WHI-Bonus | Law, Gospel & Les Miserables
Dec.20, 2012 by
in
2012 Show Archive, White Horse Inn
On this special BONUS edition of the White Horse Inn Michael Horton and David Zahl explore many of the rich themes found in Victor Hugo’s classic novel, Les Miserables. This discussion is especially relevant in light of the highly anticipated release of a film adaptation of Boublil and Schönberg’s musical of the same title which will appear in theaters on Christmas Day. In particular Horton and Zahl discuss the themes of grace and redemption as it unfolds throughout the story, and the way in which the two characters, Javert and Jean Valjean, end up personifying both the unbending nature of the law, and the incredible liberation of the gospel of grace.
RELATED ARTICLES & BOOKS
The Return of Les Mis…,
David Zahl (offsite)
David Zahl (offsite)
Law and Grace in ‘Les Mis’
Mike Cosper (offsite)
Mike Cosper (offsite)
Les Miserables
Victor Hugo
Victor Hugo
A Spiritual Journey Through Les Miserables
John Morrison
John Morrison
The Gospel-Driven Life
Michael Horton
Michael Horton
Putting Amazing Back Into Grace
Michael Horton
Michael Horton
PROGRAM AUDIO
December 21st, 2012 at 11:57 am
[...] And Michael Horton and David Zahl explore similar themes on a bonus episode of the White Horse Inn. [...]
December 24th, 2012 at 4:05 am
Thank you so much for dedicating your time and energy in such a beautiful discussion of “Les Miserables”—Victor Hugo’s original work, the musical, and the film. What a God-glorifying moment of grace you’ve shared with us.
December 25th, 2012 at 10:52 am
[...] http://www.whitehorseinn.org/blog/2012/12/20/whi-bonus-law-gospel-les-miserables/ [...]
December 25th, 2012 at 12:06 pm
[...] How Much Is Paris Worth? Dec.25, 2012 by Guest in Book Review, Modern Reformation Reviews of Victor Hugo’s 19th-century classic Les Miserables shouldn’t be too miserable, right? Sadly, I may disappoint you in what follows—I do not provide much insight into the relationship between Jean Valjean and Inspector Javert, between the ex-con full of grace and the bulldog Law-man. For such discussions, please refer to the recent podcast with Dr. Horton and David Zahl. [...]
December 26th, 2012 at 6:41 am
Thank you very much for taking the time to present the themes of Les’ Miserables. It was this discussion that helped me decide to take my young adult daughters to see the musical on Christmas day, which I have never done before.
I knew that Les Miserables is touted by the world as a panoramic spectacle of humanistic France at the beginning of the modern era and for that reason, the themes of worldly utopianism and redemption here on earth were of concern to me.
However, after listening to the broadcast, my daughters and I were able to look for the biblical themes of the nature of grace and the law and it was a rich, enjoyable film that like many things in life, will be interpreted through the world view of each viewer.
I did read Mr Stowell’s review of Les Miserables with great interest and was grateful to have the some of the historical background to flesh out the era and the narrative of the author. Sadly, a great deal of the viewing audience will not have read the novel and will not be familiar with the themes discussed in Mr Stowell’s critique, however I thought his comments helpful and balanced in light of the historical context of the novel,the feet of clay of it’s author and the tendency of Christians to so readily accept Hollywood’s interpretation of christian themes as doctrine. A little bah humbug was good to weigh in on what is going to be a very popular musical for months to come and good to remember that the spectacle of Les Miserables is just that, a sweeping spectacle of man’s longed for redemption and cannot compare to the sacrifice or the majesty of our Lord’s sacrifice. I think there will be many opportunities to explore the Christian world view of law, repentance and grace with my unsaved friends and family and I hope other christian brothers and sisters will take the opportunity to do the same.
Thank you for all the great work you do on this broadcast. The truth is so hard to find!
Sincerely In Christ Jesus,
Denise L Choate
December 26th, 2012 at 8:01 am
The gospel of Free Grace cannot be presented by theatrical or any artistic means. My problem as a fallen man is that I prefer fun to worship. I went to Disney World on Christmas Day, 2012 instead of to see Les Mis. I am therefore qualified to speak.
December 26th, 2012 at 12:35 pm
[...] night, we went to see Les Miserables. As has already been discussed here and written about here, the contrast between law and grace is both pronounced and [...]
December 27th, 2012 at 5:25 am
[...] night we went to see Les Miserables. As has already been discussed here and written about here, the contrast between law and grace is both pronounced and [...]
December 27th, 2012 at 8:38 am
I saw the movie Christmas evening. There was a man that entered the theater ahead of me with a fish symbol on his t-shirt and inside the fish it said, “myth.” I thought of him during the movie and wondered what he got out of it, or didn’t get out of it.
December 27th, 2012 at 3:37 pm
[...] [Update: To listen to a little discussion on the subject of "Law, Gospel and Les Miserables" that I was flattered to take part in recently with Michael Horton of The White Horse Inn, go here.] [...]
January 5th, 2013 at 5:13 pm
Please keep these resources up for a while. This movie and these themes have the potential to have a lasting impact. Thank you for bringing to light the deeper truth of this movie/musical.
January 15th, 2013 at 6:28 pm
[...] Law, Gospel and Les Misérables by White Horse Inn var dd_offset_from_content = 40; var dd_top_offset_from_content = 0;Related Articles:The “Prodigal Son”: Freewill Repentance? (function($) { $(function() { if (!$('#fb-root').size()) { $('body').append(''); (function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) {return;} js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk')); } }); $.post('http://www.twoagespilgrims.com/doctrine/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php', { action: 'fbc_ping', post_id: '13369', nonce: '07bcf515aa' }); })(jQuery); Anonymous says: January 4, 2013 at 5:22 am [...]
January 18th, 2013 at 6:00 am
[...] 24, Les Mis may be around for a while. We have a White Horse Inn interview on the movie here and a blog review here. But a long-time contributor (former editor) and pastor/professor Brian [...]
February 19th, 2013 at 3:20 am
[...] http://www.whitehorseinn.org/blog/2012/12/20/whi-bonus-law-gospel-les-miserables/ [...]
February 28th, 2013 at 10:19 am
[...] http://www.whitehorseinn.org/blog/2012/12/20/whi-bonus-law-gospel-les-miserables/ [...]