“The Faith of a Mockingbird” by Matt Rawle

Matt Rawle is a Louisiana pastor who has carved out something of a book niche – exploring literature and popular culture to find evidences and examples of faith. He’s published books on Victor Hugos’s Les Misérables, Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol, the Nutcracker Suite, and Doctor Who. And he’s also the author of The Faith of a Mockingbird, a look at themes of faith in the characters of Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird. 

To Kill a Mockingbird is the 1960 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel about racial justice and injustice in small-town Alabama, set in the 1930s. A staple in schools for more than 50 years, the story is told through the eyes of a young girl, Scout Finch, whose father Atticus defends a black man against a false charge of raping a white woman. The trial’s ending is a foregone conclusion; white juries in the 1930s wouldn’t find a black defendant not guilty, especially of a charge like rape. But what Atticus Finch does is prove the man’s innocence, even though he and the town know the defendant will be found guilty regardless. 

The Faith of a Mockingbird is designed as a small group Bible Study. Rawle considers the four main characters in the story – Atticus Finch; Tom Robinson, the defendant; Scout Finch, the young girl and narrator; and Boo Radley, the mysterious recluse whom children fear and imagine all kinds of stories about. Rawle summarizes the story of each of the four and, with Scripture passages, explains how each character illustrates a number of Biblical teachings and truths. And he does more, including an application to current life. Discussion questions are included throughout each chapter.

Rawle has also published, with Josh Tinley, a leader guide for the small group discussion, including how to facilitate the discussion, planning and structuring each session, and helpful hints.

Matt Rawle

Rawle is lead pastor of Asbury United Methodist Church in Bossier City, La. He received his B.A. degree in music from LSU and his Masters of Divinity degree from Duke Divinity School. He is also the author of What Makes a Hero?, The Grace of Les Miserables, The Redemption of Scrooge, The Gift of the Nutcracker, The Salvation of Doctor Who, Almost Christmas: A Wesleyan Advent Experience, Hollywood Jesus, and The Marks of Hope. 

To Kill a Mockingbird is a modern classic, but what few people today realize is how so many Christian themes are reflected throughout the story and its characters. Rawle’s The Faith of a Mockingbird helps to create that understanding. Perhaps unintentionally, it also makes a strong case for looking for Christian themes in the products of popular culture.

Related:

The Grace of Les Misérables by Matt Rawle. 

We All Know a Boo Radley – at Dancing Priest.

We All Know a Boo Radley

I was all of 21, in my first job after college graduation. I’d been hired as a copy editor on the news desk of the Beaumont (Tex.) Enterprise. Production at the Enterprise was just becoming automated, at least in what we called the “backshop.” Reporters still used typewriters, typing up their copy, handing it to editors (including new ones like me) and hoping we didn’t slaughter their peerless prose when we edited.

Most reporters, like most writers, required editing. I quickly learned who the better reporters were – the ones whose copy didn’t need much editing. Some needed a lot. One rarely if ever needed any – and he was the newspaper’s staff mystery.

I’ll call him Joe. He was in his 50s, and he covered local government. When Joe turned in his stories, he would mumble, almost as if apologizing. I don’t think anyone understood the mumbles. The mystery was how he did his job – he was never seen at a city council or other government meeting, and yet his stories reported exactly what went on. No one knew how Joe did it. Even more mysteriously, no one knew where he lived. He received his mail at the newspaper, and that was his legal address. One staffer followed him in his car one night, and all Joe did was drive around Beaumont for more than an hour until his lost the tail. 

To continue reading, please see my post today at Dancing Priest.