Our Thoughts

From our initial glance (and probably an oversimplification) we would summarize Charles Dickens as a man living in a time when Christianity and church were a part of the DNA of the culture more than a Christian writer creating Christian stories. That being said, this does lead to the inclusion of a decent bit of content that Christians will be glad to see (especially given its absence in the culture and content of today’s culture). That being said though, that we ensure our children know that good to our common man is not the ultimate good. Christ is the ultimate good and source of all good. Good to our common man comes as an outpouring of our love for Him. Here are a few examples of the Christian content in the story. The holiday is referenced as having a sacred origin (Christ’s birth) and Founder being a child (Christ). Terms like “God bless it!” and “God save you!” are used throughout. The most famous of these is Tiny Tim’s exclamation, “God bless us, everyone!”. We hear a caroler singing “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen”. Tiles around a fireplace are said to show images from Scripture. Church and everyone in town heading to it are shown a couple times. The best of these is after Scrooge’s major change at the end, one of the things he does is attend church. Finally, there are a few really great comments in this category we will save as pleasant surprises for potential readers (i.e., not ruin the surprise here). Sin is also shown as sin and wrong (refreshing). Greed is obviously a big focus. Scrooge is described as a ‘covetous old sinner’. Marley carries around chains with cashboxes and similar items to show the impacts of his sin. This book provides a great opportunity to talk to your children about where we store up our treasure. So… is this a good story to include in your Christmas traditions for your children? We think the answer is yes. The biggest con against it is of course the use of ‘ghosts’ to visit Scrooge and give him a chance to open his eyes and change his life. This is certainly a big deal and something to talk with your children about. So how is this different from the modern-day stories we are quick to encourage parents Avoid? The difference is that there is no darkness here. Dickens is careful to keep all of these ‘spirits’ from coming across as dark. This is not a kids horror story with an intended ‘good’ takeaway (as so many of those other stories are), it is a ‘good’ lesson story told through “ghosts”. If you are comfortable with this then your child can enjoy a story that packs a really solid message, shows off a lot of good and includes a bit of solid tip-of-the-cap to our faith. It is certainly a refreshing break from the barrage of “santa” stories and a never-ending cultural message to “just believe” in him. Scrooge’s change is remarkable and should be something that will likely challenge everyone on what is really important in life and how we treat people.