XPost: rec.arts.books.tolkien, alt.books.cs-lewis, rec.arts.books.childrens   
   XPost: rec.arts.sf.written   
      
   In rec.arts.books.tolkien Derek Broughton  wrote:   
   > stephen@nomail.com wrote:   
      
   >> In rec.arts.books.tolkien Derek Broughton  wrote:   
   >>> westprog wrote:   
   >>>> Er... Aslan is a fictional character. Lewis is not saying that Christ   
   >>>> did incarnate in other worlds - or that other worlds exist. He's saying   
   >>>> that this is what might happen. If you have a problem with this, then   
   >>>> you have a problem with Lewis.   
   >>   
   >>> No, I have a problem with people who want to define a fictional character   
   >>> as the real Christ.  It's an allegory.   
   >>   
   >> So you do not think people can write fictional stories with Christ   
   >> in them?  Do you object to Tolkien identifying Illuvatar as God?   
      
   > People _can_ write such fiction.  I squirm when I read it.  If you can   
   > accept fiction containing Christ, how can you be sure the gospels are   
   > anything _but_ fiction?  Tolkien identified Iluvatar as the creator of the   
   > universe in which Middle Earth exists.  I don't recall reading that he _is_   
   > God.   
      
   Throughout letters Tolkien repeatedly uses God, Eru and Iluvatar   
   interchangeably.  Iluvatar is God, in a mythical time and place.   
      
   > Tolkien also clearly does identify LOTR and related works as fiction.   
      
   Yes, but it is set in the Europe of mythically long ago, and   
   Eru is the Christian God.   Or if it makes you happier, Eru   
   is the fictionalized account of what the Christian God might   
   have done if He had decided to create Elves.   
      
   > To say that "Aslan _is_ Christ" is to make LWW more than fiction, unless   
   > you are prepared to consider Christ himself fictitious.  A fictional   
   > character can be no more than a representation - ie, an allegory.   
      
   No, you misunderstand what people mean when they say "Aslan _is_ Christ".   
   Real characters appear in fiction all the time.   That does   
   not make it allegory.  Nor does it make the real characters any less   
   real.   
      
   Stephen   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)