I have loved C. S. Lewis’s The Chronicles of Narnia since I was in elementary school, and I was thrilled to see that I would be able to read one of them for homework and write a paper analyzing the spiritual nature of the most popular book in the series. Watching the movie, it can be difficult to see the spiritual messages that make up the entire series unless you are looking for them. That is near impossible when reading the books. The Chronicles of Narnia are saturated with the Christian stories and believes, and they make the tale glow with depth and wonder. The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe is the most well-known book in the series and teaches of the divine nature of man, of the redemption of sinners, of the Resurrection, and the importance of applying this knowledge to real life.
The moment that Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy enter Narnia, they are heralded as royalty, heirs foretold to the thrones. Their very presence is seen as hope to the faithful and a threat to the wicked queen. They are inherently royal, and this points to the royal inheritance that awaits all men and women. We are all “sons of Adam and daughters of Eve,” and if we are faithful to Jesus Christ, represented by Aslan, we will be crowned kings and queens. We are children of God, heirs to a throne, and once we recognize this fact, fight for the Savior and freedom from sin, and are crowned victorious by the Savior himself, we will forever rule in heaven. “Once a king or queen of Narnia, always a king or queen (94).” We all have come to this land with divine potential and we sometimes we are the only ones who fail to understand. Satan, represented by the White Witch, is certainly not going to wait until we are headed towards Aslan until he reaches out to tempt us and seek to block our way forward.
The most spiritually important moment in all seven books is depicted in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, when Edmund falls to temptation and Aslan gives his life to save him. There is no more vital moment in the history of the world than the Atonement of Jesus Christ for our sins, and there is no better fictional representation than Aslan walking willingly into the cruel arms of the Witch and her hosts to redeem one precious soul. Edmund sinned, he betrayed everyone, but he was repentant. This is a lesson that no sin is too awful, so failure too great, no flaw too big, that cannot be redeemed. Aslan, like Christ, gave himself willingly as sacrifice for us. He was bound. He was mocked. He was surrounded by creatures “kicking him, hitting him, spitting at him” (181). He died. And yet he lived again, more glorious than before. C. S. Lewis really brings the point home and makes the reader think at the end of the story. When Lucy asks Susan if Edmund should be told what Aslan had done for him, Susan replies, “It would be too awful for him. Think how you’d feel if you were he” (193). How do we feel about all the Savior did for us?
The readers really follow and identify with the Pevensie children, and after they, and the readers with them, have this glorious adventure and learn of Aslan and of their own worth, they have to return home to the real world. Lewis is teaching the readers that these wonders they have just learned are not just in some far off magic land, but they are to be carried through after the wardrobe is closed and the book is put away. While the world might not believe them or recognize the royal divine worth of the readers, just like the Pevensie children, they must always keep in their minds and hearts that “once a King in Narnia, always a King in Narnia” (196). We must always remember who we are and what the Savior has done for us.
It can be difficult to comprehend all that we are and all that Jesus Christ has done for us. It can feel impossible to comprehend the whole picture of the Plan of Salvation. The Chronicles of Narnia are wonderful tools to help young minds, and old minds, learn and remember in a fun way. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe is a compelling and wonderfully spiritual story that teaches the value of each human life, the importance of the Atonement in redemption and resurrection, and the principle to applying this knowledge to normal life.
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