Monday, July 18, 2016

Faith Factor: Part 1


Homeschooled Authors Asked: How does your faith impact what you read?

Jenelle Schmidt ~ I believe that all truth is God’s truth. In whatever I read, I look for truth, and always enjoy finding hints of it in secular stories. I love it when God meets me in a story where I really didn’t expect to find Him because I know the author isn’t a Christian or I know the story isn’t written from a Christian perspective. However, in some stories, the fragile tendrils of truth are not worth searching through the muck for. Because of my faith I stay away from stories where excessive swearing/cussing is found, shy away from romance in general, and prefer not to encounter graphic violence or anything that is actively trying to mock my Lord and Savior or promote lies in the place of truth.

Sarah Holman ~ My faith should impact every part of my life, and that includes my reading. I don't mind romance as long as it is clean and not lustful. I won't read books that glorify sins, or make light of sacred things. I tend to stay away from magic, swearing, excessive violence, or books that take life lightly. Sometimes it is even hard to find that among the Christian books. That is why I like so many of the authors here; so many of them are working to write books that fit my standards. 

Claire M. Banschbach ~ One thing that I think my beliefs really influence is a general dislike of anti-heroes, especially in a lot of popular secular fiction/fantasy lately. It’s not the fact that they have some character flaw, we all have flaws, it’s that they’re usually not very morally good. Yes, maybe they are the main character and therefore “hero” in the story, but I don’t want to read about someone who does questionable things and never reaches for any sort of redemption. I don’t mind if someone starts off as an anti-hero of sorts, but I want to see them journey to become the hero who’ll make the sacrifice at the end of the story. 

J. Grace Pennington ~ My faith impacts my reading habits in two ways—first, the content I read.  This can be hard because there's not a rating system for books like there is for movies, but I can still look for reviews and be cautious about the type of stories I pick up.  I don't mind reading about the real world and about real evils, but if something goes too far sexually or too dark, I will stop reading the book.  Second, the purpose for my reading.  I try to be wise in how I spend my time—if I only have so much reading time, what is the best way to spend that?  Sometimes that means I pick up Christian fiction, sometimes it means a non-fiction book, or sometimes it does just mean something fun.  I just try to be aware!

Morgan Huneke ~ My faith is like a filter through which I see the stories I read. It does affect what I choose to read, because it gives me certain standards, but it also affects what I get out of a story, even a secular one. I often pull biblical parallels out of stories, sometimes without even trying. My favorite stories are always the ones that help me to better understand a biblical truth.

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4 comments:

  1. Sarah --- I'm curious, what do you mean by 'take life lightly'?

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    1. Yes. I guess I wasn't very clear. Even in some Christian stuff, they don't seem to value human life. murder, violence, and death are not taken seriously. Every life is precious and I think books should reflect that.

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  2. What a great post and variety of views :) I totally agree with the main point especially, that our faith guides us in all we do! :) I read a big variety but I also have a dislike for the common trope of 'anti hero who doesn't grow'

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    1. Glad I'm not the only one who doesn't care for anti-heroes. :)
      I loved this prompt and seeing everyone's influences and preferences.

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