IndigoChild5559
Loving God and my neighbor as myself.
There are those who insist that the Bible does not contain any myth, because in their view, myth means it is a lie. Their sole way of reading literature is that it is either history and therefore true, or it is not history and therefore a lie. They do not show respect for mythology.
But myth is basically a genre that is not historical but imparts deeper truths and values. It's not whether Narnia exists, but what can we learn from the Chronicles of Narnia.
Allow me to show how deeply spiritual myth can be using The Lord of the Rings. One can learn a lot from this trilogy of books. It is filled with commentary on situations needing moral discernment, and teaches right behavior from the example of its protagonists. One could, if one wanted to, use the LOTR as a sacred text (although that would be highly unusual).j
Here are some examples:
On capital punishment
"Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life. ... Then do not be too eager to deal out death in judgement.”
On terrible things happening in the world:
“I wish it need not have happened in my time,” said Frodo.
“So do I,” said Gandalf, “and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”
On the importance of loyalty:
“Faithless is he who says farewell when the road darkens”, said Gimli
On not looking at outward appearences:
“All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost.”
On the significance of small, individual acts
“The road must be trod, but it will be very hard. And neither strength nor wisdom will carry us far upon it. This quest may be attempted by the weak with as much hope as the strong. Yet it is oft the course of deeds that move the wheels of the world: Small hands do them because they must, while the eyes of the great are elsewhere.”
And just plain old wisdom:
“Advice is a dangerous gift, even from the wise to the wise, and all courses may run ill.”
“He that breaks a thing to find out what it is has left the path of wisdom.”
“The wide world is all about you: you can fence yourselves in, but you cannot for ever fence it out.”
I could go on and on, and I haven't even finished offering quotes from the Fellowship of the Ring, which is only the first book.
There is just such spiritual richness and depth in this trilogy, which is certainly myth. It should make you really begin to respect myth.
But myth is basically a genre that is not historical but imparts deeper truths and values. It's not whether Narnia exists, but what can we learn from the Chronicles of Narnia.
Allow me to show how deeply spiritual myth can be using The Lord of the Rings. One can learn a lot from this trilogy of books. It is filled with commentary on situations needing moral discernment, and teaches right behavior from the example of its protagonists. One could, if one wanted to, use the LOTR as a sacred text (although that would be highly unusual).j
Here are some examples:
On capital punishment
"Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life. ... Then do not be too eager to deal out death in judgement.”
On terrible things happening in the world:
“I wish it need not have happened in my time,” said Frodo.
“So do I,” said Gandalf, “and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”
On the importance of loyalty:
“Faithless is he who says farewell when the road darkens”, said Gimli
On not looking at outward appearences:
“All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost.”
On the significance of small, individual acts
“The road must be trod, but it will be very hard. And neither strength nor wisdom will carry us far upon it. This quest may be attempted by the weak with as much hope as the strong. Yet it is oft the course of deeds that move the wheels of the world: Small hands do them because they must, while the eyes of the great are elsewhere.”
And just plain old wisdom:
“Advice is a dangerous gift, even from the wise to the wise, and all courses may run ill.”
“He that breaks a thing to find out what it is has left the path of wisdom.”
“The wide world is all about you: you can fence yourselves in, but you cannot for ever fence it out.”
I could go on and on, and I haven't even finished offering quotes from the Fellowship of the Ring, which is only the first book.
There is just such spiritual richness and depth in this trilogy, which is certainly myth. It should make you really begin to respect myth.