that the media could use a Christian worldveiw. I also like to write stories. I’ve already written one book, and yeah it was awful. Oh well, live and learn. But someday I will publish something that has a Christain worldveiw that is entertaining and otherwise isn’t trash. What’s wrong with that? I think that Christain writing is a great occupation. Literature is a cornerstone of society. Are we just going to let that part of society be overrun by the world? Aren’t we supposed to let our light shine in all things?I think that writing as a Christian is a worthy ” cross to bear” becuase it can reach alot of people, look at Jerry B Jenkins and Tim Lahaye a lot of people came to Christ from the Left Behind series . Tolkien, Lewis, Sheldon, and Bunyan all reached people for Christ through this ” unworthy calling” Really if you think about it if there were more Christains in the media maybe our society wouldn’t be where it is. Christians for a large part have forsaken the media to the world. Which we are not supposed to do. Aren’t we supposed to minister to Jerusalem , Judea and the ends of the earth respectively? Aren’t we supposed to invest our time here at home too?

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By: arcadia

arcadia — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 14:54:19 +0000

Whoops!

Victoria: I have found that those who feel their imaginations and fictional writing are of such importance are hard pressed to understand that they aren’t able to deal with the realities of this world, but rather live in a make-believe world which doesn’t exist. It’s a solitary world of make-believe when one continues the quest for something other than reality.

On the 10 point irony meter, that one’s about a 30!

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By: arcadia

arcadia — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 14:53:09 +0000

On the 10 point irony meter, that one’s about a 30.

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By: Bob Buckles

Bob Buckles — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 03:54:09 +0000

David L

I would like to talk about a trilogy, J.R.R.Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings. If I remember correctly, it was not a Christian allegory, nor based on the Bible. It was not a story of Christ or an evangelistic endeavor. It was a story by a Christian (And a Catholic!).

It was such a good story that when it was made into a movie that it was made very close to the book. It has not come out that any of the actors, directors or producers were or are Christian. Yet, did it not tug at many Christians’ heart strings? Did it not bring many Christians to contemplate Christ and his blessings? Did many not think of His suffering and death, resurrection and ascension?

It drew me to Christ. Was I alone in this?

The writing was good. Not, it was good writing, it was good. All of it was good.

The movie was also good. I have a longing for Home when I watch it, when I think on it. I am not of this world, I want to go Home.

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By: Victoria

Victoria — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 03:47:21 +0000

I strongly disagree, we will leave it at that. If you are unable understand what Christ meant in Matthew 13:10-18, there is no point in my trying to further explain it.

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By: Serious George

Serious George — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 03:08:01 +0000

Nobody’s trying to trump the Word of God, Victoria. Good grief. Fiction is fiction. Jesus’ parables are spiritually informative fiction from an unimpeachible author. Similarly, but not with the same authority, we can learn from the fiction of eloquent men the things of God. They’re not on par with the fictional stories told by Christ in the sense that the conceptions of the authors must be questioned and tested in a way that Jesus’ stories, considering their source, don’t allow. But the forms are the same. Jesus’ parables are fiction. Human novels are fiction. The authors are not comparable. Learn from the first and test your own mind. Learn from the second after testing the minds of their authors against the mind of Christ. But don’t quibble categories of communication like this sorts things out.

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By: Victoria

Victoria — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 02:49:44 +0000

Stubob – 27

You write:… ” If so, what’s the meaning of the word “parable” as used in the Scripture? If not, how are they not “fiction”?”

The short answer to your question is; the LORD used parables, but they were in direct relation to what HE meant regarding sin, wayward children, the four seeds, etc., that is a far cry from those who proport to call what they write – fiction as comparison to parables – there is no comparison.

Below is Christ’s answer:

10 And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables?

11 He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.

12 For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath.

13 Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.

14 And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive:

15 For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.

16 But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.

17 For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.

18 Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower.

Matthew 13

As you can see Stubob, Christ taught in parables for a distinct reason, it was HIS way, and only HIS, to give forth the Word of GOD. It is man’s foolish idea that he can trump the Word of God in trying to use fiction and then comparing it to parables, it doesn’t work – whether it is is Biblical fiction, or secular, either way ‘little man’s’ fictional works are not Parables.

Christ taught in parables. Thereby the things of God were made more plain and easy to those willing to be taught, and at the same time more difficult and obscure to those who were willingly ignorant. The parable of the sower is plain. The seed sown is the word of God. The sower is our Lord Jesus Christ, by himself, or by his ministers. Preaching to a multitude is sowing the corn; we know not where it will light. Some sort of ground, though we take ever so much pains with it, brings forth no fruit to purpose, while the good soil brings forth plentifully. So it is with the hearts of men, whose different characters are here described by four sorts of ground. Careless, trifling hearers, are an easy prey to Satan; who, as he is the great murderer of souls, so he is the great thief of sermons, and will be sure to rob us of the word, if we take not care to keep it. Matthew Henry

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