Preachy Fiction
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.
Luke 4:18-19
It seems to me that the most frequent goal of modern Christian fiction writers is to ‘not be preachy’. Sometimes it is put as ‘appealing to a general audience’ or ‘appealing to a secular audience’. I am going to propose that that goal is… wrong. Wrong from top to bottom, wrong from beginning to end.
A Good Story
Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower.
When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which received seed by the way side.
But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it;
Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended.
He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.
But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.
Matthew 13:18-23
The Scriptures are filled with good stories. Some of the most influential stories in the history of the world. Certainly the most influential in the western world. They are good stories.
But they are preachy. They have a moral, theological, even gospel orientation and message. They are good stories, highly read stories, and they are preachy.
Does anyone argue that CS Lewis’s Narnia books aren’t good stories? And yet they are preachy. The carry the gospel message, but also lots of other messages. Lots of theology. (Some of which, perhaps, not the best theology, but theology!)
The Goal of Our Fiction
Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus:
That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Romans 15:5-6
As Christian writers our goal in our fiction, as in our goal in all of life, should be to glorify God. We can do so in several ways. Just at the Scriptures contain uncommented history, parables, and outright preaching… so we can write fiction, non-fiction and more or less explicitly Christian writing.
But our goal must always be to be preaching. Our preaching might be in the form of the story, the struggle of the characters… or it might be more overt, with a Bible verse in front of each chapter, and long quotations from sermons. But all of these should share the same goals… to glorify God and preach the gospel.
So, Christians… make your writing preachy. Make your fiction writing preachy. Make them good stories, but make them preachy. Indeed, something can only be a good story if it is preachy.
Thank you for reading Von’s Substack. I would love it if you commented! I love hearing from readers, especially critical comments. I would love to start more letter exchanges, so if there’s a subject you’re interested in, get writing and tag me!
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Von also writes as ‘Arthur Yeomans’. Under that name he writes children’s, YA, and adult fiction from a Christian perspective. His books are published by Wise Path Books and include the children’s/YA books:
The Bobtails meet the Preacher’s Kid
and
As well as GK Chesterton’s wonderful book, “What’s Wrong with the World”, for which ‘Arthur’ wrote most of the annotations.
Arthur also has a substack, and a website. On the substack you can listen to some of his published books. Free.
Thanks again, God Bless, Soli Deo gloria,
Von
Links
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There are things that the Christian author can do that the secular author cannot. They can pretend, they can assume, they can point… but the secular author can never arrive. The road they point down has no destination.
Preachy Fiction
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
Christian Fiction and... Sex
Behold, thou art fair, my love; behold, thou art fair; thou hast doves' eyes within thy locks: thy hair is as a flock of goats, that appear from mount Gilead.
When is it Profanity?
Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
What Is Christian Fiction?
Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.
When you sell fiction as entertainment, it is your first duty to at least try to entertain. Anything else is fraud, and a sin. One glorifies God by honestly selling what you claim to sell.
To also preach insofar as it is possible is also good, but remember that C.S. Lewis observed that a Christian's writing should be edifying insofar as that is possible.
Really interesting stuff! I certainly agree that everything we write should be rooted in truth and the gospels. What do you mean by "preachy?" You mentioned Lewis, and I appreciate that example, but could you give some specific instances of it from the Narnia books? I ask because I wouldn't have described TCoN as preachy.
Similarly, I would love to know if you have thoughts on Flannery O'Connor. She's about as modern as you can get, but also deeply Christian. She's another one I wouldn't have described as "preachy."
Thanks for sharing!