In today’s blog I’d like to give you three reasons why I believe reading The Hunger Games would be beneficial to the Christian community and what I gained by reading the book.
Reason #1: Relevance. While I’m not in the habit of reading dystopian young adult fiction, I found the storyline of Katniss Everdeen’s battle to survive her unexpected circumstances completely relevant to life today. I felt the profound truth of sacrifice required in order for love to prevail was entirely biblical, but also outside the realm of our comfortable church box. Like the parables of Jesus, this truth is hidden from plain view. In other words, it made me think hard. It challenged my paradigm for how the Gospel of the Kingdom can work now or might work in days to come.
Reason #2: Reality. As the struggle for survival amped up and I pictured myself in the Capitol’s arena fighting for my very life, my own attitudes of control, greed, selfishness and dominance were exposed. Like Gale, Katniss’ hunting partner back home in District 12, I too can get on a rampage against the injustices of the government. He has revenge in his heart and blasts away at the oppression around them, but I realize he’s never going to achieve the righteousness of God by the wrath of man. It just doesn’t work that way. The next two books will reveal this further.
Reason #3: Revelation. And then there’s Peeta. Humble, compassionate, giving, willing to sacrifice all for love – the perfect Christ figure in the story. He’s even a baker – one who feeds and nurtures others. Amy Simpson in Christianity Today’s article, “Jesus in ‘The Hunger Games’” had this to say about him: “Peeta is both a symbol of Christ and a Christ-like example, and his character points readers toward the kind of hope and life we can find through Christ in this world, which in many ways resembles the world of The Hunger Games.”
I fear that as followers of Christ we often lose sight of the truth that God speaks through everything. Romans 1 reiterates his voice is heard in the creation and maybe we understand that, but he is speaking through the media too – TV, radio, movies, music of all kinds. Our narrow minds latch on to the phrase “We speak to God through prayer and he speaks to us through his Word” and we haven’t allowed ourselves to hear beyond that maxim. I often wonder how upended believers were for all the centuries there was no written Word of God or the official church did not allow them to read it for themselves. Did they hear from God some other way perhaps?
I challenge you to read The Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins. May the Holy Spirit have permission to speak to us through any vehicle he chooses and may we have “ears to hear what he is saying.”
Happy Reading and as always, I invite your comments.
What a great revelation for all of us. We become so complacent in our little cocoons called ‘church’ and don’t realize there is a huge world out there orchestrated by the Lord, thy God.
You have motivated me to read “The Hunger Games” . Perhaps we each can motivate one more person to see our God as Creative Creator who creates every imaginative moment before us. God is our precious present, a gift that expands our world beyond our myopic horizons, yet God remains unchanged.
THANKS!