With Narnia fast approaching (screening on 4^th March in Japan), I too joined the hype and anticipation, and have been reading the whole Chronicles of Narnia. I just finished The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (5^th book chronologically, out of 7), and to someone who have no prior knowledge about the books, was surprised with many parallels that can be drawn to Christianity.

Ok, no doubt, this nothing new to Narnian scholars around the world, or to Narnian fans, or even to those who may come across some articles, or overheard from a friend. But hey, it’s new to me, so don’t flame me for writing a post on an “old piece of news” can?

* Warning – Spoilers*

Similarities to the Bible:

1. Starting from The Magician’s Nephew, Aslan was said and known to be the Son of the Emperor-Over-Sea. Cf. with Jesus, who is the Son of God. [1] Why lion then? Well, ask any Christian and they can tell you that Jesus is also referred to as the Lion of Judah.

2. In The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Aslan was put to death by the White Witch on the Stone Table in the place of a traitor - symbolic of the Crucifixion. [1]

3. Also, when he was resurrected, when many were scared (thought see ghost), he asked them to approach and touch his paws and his warmth. Much like what Jesus did when he asked some disbelieving disciples to touch his pierced hands, and his pierced sides.

4. Also in the LWW, Aslan magically fed his people. This is similar to several instances of God's providence in the Bible, including when God's provision of manna for the Hebrews in the Sinai desert and how Jesus miraculously fed the crowds following Him with loaves and fishes. [3]

5. After turning from a lamb (Jesus was often said to be the Lamb of God in the Bible) back into a lion (Christ was often called the Lion of the Tribe of Judea) in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, he announced he was known by another name in our world, and while that name is not mentioned specifically, the connotations and imagery in Aslan's story strongly suggest that he was referring to Christ. [1][2]

6. In The Silver Chair, the dead King Caspian was brought to Aslan's terriritory, where Caspian lay in a river. Aslan commanded Eustace to prick his paw with a thorn, and Aslan let the blood drop on Caspian, who in turn came alive. This is symbolic of how only Jesus's blood when he died on the cross could bring man to heaven (and give them life), and the water that purifies. The thorn is symbolic of the crown of thorns, and that Eustace pricked his paw is symbolic of how man put Christ on the cross. [2]

7. When Narnia was destroyed in The Last Battle, Aslan judged every creature who had died. It turned out his kingdom was the real Narnia and the one that was destroyed was merely a copy. [3] Ring a bell?

8. The only explicit reference to Christianity occurs in The Last Battle, which is itself an allegorical version of the Bible's Book of Revelations. In it, King Tirian and The Friends of Narnia were marvelling at how the stable contained a complete world within it. Lucy mused, "Even in our world, a stable once contained something larger than the entire world," a clear reference to the Nativity of Jesus Christ in Bethlehem. [3]

Of course, the centre of these all is Aslan.

“He takes the role of a Christ-like figure, though according to Lewis he is not an allegorical portrayal of Christ, but rather a different, hypothetical, incarnation of Christ himself:

If Aslan represented the immaterial Deity, he would be an allegorical figure. In reality however he is an invention giving an imaginary answer to the question, 'What might Christ become like if there really were a world like Narnia and He chose to be incarnate and die and rise again in that world as He actually has done in ours?' This is not allegory at all.

Thus, Lewis claimed that the Chronicles were not Christian allegory because they are not allegory, not because they are not Christian.” [1]

“Lewis intended them (the stories) more to be “supposals” (rather than allegories). Suppose, he thought, a world existed where Talking Beasts roamed the land and the characters of mythology really sprang to life? Suppose Evil entered that world? Suppose the Son of God ruled that world? What form would He take? How would He reveal His character? Lewis’s “supposals” are contained in The Chronicles of Narnia. Through these stories, we gain a fresh vision of human nature and the interactions of a just yet loving God with the created beings of His world.” [4]

A letter written, supporting this view, from Magdalene College, Cambridge, where Lewis was a don, says, “Supposing there really was a world like Narnia . . . and supposing Christ wanted to go into that world and save it (as He did ours) what might have happened?

“The stories are my answer. Since Narnia is a world of talking beasts, I thought he would become a talking beast there as he became a man here. I pictured him becoming a lion there because a) the lion is supposed to be the king of beasts; b) Christ is called ‘the lion of Judah’ in the Bible.” [5]

Anyway, besides this Christian thing which some of you may or may not be interested in, here’s a bit of history in the beginning of the LWW as well. Ever wondered why the 4 children were sent to live with Prof Digory? Well, here’s some historical background to it:

During World War II, England was faced with war on its doorstep. The advent of fighter planes and bombers meant that civilians were not safe at home while soldiers fought England’s enemies in France, Germany, and beyond, especially since part of the strategy of the German army was to attack civilians and thus weaken the morale of Germany’s opponents. When England became engaged in the war, this danger was known, and heavy causalities were predicted among the civilian population, particularly in London. As the center of government and the most populous English city, London was often targeted for attack. Though the civilian loss of life was not as great as originally predicted, it was still quite heavy.

On September 1, 1939, two days before war was declared in England, efforts began to evacuate over 1 million children from London and the more populous areas of England. Many were sent to live with relatives or with foster families in the countryside, in Cornwall, and in Scotland. More than 16,000 were sent overseas, though some of these children died in enemy attacks en route. Despite the efforts at evacuation, the war took its ghastly toll. More than one in ten air raid victims were children under the age of 16. Official estimates place the child death toll during the war at 7,736. In addition, 7,622 were seriously wounded in the attacks. Including adults, more than 60,595 civilians were killed by enemy action in Great Britain during the war, with another 86,182 seriously injured.

The fictitious Pevensie children (Pevensie is Lucy, Susan, Edmund, and Peter’s surname) were placed with an eccentric but wise professor who lived in a large house in the country. According to Douglas Gresham (co-producer of the LWW film, as well as step-son of Lewis himself), C.S. Lewis himself harbored some children during the war effort. In fact, the Professor Digory character (who appears in several Narnian tales) shares many characteristics with Lewis himself. [4]

And lastly, a little trivia on C.S. Lewis himself. He was part of the Inklings, a literary discussion group associated with the University of Oxford, England. Its members included such notables as J. R. R. Tolkien (yes, yes, the Tolkien of the LOTR), Charles Williams and Hugo Dyson. Readings and discussions of the members' unfinished works were the principal purposes of meetings. [2]

There. Hopefully for those who have read these for the first time, hopefully it will cast some new light to the series. As a final note, it will be fair to add that Lewis himself mentioned that he did not write the series to be Christian books; just that somehow, his Christian beliefs found its way into his stories.

References:

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aslan

[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Chronicles_of_Narnia

[3] http://narniaconfidential.com/Christian%20Themes

[4] http://www.homescholar.org/unit_study.htm

[5] http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2087-1903338,00.html