Why Christian Literature is on the Rise

Christians have always been a bit defensive.  From the first there was the whole explanation-thing, “Well, we are believers in the one God, and in His Son too, and yeah, he was crucified but…”  No matter how you put it Christianity always sounded more like fiction than fiction.  But the fruit of faith and the grace of God continued to witness the truth down through centuries. The faithful lived, died, and rose again, by the power of the God they believed in. Skeptics would say, “Prove it!” but many would answer, “Disprove it!” just as emphatically.  Still, at times, Christianity does sound too good to be true – especially on this side of the Great Divide – which is why, I suspect, many Catholic-Christian authors have been reluctant to express their faith through their writing in any overt way.  It was OK to symbolize the faith, and fine to show “universal truth” but,  “Don’t you dare try to push you morality, your religious beliefs, down my throat!”  So many Christian authors backed off – way off.  For Catholic authors who had to step carefully through the minefield of Christian divisions, this dance of caution was even more intricate.

But the world has traveled so far down the road of secular thinking – where God was told to slink off to a corner out of the way, and it was strongly hinted that Christians would do well to keep their outward faith limited to Sundays and small bible study groups – that few noticed a growing hole where profound questions used to thrive.  Now technology takes care of us – you can Google almost any question right into oblivion, and families are so shrunk and intimidated that they don’t dare to raise their minds to anything but the needs or distractions of the moment.  If you are uncomfortable, take a pill, turn on some music, watch a movie, get on the internet and time will pass.  You’ll forget what it was that was bothering you in a moment.  You’ll forget to wonder why the stars are so big and so far away and if cloning is really a good idea. You’ll not notice increasing debt, the rise of cancer, the decrease of human population, the loss of family, the disconnect between humanity and God. Secularism thrives in the vacuum of thoughtlessness.

But God made man in His image – so the innermost being of a person yearns for something more, something deeper than facts, something more profound than a witty line.  And finally we are seeing that yearning grow from a whimper to a a full voiced cry. Why do I imaging such crazy things?  Well, the market place tells me something is happening.  There have been more Christian orientated movies lately than in decades. Also, I have, by chance, come across more quality Christian literature in the last few months than I have seen in years.  Both readers and authors are stirring.  I do not expect this rise in Christian fiction to change the world – I expect God will do that in His own good time – but I do believe that in awakening, so the soul of humanity is renewed. We’ve been napping a good long time.

So, in my own little humble effort for the good of thought-filled days and even contemplative nights, I’m going to institute Mondays as “Book Day” day here on my blog. I’ll offer a brief synopsis about a particular faith-based book I’ve read or about a Catholic/Christian author I’ve gotten to know.  It might be fun – and who knows, you might just find something that stirs your interest.  God is the greatest Author of all – we might do well to see what He’s been up to lately – in the hearts and minds of those who love Him.

Any questions?