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@denali-christianson

@obrian-of-the-surface-world

Alrighty I’ll be the first to throw down on this Friendly Debate Clearwater Revival (It’s a lazy joke, don’t think too hard about it.)

Violence in Christian Work?

I think it depends on the genre. Christian-written Adult/sci-fi/fantasy/other mature styles? Let it all in! The Bible has a lot (LOT) of violence and war in it. As long as the focus of the story isn’t shock-gore (think the Saw movies as an example), violence is a very real way to ground the story. Everyone understands pain and suffering; showing what people go through can be an effective way to make a main character sympathetic. If you’re writing a more teen/child style, perhaps dial it back to where you’d think it appropriate for your younger siblings/cousins/friends to consume.

Predestination or Free Will?

Hoo boy that’s a big question. This will more than likely boil down to what each author believes. Either can certainly be used as story elements. Is there a prophecy about a chosen one to come and defeat a great darkness or evil? That could be considered predestination, and there’s prophecy in the Bible that refers to many different judges/prophets/heroes of Israel (and of course the Messiah). Is the story more about what the main character chooses to do in the bleakest and most demanding of times, and has to make decisions about what to do when faced with impossible choices? That’s a test of free will. I personally tend to enjoy stories where the characters have to struggle through their circumstances and are presented with difficult decisions, but that’s just me 🙂

Finally, can innocence exist without needing to be ignorant?

I believe so, yes! Innocent mainly means not guilty of a crime, but the meaning referenced here is “pure and without deceit or guile.” Many many stories have a (usually young) character start with CHILDLIKE innocence which usually has a lot of ignorance baked in. That’s completely fine. We get to see their personality and character (haha) grow as they go through their journey. The factor that can decide whether they choose to accept and face the evil or darkness in the world. If they ignore it and choose to say that it doesn’t exist, that would be ignorant innocence.

A good example of informed innocence would be Frodo in the LOTR movies. Yes, I’m talking about the movies because his character in the books is a bit different in general, especially when talking about childlike innocence. BUT. In the movies he is fully aware of the evil and danger in Middle Earth and what that means for him personally. He chooses to remain innocent and uninfluenced by Sauron’s power (until the last five minutes at the volcano at least). Frodo knows the bad but chooses to remain fully good and faithful that the greater good in the world will prevail.

I hope that my thoughts can help to kick-start the discourse on these topics, they’re good thought provokers for sure!