When You Judge a Book by it's Cover

I know that they tell you not to judge a book by it’s cover, but that is a rule that I literally break on a regular basis (it’s a side effect of being a graphic designer). Sure, there have been the rare occasions that I read a book with a bad cover that I thoroughly enjoyed and vice versa, but for the sake of this blog post, we won’t dwell on those.

This story begins last year while I was in the Family Christian Bookstore and saw the book cover for Fatherless. It seized my attention. Noting that the book was written by Dr. James Dobson, I flipped open the book and read the synopsis. Incredibly intrigued but not willing to pay the $25 price tag, I regretfully put the book back on the shelf.

Fast-foward to February of 2014, I signed up for a subscription for Audible. Audio books and dramatic audio presentations are like my daily bread, I love having my mind occupied while cleaning, cooking, sewing, designing graphics, etc. Care to take a guess at what my first audio download was? If you guessed Fatherless, you’d be absolutely correct. In less than 48 hours I had eagerly devoured the entire thing.

In Fatherless, Dr. James Dobson and Kurt Bruner depict America 28 years in the future. They explore the dire consequences that could result if America continues on the path she is currently on. It is 2042: the world has past a tipping point. For the first time in history, developed nations have more retired elderly than young workers who can sustain them. The planet finds itself in the midst of an economical collapse. The solution? The president introduced a “forward-thinking” plan called the Youth Initiative. In this plan, elderly can choose to end their life by euthanasia in order to “transition” their wealth and assets to their children and grandchildren.

The stage being thus set, enter Julia Davidson, Troy Simmons, Kevin and Angie Tolbert, Matthew Adams, and a slew of supporting characters whom we grow to love, hate, cry for, and celebrate with throughout the trilogy (Fatherless, Childless, and Godless).

This series may be too political for some, but I loved the blend of social problems, politics, mystery, relationships, morality, ethics, and even spiritual warfare. I encourage you to give this trilogy a try. I should note that this series grapples with some pretty weighty topics (as you’ll quickly discover from the opening sentence of the forward), suicide, abortion, this series has it all. I should also note that the trilogy has some mature-ish content that seems to be aimed more toward married audiences, so I don’t know that I can recommend these to anyone younger than myself.

In Fatherless, Childless, and Godless two diametrically opposed world-views clash as America becomes hostile territory to the family and Christianity. The trilogy relentlessly calls for Christians to be a “bright-spot” in an increasingly dark world.

The First Church of Cinderella

As I walked down the street one Sunday morning, a sign caught my attention. It read, “First Church of Cinderella.” I stared at it in wonder for several minutes, my mind running through possible scenarios of what such a church would be like. Did all the women dress in gowns from 1,000 years ago? Was the inside decorated like a medieval castle? At last, overcome by curiosity, I walked in.

Surprisingly, the church was free from tapestries and suits of armor. The church was well lit and modern. Except for the sign-up table for children 8-12 to attend “Fairy Tale Camp” in the summer, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Sounds of music and singing filled my ears and I went in search of it.

Finding the sanctuary, I walked in and slipped into the back row. The upbeat song was extolling the fairy god-mother’s power; it was followed by a slow, moving song about Cinderella’s compassion and kindness.

Pastor Goodheart walked across the platform. “Good morning church,” he said brightly, “please take a moment to greet one another in the name of True Love.” The woman seated in front of me turned around and ecstatically shook my hand, repeating the phrase.

Pastor Goodheart delivered a stirring sermon about Prince Charming’s true love for Cinderella. He applied the prince’s willingness to scour the land, testing every single maiden, until he found “the one” to our own lives by encouraging us to live with that kind of undying, unrelenting love.

The sermon was followed by a moving rendition of “I Could Sing of Their Love Forever.”

As I walked out the pastor shook my hand, smiling broadly. “What did you think of our service this morning?”

“It was…unlike any service I’ve been in before.” I answered truthfully.

“I’m sure it was!”

“You have a beautiful building.”

“We do,” Pastor Goodheart said, looking around proudly.

“I actually have many questions about your beliefs,” I admitted.

“Really? My wife and I would love for you to join us for lunch this afternoon! We can discuss all of your questions.”

--

Later, as a waitress set down a basket filled with golden, crispy fries, Mrs. Goodheart turned to me, “My husband tells me you have many questions about our church.”

“Yes!”

“What would you like to know?”

“Well, I have no doubt that you are all very sincere, but I have many doctrinal questions for you.” I flipped open the notebook which I had scribbled questions in during the sermon. They were:

1. Do you believe in the second coming of the fairy god-mother?
2. Are mice ministering spirits sent to help us in our times of need?
3. Have you seen the power of True Love at work in the lives of your congregation members and in your own lives?
4. Do you believe pumpkins are sacred?
5. What are your views on Snow White?

I began with the first.

The pastor and his wife exchanged knowing glances. His wife spoke, “Now, we want you to understand something…”

“Yes,” continued the pastor, “We don’t believe that the story of Cinderella literally happened.”

I stared at them, shocked, “Then, you are living a lie!”

“Not at all,” said Mrs. Goodheart, “We truly believe Cinderella has many good principles that we should apply to our everyday lives.”

I sputtered, “Does your congregation know this?!”

The pastor laughed, “Of course! You don’t expect anyone to really believe that story actually happened, do you? Pumpkins turning into carriages and talking mice… it’s all too fantastical.”

His wife smiled, “We aren’t radicals, we’re just trying to make the world around us a better place.”

“But,” I stammered, my mind still reeling, “how can you expect other people to follow ideas from a story that you don’t even believe happened?”

“They see the moral truth of the story.”

“But if none of it is true, how can their lives be truly affected? What motivation do they have to share the story with others? What happens when a situations comes up that they are not strong enough to handle? Who or what can they lean on?”

Pastor Goodheart and his wife answered all my questions with the same calm answer they had been using all along. But I left lunch that day unsatisfied. What good is it dedicating your life to something you don’t believe? How long can that last?


Note:
An allegory is like a parable or fable. It’s a made up story that illustrates a truth. This allegory depicts a group of people who do not believe the events of the Bible literally happened, but that it is, nevertheless, a moral book which we should try to live by. This belief completely misses the point of the Bible. One may as well preach a book of fairytales.