I drive home from anywhere, and I pass three signs (at least) that are misspelled. "Christmas Bizarre here this weekend." (Yeah, I want to go to THAT!) Clarence sale!! ("Every time a bell rings, an angel gets his wings." That one I may attend...even though it's at Home Depot and they may not actually sell angel wings there...)
One of these days I am going to post on spelling tests. And take pictures of these posted words that torment me.
Today, though, I'm gonna try to focus on just one thought, and write about Dan Brown. The author of The DaVinci Code, Angels and Demons, and his latest effort, The Lost Symbol. I've read all three, but not because I'm a rebellious reader who likes to read controversial books (as you probably think if you know me in real life! Ha!) I don't know if this will make sense or not, but I first read Angels and Demons because I know someone who believes Brown is a brilliant theologian. My former friend, M, and I have had hours of late-night discussions about God and religion. Over the course of years. I have seen her embrace New Age spirituality, Buddhism, mysticism, and all kinds of other things that I don't need to know more about. She once cried, and said that her Bible told her that faith is a spiritual gift, and she wonders why God didn't give it to her--so that she could accept the Jesus she spends so much energy avoiding. She thinks Dan Brown is a genius. So I gave him a shot.
I found in Angels and Demons a gifted writer with a knack for suspense and interesting information embedded throughout the storyline. I was unsatisfied with his conclusions about God and the church, but I was unsatisfied with M's conclusions, too. I saw the hunger there, though, and figured the Holy Spirit was working on both of them. Don't you think the people who truly are indifferent to the things of God wouldn't go around trying to disprove Him all the time?
Well, over time M and I ended our friendship. She grew more and more combative as her struggle took her farther away from the Jesus she so desperately needs. She has since earned her PhD and is an author now, publishing garbage that promises peace. She hasn't found it yet herself. I still pray for her, and won't ever forget the night she cried and asked why she hadn't been given faith. It still makes me sad.
I guess that's how I feel after reading the other two Dan Brown books. Interesting writer, but sad that his conclusions are so far from Jesus. Maybe he's not trying to be subversive. Maybe he's just seeking, like M. According to Wikipedia, he's still trying to answer the questions that people have been asking since the beginning of time. Who is God? How do I relate to Him? And what does Jesus have to do with this whole picture?
Reading the books gave me opportunity to have some good discussions with my brothers about the sovereignty of God and the deity of Christ. But I won't read any more of them. Not that I only read Christian authors, because I don't. I pretty much read anything I can get my hands on. But I guess I'm learning that there's that which is beneficial and bears good fruit, and then there's that which is not worth consuming. For me, these aren't worth consuming any more.
What do you think? Anybody else read them?
No comments:
Post a Comment