Anyone reading this blog could probably not help but notice that I reference Scottish author George MacDonald fairly regularly. In fact, one of my favorite MacDonald quotes appears on my home page. George MacDonald lived from 1824 to 1905. He was a pastor, poet and novelist. I’d never even heard of him until a few years ago, but I am firmly convinced that God sent him my way, because my exposure to his writing has literally changed my life.
I like to read. I wouldn’t exactly call myself an avid reader, but I have enjoyed reading various books, as well as magazine and newspaper articles over the years. A large part of my reading of books has been in the area of theology. But I am naturally drawn to a bookstore and can be found browsing a variety of subject matter. Oddly enough, I hadn’t utilized the library as much as I should have.
Back to my encounter with George MacDonald. I went through a reading dry spell a while back (more like several years back), and my wife offered for me to look at one or two of her books, novels by MacDonald. She thought I might like them because of the frequent religious/Christian dialogue by the characters. I had glanced at her books a few times and had quickly dismissed them as romance novels, because the male and female characters always seemed to be falling in love. Not like the steamy Harlequin romances, but healthy, wholesome relationships between man and woman, where mutual respect is generally shared.
The first book I read was about a curate (preacher) in 19th century England, who was struggling in believing what he was taught to preach. I was, surprisingly, fascinated by his journey in discovering the real Jesus and what the Son of God expected of him. I’m not sure that I had an epiphany, but it did seem like scales had fallen from my eyes. What was particularly fascinating was that I was steeped in Christian fundamentalism for over 40 years, and I wasn’t looking for a revelation.
I found myself desiring to read more of MacDonalds novels, and my daughter had given me a printout of a sermon called Hope of the Gospel. This “unspoken sermon” gave a fresh approach to why Jesus came to earth. As I began to share these “new” out-of-the-box concepts with my wife, I was surprised to find that she was open to receive this fresh approach to Christian thinking. A husband and wife will generally be on the same page theologically, especially after they have been married for some time, but it is very unusual for the two to drastically alter their thinking at the same time. This could only be from God.
We then launched a mission to learn more about George MacDonald and acquaint ourselves with as much of his writing as we could get our hands on. We were delighted to find that a California author, Michael Phillips, had his own mission — that of translating MacDonald’s works from the original Gaelic to a more readable format, while preserving some moderation of the Gaelic dialogue to keep the old Scottish characters in context. In all, George MacDonald wrote over forty pieces, consisting of poems, novels and sermons.
He was raised in the Calvinist tradition, but early on began to question that doctrine. Fresh out of college he took the pastorate of a Congregationlist church. He used the pulpit to teach about the loving God and the obedient works of his son, Jesus. His approach to God’s universal love, however, met with opposition. His salary was cut in half in order to force him out. Continuing on, he saw the church to begin to split, and, wanting to avoid serious division, he left. He then sought other means to get his message read, which led to articles in periodicals, as well as fantasy stories and lengthy novels that grew in popularity.
He was a contemporary of Charles Dickens and was a close friend to Lady Byron. He made two trips to America, in which he met Harriet Beecher Stowe and Ralp Waldo Emerson and developed a unique friendship with Samuel Clemons (Mark Twain). MacDonald was admired and respected by many, including C.S. Lewis and G.K. Chesterton.
I must now declare, in all honesty, that I do not believe anything simply because George MacDonald said it. A great many fall into that trap, often foolishly accepting what a preacher or theologian is teaching, solely based on their credentials or knowledge of the Greek or Hebrew language. Still others rely exclusively on the teaching of the Bible, or rather the interpretation of it from the aforementioned scholars and religious leaders.
George MacDonald reshaped my thinking in two areas: being free to question anything or anyone in order to test the truth for my life; and allowing the Holy Spirit to teach me, unencumbered by the paradigms of the Christian doctrine from my past. I have learned that truth is everywhere, and that God loves and is at work in the hearts of all of his children. I have also been refreshed by the idea that obedience is a daily requirement, that I might have a right relationship with God. I don’t need to know the big picture, but I am free to use my imagination (God-given) to see how things might be in the afterlife.
I freely admit that I have been inspired by not only George MacDonald’s life, but I have been encouraged by his insightful thoughts on life. He has become my friend and mentor, and I look forward to telling him face to face how much his spirit has uplifted my own. Jesus was always redirecting the attention of his followers to his heavenly Father, God. Like Jesus, George MacDonald resisted any attention drawn to himself, but rather re-introduced to all the true Son of God, who is the very image of the Father.
I encourage any who have not yet read MacDonald to search the internet for information about him or works by him. I would also recommend the Michael Phillips book, Knowing the Heart of God, a wonderful collection of George MacDonald’s key thoughts from his various books and sermons.
To get more info on George MacDonald see:
George MacDonald and Michael Phillips
The George MacDonald Informational Web
Read more about: change, the journey
September 22nd, 2009 at 2:04 pm
Hey i am a huge George MacDonald fan and follower> I was wondering how i could get the picture and quote up in the right hand corner in the form of a poster. Any answerws please forward them to my e-mail address. Sincerely!!