America's Dark Theologian

Do you like scary stories? When I was in College (at the Biblical Institute of Los Angeles, no less) and it came time to pick a senior thesis, I landed on what I thought was a novel approach. I wanted to explore the genesis of slasher films. While I was quite excited, my professor was less enthusiastic. But I ended doing it anyway, and passed the class, so I think it all worked out.

A thesis on horror films might sound like a stretch for someone at Christian College, but I was fascinated by the fact that, at the outset, this slasher genre played out like a morality tale. Those who engaged in untoward behavior (usually teens drinking, using drugs and fooling around) couldn’t survive the seemingly supernatural evil coming for them. But the hero was the one who remained chaste, and was thus able to prevail. This remained largely the underlying formula until the 1990s, with Scream.

The point is, even these stories that are well away from our theological worldview contain elements that lead to deeper thought. Stephen King, who made his name as a purveyor of scary stories, is someone who understands this all too well. In his essay, “Stephen King’s American Apocalypse,” Ross Douhat notes that for King, these scary stories are grounded in a theological reality.

“The ghosts and vampires (and the sex and violence) may lure book buyers in, but what keeps them coming back is something else entirely: namely, King’s ability to imbue his tales of the uncanny with a realism, a cultural relevance, and a theological heft that’s missing in even the highest of contemporary American fiction.”

And more to the point, King’s stories explore the fallen nature of man, and the role we play in calling these “devils” out. Douhat notes, “Or perhaps not by chance: King’s stories, like human life, are replete with examples of the randomness of evil, but the worse the monster, the more likely that we have invited it in to feed.”

This is, in part, what has drawn readers to King’s work, and continues to keep them relevant and enticing to readers more than 40 years after he began. But King’s work is also much broader than most people realize. The same man that ruined high school proms with Carrie also explored the nature of hope during incarceration with Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption. The same man that drew on the menace of clowns in It also explored the loss of innocence with The Body, a short story adapted into the film Stand By Me. And that, too, is what captivates King’s readers.

It’s both his incorporation of theology and the breadth of his writing that makes King a fascinating subject for study. As we did last fall, Rev. Eunice McGarrahan and myself will be teaming up for a course during the fall term of Growing Together Wednesday that explores stories in both written and filmed form. This fall, the subject of that study will be the works of Stephen King, which begins with a look at King himself and his inspirations. It will also include what some have considered his opus—The Stand—a story about the end of days that we will consider as we look at the prophetic visions offered in the book of Revelation.

           

Summer is a time of long days and relaxation, some free time to dive into those things that seem to get away from us during the busy rhythms of the winter, spring and fall. So this summer, why not dive into a few books by and about King as we prepare to dive into his work during this fall term. Below is an outline of our 10 weeks together beginning August 28, including the written works and films we’ll be covering. I hope to see you on Wednesday nights this fall!

GTW Stephen King Lineup:

Week 1, August 29—Introduction, Favorite Stephen King story, Why Stephen King?, America’s Dark Theologian. Clips from varied works, major themes.

Week 2, September 4—Stand By Me, clips from film and discussion of Different Seasons novella, “The Body”

Week 3, September 11— The Mist, clips from film and discussion of the Novella

Week 4, September 18—The Green Mile, clips from film and discussion of the Novel

Week 5, September 25— Needful Things, clips from film and discussion of the Novel

Week 6, October 2—The Shawshank Redemption, clips from film and discussion of Different Seasons novella, “Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption”

Week 7-10, October 9, 16, 23, 30—The Stand/Revelation, clips from mini-series and discussion of “The Stand,” The Book of Revelation and “Reversed Thunder”