I occasionally get questions requesting to know what I mean when warning George MacDonald readers to watch out for his unbiblical ideas.
As you may have guessed from my many MacDonald posts, I do appreciate and recommend many of his books (and only warn against a few that I would never, or rarely, suggest.) But even the "good ones" need to be read with discernment. Especially his unabridged novels for adults.
While growing up reading a couple of his children's books and then getting into the abridged Michael Phillips editions of his novels, I did not notice his strange theology. I think the editing process cut out the most obvious statements and conversations. And the children's books mask it in fairytale form where it just fits the fantastical settings. But once I read more about MacDonald's life and then launched into his unabridged works in the public domain, I began to see bits of it all over.
MacDonald was raised in a harsh form of Calvanism - coming through his grandmother in particular. As a young man he struggled deeply with the view of a distant and seemingly arbitrary God who only allowed "the elect" into heaven. Even those favored few could never know if they were one of the chosen and had to live all their life in fear.
So MacDonald swung to the opposite extreme and believed that everyone would eventually get to heaven through God's "purifying fire" - whether that happened through pain in this life or in some sort of purgatory after death. He also rejected the fact that God could view Christ's suffering and sacrifice as a substitution for our sin. (I can never quite follow the elaborate arguments he uses to explain the cross of Christ in his own way.)
All that said, his works are still so full of Christ, profound spiritual insights, and a deep love for and trust of God, that he draws me closer to God. So while I promote and even narrate audio versions of many of his books, I still want people to read with discernment.
And that goes for every book out there. Let's run them all past the sure Truth of the Bible!
I’ve enjoyed your reading voice for a long time. What’s Mine’s Mine and now Heather and Snow are especially dear. Thank you for the gift of your audiobooks. They’ve brought joy and comfort. I’ve tried to mine the mystery of George MacDonald’s theology for quite some time. Finding myself in the place of questioning certain doctrines and traditions I’d been instructed on, my curiosity grew as to to
ReplyDeletethose of GMD. With that goal in mind, I spent two amazing years reading through his corpus of fiction, in publication order, prefacing each book with Michael Phillips’ “A Writer’s Life.” I turned to David Jack’s translation of the Scottish novels. Afterwards, I spent time in the unspoken sermons “Consuming Fire” and “Justice”. (Phillips’ Scotland’s Beloved Storyteller adds the dimension of what was happening in GMD’s life concurrent to his work.). At this time in my life, I’m never not reading the Bible and never not reading George MacDonald. I’ve learned to consider “what I need to be about” as pertinent to each moment. George MacDonald taught me how to open my eyes to all around, to see humanity in each person, and to imagine in the way God intended when he gifted us with this ability. Again, thank you for your ministry. I just today found this blog. It will be lovely spending time here!