The way I would explain this to my daughters ( I have no sons and so forgive me if it doesn't land with the more masculine amongst us)
"A Christian Story teller is like a Christian baker. The story is like a Pie."
Truth is corresponds with the Seeds of the fruit.
goodness corresponds with the flesh of the fruit.
beauty corresponds with the skin of the fruit.
Okay for the metaphor to be worked out.
The basic ingredients of a pie are (we'll use apple pie for this particular metaphor:
1 (14.1 ounce) package pastry for a 9-inch double-crust pie
This is made of: Flour (finely ground seeds, like finely ground truth) water (diluting the truth) butter (goodness itself) and salt (an essential ingredient to taste and preservation)
The crust is beauty of the Pies, just as the introduction/ cover is the beauty of the story. I heard an author say that the first line of a story is the question/ causes the question that the rest of the story is commissioned to answer. "In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit." (Tolkien's The Hobbit) or "THE TRUTH IS?" (Andrew Klavan's Another Kingdom)
¾ cup white sugar, or more to taste
John Calvin once described wine in communion as "A bitter taste that has within it that which makes the heart of man glad" in a similar sense, sugar is bliss! raising the heart, dilating the eyes and causing a smile to form in the mouth of the taster. this should be the desired effect of the Christian Author from his readers.
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
The bark of trees of foreign origins, it is a wonderful addition to pies. so foreign and exotic glories in great stories ought to be encouraged in the highest degree! But, like salt, it can be overdone. so please, only use a dash of the foreign and exotic. think of Mrs. Beaver's Sewing Machine in Narnia.
6 cups thinly sliced apples
only the flesh is meant for the pie, remember to remove the core, skin and seeds of the fruit.
This is where the Christian Artist gets in trouble with the Philisophs of their ages. this is where Lewis is driving at. When you make a good story in a particular genre, crank the goodness to 11 and mute the truth and beauty. at least for apple pie type stories.
Now, some brothers may LOOOOOOVVVVVVEEEE Pecan Pie, and Hazelnut pie type of Stories (Stories jam packed with Truth and bord lime sermon illustrations) and God bless them for their pallet! they should love Pecan Pies and Apple Pies on their own terms.
Hope that Metaphor crumbled like a Graham Cracker Crust LOL! ;)
The way I would explain this to my daughters ( I have no sons and so forgive me if it doesn't land with the more masculine amongst us)
"A Christian Story teller is like a Christian baker. The story is like a Pie."
Truth is corresponds with the Seeds of the fruit.
goodness corresponds with the flesh of the fruit.
beauty corresponds with the skin of the fruit.
Okay for the metaphor to be worked out.
The basic ingredients of a pie are (we'll use apple pie for this particular metaphor:
1 (14.1 ounce) package pastry for a 9-inch double-crust pie
This is made of: Flour (finely ground seeds, like finely ground truth) water (diluting the truth) butter (goodness itself) and salt (an essential ingredient to taste and preservation)
The crust is beauty of the Pies, just as the introduction/ cover is the beauty of the story. I heard an author say that the first line of a story is the question/ causes the question that the rest of the story is commissioned to answer. "In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit." (Tolkien's The Hobbit) or "THE TRUTH IS?" (Andrew Klavan's Another Kingdom)
¾ cup white sugar, or more to taste
John Calvin once described wine in communion as "A bitter taste that has within it that which makes the heart of man glad" in a similar sense, sugar is bliss! raising the heart, dilating the eyes and causing a smile to form in the mouth of the taster. this should be the desired effect of the Christian Author from his readers.
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
The bark of trees of foreign origins, it is a wonderful addition to pies. so foreign and exotic glories in great stories ought to be encouraged in the highest degree! But, like salt, it can be overdone. so please, only use a dash of the foreign and exotic. think of Mrs. Beaver's Sewing Machine in Narnia.
6 cups thinly sliced apples
only the flesh is meant for the pie, remember to remove the core, skin and seeds of the fruit.
This is where the Christian Artist gets in trouble with the Philisophs of their ages. this is where Lewis is driving at. When you make a good story in a particular genre, crank the goodness to 11 and mute the truth and beauty. at least for apple pie type stories.
Now, some brothers may LOOOOOOVVVVVVEEEE Pecan Pie, and Hazelnut pie type of Stories (Stories jam packed with Truth and bord lime sermon illustrations) and God bless them for their pallet! they should love Pecan Pies and Apple Pies on their own terms.
Hope that Metaphor crumbled like a Graham Cracker Crust LOL! ;)