Okay – so I’m a sucker for fairytales. Just ask my mom. Growing up I practically lived in a little fairytale world. Gee, as an aspiring author, I kind of kept that mentality into adulthood. 🙂
So when the season finale of Once Upon a Time came on last night, I had to fight 5 kids (and the animated adventures of Spiderman) to get to see bits and pieces of it.
I’m not a diehard fan. It’s a fun way to pass the time – but as I watched last episode something popped to mind.
In last week’s episode we find out that August is Pinocchio. (MUCH cuter than the Disney version, btw), and he tries to convince Emma (the savior) about the curse of Storybrooke. I usually don’t put a lot of spiritual depth to these sort of things, but August makes a statement that I thought was interesting…and deeply spiritual.
Emma doesn’t believe August when he tell her about the magic of Storybrooke and the curse of the whole town. She doesn’t believe even when he SHOWS her that his body is turning back to wood. When Henry (the little boy- and Emma’s son) confronts him, August says,
“She didn’t believe because she doesn’t want to believe.”
That statement struck me as SOOOOOO Biblical, and was just a reminder of why C.S. Lewis, George MacDonald, and J.R.R. Tolkien used the venue of fantasy to teach Biblical truths.
Why doesn’t everyone believe in a love that is boundless and free – that was given to us as a way to be right with God? Why doesn’t everyone see the majesty of a Creator-God and the wonder of a Gracious-God?
Because they don’t want to. Their minds and hearts are blinded by the ‘but what about’s
I’m not saying that Once Upon a Time meant to show any Christian theme at all. It certainly portrays good vs evil and love conquering all (even death), but as a Christian, I thought it was interesting to see that simple connection.
What was one of your favorite fantasy-novels which shows spiritual truths?
The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe is probably one of the most known.
The Princess and the Goblin? or Lilith?
The Lord of the Rings?
Definitely Lord of the Rings. Tolkien was a master. Brilliant. And thank goodness he didn’t give up on his friend, C.S. Lewis. What a void there would’ve been! Can you imagine no Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe?
I’m a BIG LOTR fan, Marney. LOVE them. And they did such a nice job on the movies too.
And no “White White” and “Aslan”? Shudder – I don’t even want to think about it
I find that there are huge Christian themes in Once Upon a Time. People living in a world where there is no happily ever after because of a curse. That people are a shadow of their true selves and don’t know who they really are. That magic always has a price…there are no neutral events, nothing without deeper consequences. That there are believers and non-beleivers. That the curse is unraveling with the appearance of a Savior…”the kingdom is upon you.”
While it is not explicilty Christian, the LOST writers are at it again expressing gospel themes in their work.
FANTASTIC analysis. Right on!
The whole idea of the ‘savior’ being in Once Upon a Time was a pretty obvious analogy 🙂
When I watch Once Upon a Time, I’m so struck by how close they come to the truth, and yet still miss the only hope available. ‘True love,’ their more powerful form of magic, is still inadequate, and even comes out twisted and destroys as often as it redeems (almost everything Regina has done in Storeybrook is motivated by her love for Henry, all the manipulations and even the curse itself is caused by Rumplestiltskin’s trying to redeem himself for losing his son – not to mention the affair between David and Mary Margaret when they didn’t remember their identities and his Storeybrook identity was married to someone else). We see brokenness (especially in my favorite character, Mr. Gold), we see regret and even times when characters are ‘broken, humbled to the dust’ at their deep awareness of what we know is sin and they know as regret. When I saw Gold stabbed and helpless in the preview last week, my heart cried ‘oh Lord, use this to bring him to You!’ But there is no one to bring the gospel to Storeybrook.
Great thoughts here, Tabitha
And so true!
True love – love that sets us free- is in Christ, alone.
I think the missing ‘story’ here is the one that heals the deepest ‘curse’, our sin.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts.