Forbidden and Permitted Apples

At the center of the garden of Eden there were two trees (unless you think there was only one tree): the Tree of Life and the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. The Torah relates to us that the serpent seduced Eve to eat from the Tree of Knowledge and she eventually fed the same fruit to Adam. As punishment (amongst others) the pair were exiled from the Garden lest they eat from the Tree of Life.

The two trees of the Garden make their appearance in two of Lewis’ fiction works: the Tree of Knowledge in Perelandra and the Tree of Life in The Magician's Nephew. As the Tree of Knowledge was at the root (pun intended) of the Original Sin, Perelandra recreates that scenario. The sin of eating from the Tree of Knowledge is replaced by the prohibition of sleeping overnight on Fixed Land. The Devil (the serpent), played by Weston, attempts to seduce Tinidril (Eve) to sin. The main thrust of the Devil’s argument is that in fact God wants Tinidril to disobey His command and act godly by demonstrating independence from Him. We discussed this here. 

The Tree of Life makes its appearance in The Magician's Nephew. There we find an actual garden surrounded by a gate with the Tree of Life at its center. The gate no doubt parallels the biblical cherubim and fiery sword used to guard the pathway to the Garden of Eden. However, unlike the biblical Tree of Life which appears to be impossible to get to, the Narnian Tree of Life is easily reachable. Actually, it seems anybody can come in and take from the fruit and, if one takes from the fruit for others, is even permitted to do so.

Why? 

Why does Lewis not adhere to the biblical story and essentially make the Tree of Life unreachable?

(To be continued when I figure out an answer. Feel free to make suggestions) 

Grape Juice for Jewish Rituals

Though it has nothing to do with Narnia, I just wanted to let everyone know that my discussion with R' Drew of the Jewish Drinking Podcast is now live. Many thanks to R' Drew for giving me the opportunity to discuss this interesting topic which so neatly lies at the intersection Jewish Law and American History. 

Ba'alei Teshuva in The Horse and His Boy

We have already spoken of the Chronicles’ two great ba’alei teshuva, “returnees” to the true religion, Edmund and Eustace. Edmund had rebelled against his siblings and, for his own personal gain, joined the forces of evil. Eustace suffered from the lack of a spiritual upbringing and refused to see the truth when clearly presented to him. The first two returnees we will discuss in The Horse and His Boy seek the truth for another reason, they have learned the evils of their former worldview and are seeking an alternative.

Shasta is raised by his adoptive father the fisherman Arsheesh and is motivated to look elsewhere when he is sold as a slave. Aravis is raised in the home of a powerful Calormen Tarkhan and is sold as a wife to one she does not love. Both are looking for a better life elsewhere and are drawn to Narnia by talking horses they meet.

However, there is a sharp contrast between them Shasta and Aravis. Shasta is a natural Northerner and has long had an impulse to travel in that direction. When alerted that this impulse arises from his natural propensity as a Northerner, he immediately claims to identify himself with this new culture (though he does not yet know it). Aravis is a Calormene and in every way a stranger to Northern ethics and culture. If anything, she has been taught to hate this culture. Yet, she follows a guide who promises her a better life as the biblical Ruth followed her mother-in-law to the Land of Israel.

The Horse and His Boy feature other returnees as well. The two horses themselves, Bree and Hwin, return to their native land after being captured by Calormen. Unlike Shasta, however, both knew of their Narnian origin though not much of the culture or religion of Narnia. The horses, however, are very different characters. The proud Bree expects to be welcome with open arms by his fellow Narnians while Hwin would be glad just to get home.

The Calomene prince Rabadash was a potential convert in the same way as Aravis. He too was sold by his father, the Tisroc, for the price of Narnia and Archenland. Unlike Aravis, Rabadash requested the sale, but, as with Aravis, the sale was never consummated. This should have opened his eyes to the truth of Aslan, but instead he settles for fear of Aslan as a demon rather than belief in Aslan as a god.

Finally, there is the Lapsed Bear of Stormness. We know practically nothing of his regression to wild bear behavior, but he too becomes a reformed character.

Perhaps this wide array of characters with their background stories is meant to teach us that there is no one road to travel to come to the service of the one God. 

We’ll discuss all of them over the next series of posts.

The Wood between the Worlds

As I was reading "The Magician's Nephew" this weekend I started thinking about the Wood between the Worlds and its connection to Aslan's country. Let me explain: 

Aslan has created numerous worlds (we would now say numerous universes) which have no a priori connection between them. As described in The Magician's Nephew, the Wood between the Worlds is like a long attic that spans the top of several townhouses. Every townhouse can access the attic though there are no other connections between the townhouses. The attic itself is not part of any one townhouse so not much goes on there. Presumably it may be necessary for a worker to go in there sometimes, but really, it's just there. 

In the attic that is the Wood between the Worlds there are pools of water which lead into each world, and there are trees who appear to be soaking up the water setting the timeline for each world. That's it. Nothing happens unless for some reason someone manages to find their way into it.

(I should note that the Chronicles of Narnia reveal to us that there are other connections between our world and that of Narnia, the Wardrobe for one, but also the connection used by the ancestors on the Telmarines and perhaps others. Why this should be the case we'll try to figure out some other time.)

At the end of The Last Battle, Peter, Edmund, and Lucy see their parents in England and would like to join them. How to do so is explained to them by Tumnus:

That country and this country - all the real countries - are only spurs jutting out from the great mountains of Aslan. We have only to walk along the ridge, upward and inward, till it joins on.

England, of course, is not in the same world as Narnia, but one need not travel through the Wood between the Worlds. Both are spurs in Aslan's mountain range.

How do we reconcile these two pictures? 

The mountain range of Aslan is, of course, how things truly are. All of Creation, that which we know and that which we do not, is under his rule. If we ourselves cannot perceive or join some part of Creation, it is because we are not yet close enough to Aslan. We must go further up and further in. 

The Wood between the Worlds is much more facilitatory and therefore neutral. One with the proper means (rings in The Magician's Nephew) can use it to travel between worlds for good or evil. There is no foundational truth, no unmistakable signature of God, it is simply there. 

Nonetheless, Digory's curiosity is commendable. He wants to see other worlds, experience new ideas and concepts, see more of creation. True it does not always turn out well, but Digory's childlike fascination and curiosity, to see more than is there, is what allows one to come close to God. Indeed, it is this same argument he will eventually use to counter Peter and Susan so that they too will eventually see the true nature of the wardrobe. 

In this way I think there is a parallel to be made right within our own world. Thanks to modern science humanity can now explore previously unimagined aspects of the universe. One might view this as utilitarian. Perhaps these observations can give us further understanding of basic science that will eventually be used for improved technology. Maybe (adding some sprinkle of science fiction) there are planets there they will be fit for human habitation. But these observations can be used in another way. They reflect the glory of Creation and thus the greatness of the Creator. 

The truth, of course, is Aslan's country. All of Creation sings the praise of God and points us to Him. All of Creation is unified in a way that can be fully experienced only in the World to Come. Nonetheless, in the meantime we can use our curiosity and fascination sparked by modern inventions and ideas to see His wonder and glory.  

Noble Enemies at War?

I do not know that there need be any war between you and us.

To understand Peter’s above reply to Emeth let us examine Peter’s context and perspective. At this point in “The Last Battle,” Peter himself does not know whether he will be sent back to our world, or even where he is. His answer, then, cannot reflect what we might expect from the finality of history at which time all truths will be revealed, and all falsehood will be buried.

Perhaps due to this uncertainty, Peter does not answer Emeth’s implied question. He does not know as of yet, whether Emeth is a friend or enemy. He does not know whether Emeth has met Aslan and has been converted to his side. Peter suggests “there need not be war between you and us.” Why?

The ambiguity in Peter’s response could arise for one of two reasons:

First, it could be that, unsure of Emeth’s status, he is unsure whether war is necessary. If, however, it is later revealed that Emeth is not a friend but an enemy, war becomes necessary.

Second, perhaps Peter is suggesting that, because Emeth is a noble enemy, war is not necessary. This idea would counter Emeth’s worldview. Emeth (later) states, “Now when I first heard that we should march upon Narnia I rejoiced; for I had heard many things of your Land and desired greatly to meet you in battle.” Of course as a noble enemy Emeth feels shame in how he comes to Narnia, “... when I found that we were to go in disguised as merchants (which is a shameful dress for a warrior and the son of a Tarkaan) and to work by lies and trickery…” But the desire for battle with a noble enemy is there.

Perhaps Peter is hinting that noble enemies need not engage in war. Rather they must engage in partnership to find the truth.

Pints with Jack

I'm happy to announce that my interview with David Bates on Pints with Jack is now live. Thank you again to David for having me on. I hope everyone listening to the podcast enjoys it as much as I did. 

Calormene Poetry: Noble Enemies

Has not one of the poets said that a noble friend is the best gift and a noble enemy the next best?

We have spent quite some time analyzing Calormene poetry. Lewis appears to have been rather dismissive of this literary genre despite its apparent similarities to biblical works such as Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. Our studies of this poetry have revealed why this is so. While perhaps superficially appealing, the ideas conveyed by Calormene poetry are subtly but deeply flawed or conveniently misapplied.

There is, however, one line of Calormen poetry that should be differentiated from the rest. The narrator of this poetic line is Emeth, who’s name (in Hebrew) means truth. The circumstances for his quotation of Calormene poetry are thus.

As we have seen, The Last Battle starts with the Ape Shift posing as the prophet of the recently arrived Aslan (actually the Donkey Puzzle dressed in a lion’s skin). Shift’s motivation appears to be simple greed, he wants oranges and bananas and is willing to sell his fellow Narnians as slaves to Calormen to achieve those selfish desires. The ‘new Aslan’ movement, however, quickly outgrows Shift. The Calormenes become aware of it and (correctly) perceive an opportunity to destabilize Narnia and, with select Narnians, devise an Aslan-Tash composite ‘Tashlan’ to convince the Narnians of their friendship and common purpose. Tashlan is housed in a Stable and emerges only occasionally allowing the Narnians to pay homage.

One evening the Narnians and newly arrived Calormenes are gathered around the Stable and Shift gives permission for anyone to go inside and see Tashlan, but only one at a time. The first to enter is the Cat Ginger, who at this point is the actual Narnian leading the movement. Ginger enters confidently but with a ‘horrible caterwaul,’ races out, and has clearly ceased to be a Talking Beast. It is at this point that Emeth requests to enter the Stable. The Calormene Captain is unwilling, but Emeth insists that, as a servant of Tash, he must be allowed to look upon the face of Tash once, even at the cost of death.

Emeth’s loyalty to his god and his willingness to risk death for his love of Tash, strikes King Tirian and those loyal to him. "By the Lion's Mane,” says Jewel the Unicorn, “I almost love this young warrior, Calormene though he be. He is worthy of a better god than Tash." And, indeed, he is, for upon entering the Stable Emeth finds himself in the afterlife reserved for the worthy. He wanders those heavenly lands until he meets Aslan. Emeth is now sure he has met his death, but Aslan explains that it is not Tash but He who Emeth has spent his life truly seeking with such love and dedication.

After a time, Emeth is come upon by the Seven Lords of Narnia and their entourage. He bows before them and, addressing the High King Peter quotes the Calormene poet:

I know not whether you are my friend or my foe, but I should count it my honour to have you for either. Has not one of the poets said that a noble friend is the best gift and a noble enemy the next best?"

Now, given the high regard Lewis has for Emeth given his name, we should take care to understand Emeth's words. We can plainly understand the value of a noble friend. Lewis spends quite a bit of time defining friendship in his book The Four Loves. Paraphrasing, a friend is one with whom one shares a common interest or insight that separates them from others. A noble friend would be such a person who is also idealistic, moral, and perhaps even illustrious. No doubt that a noble friend is the best gift.

But what is a noble enemy?

Presumably a noble enemy, in contrast to one that is not noble, is moral, idealistic, and a person of principle. Perhaps we might say that noble enemies, given their nobility, are seeking truth. Of course, as enemies their pursuit has not led them to the same conclusion and thus they are not friends. Nonetheless, while perhaps at odds, noble enemies strive towards the same ends.

The Calormene poet properly places the noble enemy as the “next best gift.” Noble enemies will motivate each other to fight harder, to do better, to seek more diligently. A noble enemy will not take short-cuts, will not stab you in the back after slipping on a tussock, nor attempt trickery or even bribery. Ignoble enemies seek to win at all costs, even at the cost of ideals and principles, noble enemies seek to discover the truth.

In The Last Battle Shift, Ginger, and the Calormene captain are ignoble enemies. Their goal is not truth but material gain and they seek to achieve their goals through deceit and disguise. In doing so they compromise their religious principles and even basic decency. They exploit the naive, torture the innocent, and confuse those seeking understanding.

Emeth, in contrast, is indeed a noble enemy. He strives for truth and perceives himself as a true servant of Tash. He seeks war with Narnia to prove the greatness of Tash against (in his mind) the falsehoods portrayed by the fiend which is Aslan, and he is willing to die for his ideals. Of course, his views are incorrect, but because he seeks truth, he eventually finds it. For when noble enemies finally reach the truth they have been seeking all along, they can no longer be enemies. Each must recognize the truth and the noble enemies are transformed noble friends.

Emeth is yet unsure whether that finality has been achieved. Has he become the noble friend of the Seven Lords? We await the response of Peter in our next post.