Marginal Christianity

The Horse and His Boy (HHB) is occupied with the importance of discovering one’s true identity and living out of that identity. Shasta and Aravis, along with their horses Hwin and Bree, learn through their adventures fleeing Calormene across the desert to the north that they are not who they believed themselves to be and that their true longings were fulfilled only in learning and living into their true identities           Lewis wrote this series of stories out of the Christian convictions that grounded and shaped his own life. The emphasis on identity in HHB is consistent with those convictions. However, there is one other identity that comes into clearer focus in this story. And that is the identity of God. Throughout the series we have heard of the Emperor-beyond-the-sea (analogous to God the Father in Christianity), seen Aslan in action (analogous to God the Son), and, if we’ve read carefully, noticed how Aslan’s “breath” b...

19  This is because what is known about God should be plain to them because God made it plain to them. 20  Ever since the creation of the world, God’s invisible qualities—God’s eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, because they are understood through the things God has made. So humans are without excuse. 21  Although they knew God, they didn’t honor God as God or thank him. Instead, their reasoning became pointless, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22  While they were claiming to be wise, they made fools of themselves. 23  They exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images that look like mortal humans: birds, animals, and reptiles. 24  So God abandoned them to their hearts’ desires, which led to the moral corruption of degrading their own bodies with each other. 25  They traded God’s truth for a lie, and they worshipped and served the creation instead of the creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. 26  That’s why Go...