july 12, 2006
Fiction, Darwin,
and Old Testament Prophecy at CBA
Fiction is the reigning prom queen at this year’s
Christian Booksellers Association convention – The
International Christian Retail Show, 2005. Enormous, full-color
banners greet visitors as they enter the Denver Convention
Center with larger-than-life photos of well-known Christian
fiction authors like Jerry Jenkins, Frank Peretti, and
Terri Blackstock.
Nearly every Christian publishing house is featuring
an impressive display of novels, in most cases sharing
equal shelf space with the non-fiction offerings. This
mirrors the growing success of the Christian fiction genre
that continues to increase in popularity and book sales.
This trend, in large part, has followed the earth-shaking
success of the Jenkins/LaHay “Left Behind”
series. This fiction phenomenon is a marked difference
from the first CBA convention I attended just four years
ago in 2001. At that show in Atlanta, there were some
industry leaders in the fiction department – like
Baker and Tyndale – but much of the Christian publishers
featured only a smattering of fiction.
Not so today. Christian fiction, it seems, is here in
a big way – and, hopefully, is here to stay!
Today I had the pleasure of interviewing the popular
and very entertaining Frank Peretti, with his lovely wife,
Barbara. Speaking of the success of his latest suspense
thriller, “Monster”, Peretti talked about
the process of bringing his characters to life.
“Part of the creative process,” he explained,
“is how you basically ‘chalk-up’ the
characters that you want. But then there is that point
where you cross a line of some kind. You go past a certain
point and they do take on a life of their own. That’s
part of ‘finding it.’ That’s a term
I just came up with. You know, there’s writing,
and then there’s really writing. It’s like
the difference between sketching and painting. You can
recount an incident that happened, or you can ‘be
there’ -- and you can take your reader there.”
Watch for the full interview with Frank Peretti coming
soon on CBN.com
Since this is the “International Christian Retail
Show”, books and authors are only a part of the
picture. This convention also features dozens of companies
and ministries featuring music, video, Christian-oriented
art, and various other items found in your local Christian
bookstore.
One group making an impact in the realm of Christian
video is Campus Crusade for Christ and their production
company, Randolf Productions. Two of their recent releases
have caused somewhat of a stir in the scientific and entertainment
communities. In his daily “Breakpoint” article,
Charles Colson recently recommended the new video on the
concept of Intelligent Design entitled, “The Privileged
Planet”. (see Breakpoint, Nov. 24, 2004).
This film has caused quite a stir in the scientific and
political community. Recently, the Smithsonian Institute
decided to drop its co-sponsorship of this film after
buckling under pressure from the pro-evolution scientific
establishment. Instead of allowing open discussion and
debate on the various theories, it gave way to the tired
argument that Darwinism is the only possible explanation
for the origin of all things.
Writing in a letter to the editor of the Washington
Post, co-author of “The Privileged Planet”,
Jonathan Witt, explained, “…in a statement
that the film’s content is not consistent with its
[the Smithsonian’s] scientific mission … the
editorial said, ‘While “The Privileged Planet”
is an extremely sophisticated religious film, it is a
religious film nevertheless. It uses scientific information
… to answer, affirmatively, the philosophical question
of whether life on Earth was part of a grand design.’”
Witt points out that The Post granted that the
film explored scientific information. “It is the
film’s conclusion that The Post and the
Smithsonian find inappropriate. Curiously, the museum
has no problem sponsoring events that advance the opposite
conclusion.” (see a related Wall Street Journal
article, “The
Branding of a Heretic” by David Klinghoffer,
Jan. 28, 2005)
The new DVD/video, “The Privileged Planet”
is a useful resource for students and teachers in learning
about the evidence of design in the universe – and
it is narrated by John Rhys-Davies of “The Lord
of the Rings” movies.
The latest Campus Crusade/Randolf Productions release,
also narrated by Rhys-Davies, is entitled, “Prophecies
of the Passion”, featuring commentary from noted
Bible teachers and authors Greg Laurie, Lee Strobel, and
Ed Hindson. This compelling new video explores the ancient
biblical promises of the Messiah and their amazing fulfillment
– touching the hearts and minds of both believers
and skeptics alike. The DVD features the one-hour film,
plus a virtual art gallery, reference library, 40-minute
question and answer session, and complete Scripture reference
from both the Old and New Testaments.
To learn more about these dynamic films go to www.randolfproductions.com.
Tomorrow: Enter the world of Narnia!
More from Craig
von Buseck on CBN.com
ChurchWatch Front
Page