Largely because of the divisions among disciplines in our universities, I suppose, we tend to think of Bible and Classical world in different categories.  Of course, we know that Alexander swept through, that Rome took over Palestine, and Pilate the Roman governor put Jesus on a cross.  Yet we often miss the depth and extent of contact between East and West.

A series of events from the early third century illustrates how deep the contacts of East and West were, and how long they persisted.

One spring evening in the year 218 A.D., the emperor Macrinus was enjoying dinner at Apamea.  News of a coup led by Antoninus was disturbing, but Macrinus had confidence that his commander, Ulpius Julianus, would be able to handle it.  Meanwhile, Macrinus could sit to enjoy his dinner.  But the banquet turned macabre when a messenger was brought in and presented the emperor with the Ulpius’ head.

A Little Something from the Vaults (Volume 15.6)

Modern Christians have forgotten the art of storytelling, and this is a significant loss. C.S. Lewis described the problem well in The Horse and His Boy: “Aravis immediately began, sitting quite still and using a rather different tone and style from her usual one. For in Calormen, storytelling (whether the stories are true or made up) is a thing you are taught, just as English boys and girls are taught essay writing. The difference is that people want to hear the stories, whereas I never heard of anyone who wanted to read the essays.”

Stories are powerful, even the false ones. And for those who are not steeped in the story of Scripture, we have to say the false ones are especially powerful. When it comes to having a need to orient all beliefs within a story, mankind is incorrigible. And we do this for the same reason that we stick to the ground when we walk—this is how our Creator decided to do it. This is how God created our minds, and we cannot really think in other ways. Initially, this approach may seem odd or confusing. But learning to think of the gospel as a story is a central part of recovering a right understanding of the gospel.