Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Playing Pretend


My childhood neighborhood in New Orleans was packed with the children of the Baby Boom. Most families had at least two kids; many had three and two on our block had six each (think about it: six kids, three-bedroom house, no basement). There was never a problem organizing a street football game or a sandlot baseball game. And with extensive wooded areas just across the street, we had ample opportunities to explore and play games.

Many of the games we play were about pretending. It didn’t take much to stir the imagination here – a movie, a television show, a book, a story someone’s father told. Hear or see any of those things, and we were off, fighting Nazis in World War II (the woods made a good Ardennes Forest), playing cowboys and Indians, and waging Civil War battles (this was New Orleans so the South always won). We all knew this was pretending – and it would last until someone accused someone else of cheating, or someone got made at being captured and stalked home. It was all great fun and kept us out of our mothers’ hair.

We knew the difference, of course, between pretending and “real life” Most of our games started with someone saying, “Let’s play X,” and it didn’t really matter what X was. And when we were finished, we find something else to do or return home to “real life.”

I was reminding of these children games when I read “Let’s Pretend,” the chapter in Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis that we’re discussing this week. Lewis says something that at first seems rather startling and then makes sense (this is a Lewis trademark – startle with what should be obvious). He talks about the Lord’s Prayer, whose very first words are “Our Father.” And he says this:

“Do you see what those words mean? They mean quite frankly, that you are putting yourself in the place of a son of God. To put it bluntly, you are dressing up as Christ. If you like, you are pretending.”

In all the games we played as children, we never played Jesus. We never romped through the woods as the 12 disciples, or pretended a picnic was the last supper. But here is Lewis saying that, any time we pray the Lord’s Prayer, we are essentially pretending to be Jesus. And we pray the Lord’s Prayer because the Lord ordered us to pray it. So, in effect, the Lord ordered us to pretend we are Jesus.

And there’s a point to all this pretense, Lewis says. The more we pretend to be Jesus as we pray to “Our Father who art in heaven,” the more we see the gap between the reality and our pretense of the reality. The more we see the gap, the more we realize that, in a sense, God is also pretending – he sees us as his Son, because the Son – the real thing – died in our place.

Pretending never felt this good.


To see more posts on this chapter of Mere Christianity, hosted by Jason Stasyszen and Sarah Salter, please visit Sarah’s site, LivingBetween the Lines.

6 comments:

  1. Yes, this is startling. Especially the thought that GOd is pretending that we are Jesus.

    I don;t know why kids never play Jesus and the disciples - it's strange, isn't it? Although my wife, a preacher's kid, used to play "Church", where she would preach and lead the congregation (her sisters) through an entire pretend service. (must have been so cute!)

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  2. "Pretending never felt this good."


    Amen.

    I love the way you do this, but aren't you sick of my saying so?

    I always get something to think about from these discussions on Mere Christianity. Always. Thanks.

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  3. Dude - your conclusion on this post makes me want to cheer! wonderful!

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  4. This would make for a fascinating discussion at church!

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  5. I have noticed, as we have been reading, how Lewis uses some kind idea to catch people's attention. A kind of idea that gets the audience to think and take a stand for their own thoughts. He gets them to process what they believe to be true. He goes along with things that most people are comfortable with, gets their mind involved, and then, pow!, hits with a jab from the side.

    I found this annoying at first, but, now i an learning to find what i believe and to leave the rest. I am also learning that i can read a book about other people's view on their beliefs, and each one is going to be different. As much as that can make me uncomfortable, it causes me to wait for answers to come.

    I can not see everyone trying to be Christ, but, i can see how i can try and see Christ when i look at others.

    I find that thinking about a thing too much actually puts my mind in the wrong place, and that looking, speaking and listening with God in the moments is really important for me.

    I do agree, that when i read the Lord's prayer, i see the gap. I do see the gap that only God's Grace in Jesus can fill.

    I know in my heart that in Jesus, we are covered with the Grace of God. And yet, i sill depend on that relationship every step of the way. Seeing the gap, knowing of Grace through Jesus, and having the relationship are all more than necessary for walking through the valley, through the gap. Until i am at last on the other side.

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  6. Such a different way to explain it, but it really does seem to work well. Makes me marvel at grace once again. Thanks so much, Glynn.

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