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Speculative Faith Reading Group 8: The Stone Table

In “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe,” how has Aslan’s death affected you, and how does it affect you now? How do other stories’ heroes’ deaths remind you of Christ’s ultimate death? · E. Stephen Burnett

Speculative Faith Reading Group 7: Aslan Springs Forth

In these two chapters, watch for this contrast: of the wrong sort of “seriousness” — the manipulative, duty-driven dominance of the Witch — versus the joyful, holy, righteous seriousness that Aslan brings. · E. Stephen Burnett

Shining Light In ‘The Dark Knight’

“You’ll hunt me; you’ll condemn me,” Batman says at the end of The Dark Knight. “That’s what needs to happen.” Some Christians cried: “No it’s not! Heroes don’t lie!” They miss the point. · E. Stephen Burnett

Speculative Faith Reading Group 5: Enter The Lion

Who is Aslan? Is he the same as Jesus Christ? An “allegory” for Him? Or something else entirely? Who would we ask? Also, what about that strange “Lilith” explanation for the White Witch, from “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe”? · E. Stephen Burnett

Secrets Of The ‘Firebird’ Story

“Daystar” author Kathy Tyers shares the connection between her now-concluded “Firebird” series and the real world. · Kathy Tyers

Rearranging Icons 4: Characters Becoming Icons

For every Christian, icons are inevitable. But they must show a process of redemption. Christ the “Icon” of the Father underwent suffering. So should we, as we image Him, and so should art and story characters, which image us. · E. Stephen Burnett

Sex In The Story 5: More Male Mythologies

We may always have sex caricatures in stories, and they may balance each other out. But how do we cure stock males, gender-neutrals, bad boys, men-children, faith-based supermen, and Prophesied Heroes™? · E. Stephen Burnett

Jesus Christ: Return Of The Warrior-King

Our stories may rightly emphasize Jesus the humble sacrifice for sin. But less often do our creations also explore Christ the conquering warrior. · A. T. Ross

‘Hobbit’ Hopes and Other Happenings

“The Hobbit” teaser finally arrives, Gandalf’s and Dumbledore’s first-century ancestors seek the newborn King, the dangers of appearance-based book discernment, Christmas un-specials, and: why should Christians hype “The Hobbit”? · E. Stephen Burnett

Speculative Christmas, Episode I: A New Hope

Even an imperfect story can help begin a conversation about the Real Story. · Fred Warren

The Encouragement Of Story

The superhero film “Thor” encouraged me, a friend of mine said. How should great stories encourage us? What stories have encouraged you by echoing to you God, or our nature and response to Him, or the beauty of God’s world, or all three? · E. Stephen Burnett

Thunders Of ‘Thor’ Echo Biblical Truths, Part 1

Thor’s pagan myths remind us of Scripture’s truth, real worship, and longing for a good and noble King. · E. Stephen Burnett

Romanticizing Christ?

I suspect, however, that the problem for most Christian fiction isn’t in romanticizing Christ — because, quite frankly, He isn’t in most Christian fiction, not even in a lot of speculative fiction. Rather we might be romanticizing our relationship with Him. · Rebecca LuElla Miller

Refuting Universalism Slanders Of C.S. Lewis, Part 2

In C.S. Lewis’s “The Last Battle,” the character Emeth did not at first believe in Aslan, yet still somehow crossed over into paradise. Christians get confused about this. Some use it to reject Lewis as a universalist. Is that a right reading? · E. Stephen Burnett

How God Saved Me While I Read A Novel

I doubt that Thyra Ferre Bjorn was making a statement about abortion when she wrote her book in the 1950s. I don’t think she intended to prick the heart of a young woman, some thirty years later, who had purposefully killed two of her children via the abortionist’s table. But God used her book to save my life. · Sally Apokedak

Observations: Speculating Faith

In the interest of a prelude, before Christmas I wrote a piece called Inherently Religious, in which I argued that some events and symbolism are by nature religious, and, therefore, they cannot properly be used in any other way – […] · Kaci Hill

Artist ‘priests,’ God-centered Definitions and More

You know those infamous “clip shows” television sitcoms sometimes have, perhaps at the end of a season when the financial and ideas budgets are both running low? This will not be like that. Rather I present here a roundup of […] · E. Stephen Burnett

Fighting Man-Centered Monsters In Christian Fantasy

Stories like “The Voyage of the Dawn Treader” that make a Christ-figure a means to fulfilling one’s destiny are little better than atheism. · E. Stephen Burnett

How Do We Love A Fiction Legalist? Part 3

Three ways to love a fiction “legalist” — that is, a Christian who opposes fantasy or fiction, or more often simply considers them pointless, useless and unnecessary to Godward growth. · E. Stephen Burnett
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