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Former professor of ethics and religion Martin Prozesky tackles the question of religion and Christianity in the modern world in his novel Warring Souls.
This fictional story tackles various themes within Christianity and how opposing views often lead people to question their own views on religion and what Christianity means to them.
“O come let us adore him,” Christians sing at Christmas time, but who are they adoring? The carol tells us in the second verse: “God of God, Light of Light ... very God, begotten not created.” But what does that mean?
The words from the carol are taken from the words of the traditional Christian creeds.
For many Christians, unless they know a good deal about third-century Greek philosophy, these are just words.
In the third century Christians were trying to sum up what Jesus meant to them and how they understood him in ways that were consistent with their world view and culture.
What does Jesus mean to us today?
This is where Martin Prozesky’s novel comes in. Set in a fictional Anglican college, the characters do what all characters do – they fall in love, they have thrilling adventures, they quarrel.
In their quarrels they form groups and counter-groups.
In a college environment there must be freedom of speech and permission for each person to follow their truth. However, the players do not always agree on what the truth is.
Indeed, Christian (and Anglican) belief takes many forms, from fundamentalism where every word in the Bible is taken to be literally true, through to those who question the idea of a personal God altogether.
Although all claim to be Christian, some groups would not regard others as Christian at all.
The novel includes people of almost every shade across this spectrum, but essentially it is the story of Sarah, who is on the liberal side of the spectrum, and Gerald, who is much more conservative, and their rival claims to be Christian.
Can Gerald accept Sarah’s views as Christian and Anglican?
With Gerald and Sarah’s relationship at the foreground, the novel explores a wide variety of Christian beliefs. There is also, of course, a villain who seems to have an eye on the money.
Over the centuries Christian belief has had to accommodate new truths, often with difficulty.
Five hundred years ago Copernicus taught us that the world revolves around the sun, which Christians at the time thought incompatible with the Bible.
One hundred and fifty years ago Darwin taught us that all beings on earth have gradually evolved over billions of years, which some Christians still believe is incompatible with the Bible.
In our own time a group of biblical scholars formed what they called the “Jesus seminar”, using textual and historical methods to try to suggest what Jesus was really like and what he taught. Many Christians would say their conclusions are incompatible with the Bible as they understand it.
So who is truly Christian?
People come to terms with new discoveries and new philosophies in different ways, but how far can one go from the tradition while still being accepted as a Christian?
How do people with seemingly different views come together as a Christian community?
This is essentially what the book is about.
Can the characters accept one another as Christians and on what basis?
Although the novel does not touch on the issue of sexuality, the worldwide Anglican communion (as in some other churches) has come very close to splitting over this issue in recent years and may still do so.
Rival Anglican churches are springing up, claiming others are un-Anglican and un-Christian.
A character in the novel quotes William Temple, the Archbishop of Canterbury 60 years ago: “Moral progress means enlarging the circle of your concern.”
How far can we enlarge that circle and still be Christian?
The current Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby was questioned a few weeks ago about how far we can enlarge the circle on the issue of sexuality.
He admits there are profound disagreements but, in his own words, he believes we can still “disagree well”.
To quote him, “There is this is the struggle to see how you live in love and unity when you disagree with one another — and that is disagreeing well. Of course it matters what we disagree on.
“These arguments are incredibly important, not only about sexuality, but about numerous other things within the church.
“But do we live out that disagreement in a way that demonstrates we are caught up in the love of God and the love of Christ? Or do we live them out in a way that says we’re behaving like a political party having a row?”
The quarrel in the novel does seem like a political party having a row. Can they resolve it? Can they disagree well?
What can they have in common which enables them to accept one another as Christian?
It is a contemporary issue. Christian groups still struggle (and often fail) to find one another.
The novel suggests the way forward.
I found the way forward which the novel suggests of great help to me in a time of personal questioning after an illness.
Do read it to see for yourself.
