NARNIA!!!!
Do not feel compelled to click on my ad above. – BUM
So I saw Narnia on Sunday. It was a well-made movie. I could only vaguely remember the first version I had seen when I was in 2nd grade. And boy, when they said that it was a Christian allegory, they weren’t kidding.
In the movie, the lion Aslan sacrifices himself for the sake of Edmund. Now, in the movie, you definitely get the urge to smack Edmund a few times because he’s a whiny selfish brat. You also get the impression that everyone thinks very highly of Aslan.
This makes what happens all the more incredible. Aslan sacrifices himself in place of Edmund – (Edmund had betrayed his family and his side by being a traitor, and the penalty is death, see the connection?).
So Aslan willingly gives himself to be sacrificed in a humiliating way for Edmund’s sake. The White Witch (the one demanding the punishment be upheld) accepts this trade.
As the audience, you’re thinking, ok, touching act of self-sacrifice, but now Aslan, you’ve left your army without it’s capable leader…awesome.
So the armies start to fight, and it turns out that Aslan comes back to life because the law that demands death also says that if a guiltless willing sacrifice is made, then…you get to come back to life or something like that. Aslan tells us how it works.
And Aslan comes in to save the battle – the leader is back.
So you’re kinda left thinking, wow, what a self-less act, he would give up his own life for another’s…and then you say, wait a minute, he died for like 5 hours to come back good as new for another person’s life.
As we left the theater I said, “I don’t understand, it isn’t a sacrifice if you get to take it back.”
I had 2 separate people turn around and start to say something to me…but then they looked like they were thinking and turned back around. We all continued in one big crowd toward the door of the theatre and about a minute and a half later one of them turned around and said, “yeah, that is kinda funny isn’t it?” “Especially if you knew you were coming back in advance, which clearly Aslan did,” I said.
The other one turned and said, “But Jesus didn’t come back to life to live his life out on Earth.” – “You’re right, his sacrifice is to endure eternal bliss in heaven for all eternity,” (me again). “hmm…” from the 2 that spoke to me. As I left the door I heard at least 3 separate conversations say essentially, “yeah, that is kinda weird, isn’t it?”
So if anyone can explain that to me, that’d be awesome. If you can’t, it’s something to think about, isn’t it?
P.S. I promise that I was on impeccable behavior the entire time the movie was on, no scoffing or anything, this was all on the way out of the theatre : )
there are some scriptures that prophize that Jesus will come back eventually, to rid the world of all evil, once and for all. but that’s simplifying it.
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“there are some scriptures that prophize that Jesus will come back eventually, to rid the world of all evil, once and for all.but that’s simplifying it.-Agent #2” What does THAT have to do with whether there was a sacrifice involved???
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Argh. I was waffling about seeing the movie because it LOOKS cool but I know in advance it’s just going to be theistic propaganda…and now I don’t think I can see it. I don’t think I could keep quiet during that scene. Thanks. Thanks a lot. :Þ
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I have to see it just because of the techno. But… CSLewis turned what was/is a mythological story into a genuine fabled/allegorical (talking animals)story (much more palitable for children and non-thinking BUMs). You’re not suppose to question the premises! Did you question Nemo going down the sink and surviving the sewer treatment plant? Resurrection, indeed!
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OH, and your questions were VERY good, thought-provoking ones – for those who swallow fishhooks whole. (notice my continuing “fish-y” analogy!) But now, did you also spoil for them Spiderman, Superman, the Fantasic Four, The X-Men,…?*grin* And I’m pleased you were on good behavior… a model Cynic I can be proud of!
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You’re assuming the punishment is to die. That’s not the punishment. The punishment is to be separated from what Aslan would call, “the deep magic,” the source of all things. Death is not punishment in the Christian frame of reference of CS Lewis. In plain Christian speak, Jesus punishment was to be severed from God the Father, with whom he had a close relationship.
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So stealth… still, if aslan was only “separated from the deep magic” as you say, for 5 hrs. What’s the sacrifice? A sacrifice isn’t a sacrifice if you get to “take it back.”
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The sacrifice is to be severed from a relationship, and for it to never be the same again. The focus of the “it’s not a sacrifice if you get it back” focuses only on the physicality of Jesus. That part is not the most substantive part. Furthermore, we don’t know what happened to Jesus while he was physically dead. Catholic dogma asserts he was in Hell during that time.
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dude, it’s a talking lion that leads armies. talking lions are capable of anything and everything, and they are not bound by any sort of religious rule that might have bound Jesus.
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Well… Jesus was alive on earth (which was a horrible place) for only a very short time considering eternity in heaven… so he knew he was going back to a better and bliss place… but it was still a sacrifice because the act of just that little time even… if you think of it that way it’s kind of what Jesus did also… I get your point though in the other way of thinking about it…
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Cont: Also that humiliation and going through the pain of it is still bad either way and that is a sacrifice still… if you think of it really. I really enjoyed that scene though… it made me a little teary eyed cause I was picturing Christ and not some lion lol… but yeah. Good thoughts/question on the movie 🙂
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No takesies backsies!!! The sacrafice scene would have been a lot more tense if the little kids in the back weren’t making shadow puppets on the screen. Heehee. But anyway, I agree. What sacrafice? Nothing was lost really in Jesus’ or Aslan’s case, besides a tiny bit of dignity.
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I liked the movie and in the movie the thing actually makes much more sense that the Xtian sacrifice story. It’s simple good guy can die and come back. From the book you can see that Aslan’s plan is based on coming back to surprise the queen…
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Haha. I am excited to see that movie, even if it doesn’t make sense… And I really do not care if it is a Christian allegory. I can still enjoy it. I have all those old school Narnia movies (well, except one of them)…I was quite the fan as a young’un.
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I read the series when I was young, and I just thought, “Oh, how clever of Aslan!” I didn’t think it was really supposed to be a sacrifice.
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It’s the same as the philosophical question, “Can there be a truly selfless act?” We had this discussion in colege about Agape, or selfless love, and the Christians in class hijacked it into an, “Only Jesus has agape love,” crap fest. This can also be extrapolated into the omniscience of God and free will, predestination, etc. Good food for thought and discussion.
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