I asked Giles Hash, aspiring writer and warrior, to guest blog about angels and he was reticient. Of course, that meant I had to get him to do it. But he battled back against me, saying that he had nothing to say about angels. Well, then he launched into an interesting diatribe which you are about to read, and I snapped my fingers and said, “Dude, write down what you just said!” He agreed and the rest is history. If you want more from Giles Hash, and you will, here is his blog. Take it away Giles!
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Angels are puppets:
I grew up in an Evangelical Church. I’ve always believed that angels exist, and that a loving Creator sends them to protect us in times of need. But I was also taught that angels have no free will. They exist to serve their Master and are incapable of defying Him. I don’t know where that came from, and in all of my theological study, I have no reference to back that up, but the impression was made. And it stuck. (Okay, so they were given ONE choice before Earth came into existence, and that resulted in Lucifer’s rebellion.)
What does that mean to me as a reader and a writer? That angels are boring. They’re puppets without motivation. They can’t learn, feel, or choose to do something that makes the world a better or worse place. As a result, suspending my disbelief while reading books about angels is difficult. I believe I read a book or two where that was possible, but I can’t remember any titles, which means it wasn’t very well-written.
As I get older, and as I learn to enjoy broader styles of writing, this is less of an obstacle, but it still exists. Don’t get me wrong: I don’t get offended by these books. I don’t even have any type of negative opinion reserved for them. I simply don’t BELIEVE them, and for me that’s a big deal. I want to get sucked into a novel. I want my imagination stimulated by stories that make me think, “It would be SO COOL to be there!”
I honestly don’t know if this is a roadblock for anyone with a similar background (though I know a few people who get angry at the idea that angels are portrayed “inaccurately”). But it’s something that influences my reading decisions.
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Thanks so much Giles! I love conflicting ideas because life is one big donut of paradoxes and rainbow sprinkles. Spirited debate makes the flowers grow.
And for the record, THE NEVER PRAYER, in my debut novel, my angels and demons shatter the mold, but of course, y’all knew that.
Don’t be fooled, I didn’t put up much of a fight. Or a diatribe. Aaron gives me more backbone than I deserve credit for :).
Well, as one who is writing a novel where, unfortunately, angels are puppets, I can’t really argue on their portrayal as anything more, although, just like a puppet that wants to walk its own path, it must cut the strings and that is probably where I see the puppet freeing themselves from the puppet master. Same for angels who choose to go against the grain – enter the fallen angels, those who do think and feel things beyond the binds of their status.
I’m not sure what the accurate portrayal of an angel would be. I’ve seen some angelic bodies, persons who look like heavenly beings, but none have been an angel so darned if I can’t get one pinned down to get the truth from them.
As for reading about them, my imagination has allowed for suspension of disbelief for differing portrayals, but I can certainly understand how pre-set (taught) ideas can make that difficult.
Oh, Angela, that’s awesome! The idea of angels being cut from their strings, you could do a lot with an idea like that. Cool! And Fallen Angels, the besmirched perfection. Aren’t all human beings fallen angels?