Spiritual Growth in Contemporary Christian Literature
Evan Wells
- The
- landscape
- of
- spiritual
- growth
- has
- been
- profoundly
- shaped
- by
- various
- movements
- and
- authors,
- particularly
- in
- the
- 19th
- and
- 20th
- centuries.
- The
- emergence
- of
- Christian
- existentialism,
- as
- seen
- in
- works
- by
- Søren
- Kierkegaard
- and
- Dietrich
- Bonhoeffer,
- explored
- the
- tension
- between
- faith
- and
- doubt,
- individual
- choice,
- and
- the
- call
- to
- be
- in
- authentic
- relationship
- with
- God.
- In
- parallel,
- liberal
- theology,
- with
- its
- emphasis
- on
- the
- immanence
- of
- God
- and
- the
- moral
- imperative
- of
- social
- justice,
- further
- complicated
- the
- trajectory
- of
- spiritual
- growth.
- At
- the
- same
- time,
- the
- rapid
- pace
- of
- technological
- and
- social
- change
- created
- an
- environment
- in
- which
- Christian
- writers
- began
- grappling
- with
- the
- challenges
- of
- modernity—seeking
- new
- forms
- of
- expression
- that
- would
- speak
- to
- the
- contemporary
- believer's
- sense
- of
- alienation,
- doubt,
- and
- disillusionment.Within
- this
- context,
- contemporary
- Christian
- literature
- began
- to
- emerge
- as
- a
- unique
- genre,
- distinct
- from
- traditional
- theological
- works
- or
- biblical
- commentaries,
- and
- reflective
- of
- the
- broader
- cultural
- currents
- of
- the
- 20th
- and
- 21st
- centuries.
- Writers
- like
- C.S.
- Lewis,
- who
- brought
- Christian
- themes
- into
- the
- realm
- of
- fiction,
- had
- a
- profound
- influence
- on
- the
- spiritual
- growth
- of
- modern
- Christians.
- Through
- works
- like
- Mere
- Christianity
- and
- The
- Chronicles
- of
- Narnia,
- Lewis
- demonstrated
- that
- literature
- could
- serve
- as
- both
- a
- form
- of
- spiritual
- exploration
- and
- a
- way
- to
- nurture
- the
- soul.
- His
- approach
- combined
- apologetics,
- moral
- philosophy,
- and
- the
- imagination,
- offering
- a
- vision
- of
- Christian
- growth
- that
- was
- both
- intellectually
- rigorous
- and
- artistically enriching.
