The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
by Kari Brimacombe

Through the wardrobe! When little Lucy Pevensie wanders through the wardrobe into a magical land of talking animals and other strange happenings, I can’t help but be reminded of another young girl I read about as a child who fell through the looking glass and had quite an adventure of her own. While there are some similarities between Lucy’s and Alice’s adventures, the opportunities to teach our children eternal lessons are far grander through the wardrobe.

The Chronicles of Narnia are a much-loved series of books, and the first one, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe is so popular that it has been translated into twenty-nine languages. As Christians, we are quick to appoint the book’s enduring appeal to the timeless themes of love, forgiveness, and redemption. In our haste, it is tempting to overlook the flaws in the characters, and even the uncomfortable similarities between this and another popular series of books- Harry Potter.

For many Christians, citing the problems with Harry Potter is as easy as saying the Pledge of Allegiance. There is lying, violence, rebellion against authority and, of course, witchcraft. These are problems. However, we cannot put our heads in the sand and pretend that these themes are absent in our beloved Narnia. In doing so, we lose precious moments to teach our children other important lessons of virtue. If we point to the above reasons for shunning the Harry Potter books, and then read and see The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, we have a problem with consistency. Our children see this, and are confused. It is imperative that we watch the Chronicles of Narnia with our eyes wide open, looking for the teachable moments on which we can shine God’s light.