Are Hollywood Movies Retelling A Satanic Myth? (Joseph Campbell's Monomyth Theory and the Bible)
Are your favorite movies… satanic?
It’s a common evangelical practice to try and find the Gospel in popular movies and culture. But what if there is another, much darker, story at play? 1949, philosopher Joseph Campbell rocked the literary world with his book, The Hero With A Thousand Faces. Therein, Campbell presented his theory that many—nearly all—of the ancient myths are all really telling essentially the same story about basically the same hero, who essentially passes through the same stages on his adventure before arriving at functionally the same destination. And, the theory goes, it’s not just the ancient myths that do this, but today’s popular stories as well, right down to our movies and comics from DC, Marvel, Disney, other major production studios… even Star Wars.
Do not miss this bonus episode of the Think Podcast. We’re going to be getting into some deep, theoretical waters and discussing ideas you are not likely to hear anywhere else.
So here’s the tricky part: while many are searching these popular stories for elements of the Gospel, my guest today makes the case that they have more in common with a darker tale: the history of Lucifer, his opposition to God, his fall and his deception of mankind.
In this episode, what we’re talking about specifically is this: there is quite possibly a satanic or luciferian theme running through our popular stories. This is something we need to be aware of, because as Christians we’re supposed to be alert against the prowling schemes of Satan (1 Peter 5:8), test all things, and hold on to the good (1 Thessalonians 5:21). and hold on to the good.
Specifically, in this episode you’ll learn about:
Who Joseph Campbell is, and what his monomyth concept is
In what way many ancient stories and myths are the same
What Genesis 1-3 teaches and how Satan distorts it.
Why one’s explanation of myth similarities depends on one’s worldview
How we see the monomyth pattern pop up in modern stories including The Hobbit, “Star Wars,” and movies like “Transformers,” “Zack Snyder’s Justice League,” and “Infinity War?”
Whether evangelical thought leaders are right or wrong to mine these stories for elements of the Gospel
Joel’s recent interaction with someone with a friend who is a self-proclaimed Luciferian and “Prometheist”
Joel’s guest for this episode (which is a bonus episode—did we mention that?) is Owen Anderson. Owen has been teaching philosophy and religious studies for 21 years and is a professor of philosophy and religious studies at Arizona State University. His research focuses on general revelation and related questions about reality, value, and knowledge. He has been a fellow at Princeton University, a visiting scholar at Princeton Seminary, and a fellow at the University of Colorado, Boulder. He has published several books including "Job: A Philosophical Commentary" (2021), about which Joel will be interviewing him on a future ThinkPod episode.
Get Owen Anderson’s newest book:
Job: A Philosophical Commentary https://www.amazon.com/dp/1736542427/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_RXBGGRN6ZXQV0M9VW6R7
Owen Anderson’s YouTube Channel:
https://youtube.com/c/DrOwenAnderson Patreon.com/drowenanderson
Owen Anderson’s Website:
Drowenanderson.com
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Music Credits:
Synthie Intro by Sascha Ende
Link: https://filmmusic.io/song/3154-synthie-intro
License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Clapping Hands by Frank Schröter
Link: https://filmmusic.io/song/6522-clapping-hands
License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license