C. S. Lewis was well known for connecting The Chronicles of Narnia to various concepts through Christianity. However, a scene caught my attention during a reread the other night in Chapter 14 of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (I'm a Christian and I've read the Bible a few times):
"Well-" said Aslan, and seemed to be thinking. Then he said, "I should be glad of company tonight. Yes, you may come, if you will promise to stop when I tell you, and after that leave me to go on alone."
The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, Chapter 14: "The Triumph of the Witch"
And later, Aslan continues:
"Oh, children, children. Here you must stop. And whatever happens, do not let yourselves be seen. Farewell."
And both the girls cried bitterly (though they hardly knew why) and clung to the Lion and kissed his mane and his nose and his paws and his great, sad eyes. Then he turned from them and walked out on to the top of the hill.
The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
When Jesus was leaving for Gethsemane to atone for the sins of the world, some of his Apostles walked with him. In Matthew 26 verses 36-39, it says:
36 Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane, and saith unto the disciples, Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder.
37 And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy.
38 Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me.
39 And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.
Matthew 26:36-39
This seems similar to the way that Aslan requested the Pevensie sisters walk with him to his sacrifice for Edmund. But most interestingly, in the next verse, Jesus returns to the Apostles:
40 And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour?
Matthew 26:40
This seems as if it could connect to the line at the end of Chapter 14 when Aslan is killed:
The children did not see the actual moment of the killing. They couldn't bear to look and had covered their eyes.
The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
The connection between this is looser than the other. Was it a deliberate allusion? Am I reading too much into this? Thanks in advance for your comments and answers.
