Creativity as a Cocktail?

A Friend's Response About my Last Article, and Christian Discernment

Dec 30, 2025

Note: This article won’t make a lot of sense unless you’ve read my previous article: “No, KPop Demon Hunters is not Christian” but a writer friend sent some great feedback. With his permission, I’m including those emails back and forth with his name removed.*

* Also, I’m editing some for clarity and length.

Sam,

Have you read any of Charles Williams’ novels?

I ask because he was a good friend of C. S. Lewis — so much so that Lewis edited a collection of essays in Williams’s honor after the latter’s untimely death. Lewis described Williams’s novels as “exciting fantasy, some of the most important things Williams had to say,” noting that they were defined by “frank supernaturalism and ... frankly bloodcurdling episodes.” Those elements were, at least in some cases, inspired by Williams’s interest in the occult.

While I’m not a Williams expert, I do know that Lewis was inspired by him. (The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe most particularly, by Williams’s novel The Place of the Lion.) Would C.S. Lewis have signed off on everything that Williams dabbled in and believed? No.

But it does make me wonder if C.S. Lewis after his conversion would have had a different response to Yeats.

To be clear: I haven’t watched Kpop Demon Hunters. These comments aren’t to voice disagreement (though we may disagree), I’m simply suggesting that Lewis’s views might be more nuanced.

I’m also curious what, specifically, you think makes America rich soil for “paganism”? Is it simply because modern American has been “woke” and you see a vacuum forming? Or are there more specific conditions that you see as particularly ripe for such influences?

Hey [“Christian Writer Friend”],

Yes, I have read parts of William’s novels, but I didn’t love his style and so just couldn’t get into them.

I am curious why you you characterize Charles Williams was an occultist. I believe he would vociferously object to that categorization, and C.S. Lewis also.

From my limited understanding of Williams, I believe he was was a noncomformist Christian who was very interested in the spiritual, especially the idea of a so-called “co-inherence”. He might be at home in many American charismatic churches. But to my knowledge he had no teachings nor ideas that broke Christian orthodoxy, and he definitely did not consider himself either pagan or occultist. I would tend to agree with him. I think he’s not my cup of tea as a writer or a theologian (I agree with J.R.R. Tolkien on that score).

I can see why you would ask the question, but I think you should dig deeper in the resources I provided on Yeats, as his occultism was very specific and very intentionally pagan witchcraft. If that kind of explicit occult was off-putting to a young, ambitious, secular-atheist C.S. Lewis then I think it would have been exponentially more alarming to C.S. Lewis after his conversion.

Lewis made his stance on the occult and spiritualism very clear over and over in many many places. I mean, you could just read The Screwtape Letters and know that C.S. Lewis wasn’t down with the occult, nor neopagan thought, nor Wicca nor anything of that ilk.

Or perhaps I am misunderstanding your objections?

As to your other point, I think the west is rich soil for paganism (not necessarily America). But, yes, I do think vast portions of America will do whatever their European cousins do, and the tsunami is already well underway in Europe.

- Sam

Sam,

To clarify, I didn’t say that Williams was “an occultist.” Only that he had an “interest in the occult.” That’s fairly well-documented (see here and here, for example) and shows up explicitly in his novels. I think Joel J. Miller summed Williams up well: “A devout Anglican who wrote a few volumes of interesting theology, Williams was obsessed with the occult.”

Again, not having seen Kpop yet, I can’t compare Williams’s literary dabblings with the themes of that movie. My takeaway from the Williams novels I’ve read is that he takes the power of evil seriously, yet does so in a way that recognizes the greater strength of the Christian God. Descent to Hell, which is my favorite thus far, is particularly moving on this point. In it the heroine is plagued by evil, which in turn opens the door for a remarkable understanding of the power of prayer.

But I digress.

Why did I reply and offer these questions / counterpoints? I think because I fail to see the difference between entertaining the mythology of a movie like KPop and entertaining Greco-Roman mythology, something Christians have done for centuries without batting an eye. Lewis and Tolkien are prime “culprits,” in fact. Think of Till We Have Faces or the oddity of Bacchus showing up in Prince Caspian.

Think of their obsession with “Northerness” — one I deeply share — which is syncretistic at best. Even Arthurian mythology, which Lewis delightfully winds into That Hideous Strength, owes much to the spirituality of other traditions. (Especially considering it’s Merlin, and not Arthur, that Lewis resurrects in that novel.)

If the objection is, “But Lewis and Tolkien were Christians, and they wrote their stories from a Christian worldview” — well, okay. But that’s not terminology they would ever have embraced. They weren’t concerned with turning these old things “Christian.” That occurred naturally because they went about repurposing old stories to fit what they saw in the world. And as Christians, they couldn’t help but do the same. (Much like Lewis took his fascination with science fiction and wrote a “Christian” science fiction trilogy, though without the “Christian” genre trappings that afflict much of modern evangelical publishing.)

What’s more, I also wonder if we’re permitted to dally more adventurously in fantastic worlds. By which I mean: we can accept the world of stories like the Odyssey or the Divine Comedy or even Kpop Demon Hunters without inherently saying, “This is what our world is like too.” In the worlds of urban fantasy, this may be more uncomfortable and require more wisdom, since they’re less clearly “fantastic.” But I could cite several solid K-dramas that incorporated elements of reincarnation and shamanism, for instance, without making them “dangerous” or ruining the truth on display in those stories.

Dear [“Christian Writer Friend”]

Many valid points here. Thanks for taking the time to write them out! I have some thoughts on your points and a few replies to flesh out, but I will compose those out at a later time.

Gotta drive my kids on a few errands!

- Sam

Again, great thoughts in the previous letter. I almost wish you had mentioned all these comments in the Substack article itself, because your feedback is incredibly important and I would like to nuance that point you’re making a little bit. I think I will add a postscript to the article with some of your points. Would you mind?

Anyway, here’s my reply to your points...

I suppose the point at issue here is the difference between tasting and imbibing.

Yes, I agree that C.S. Lewis and Tolkien were Wordsworthian in their preference to be “suckled in a creed outworn” rather than get sucked into the materialistic evil philosophy that was all around them. However, they both steered clear of any real occult darkness wherever they encountered it. That’s just Christianity 101, of any denomination in any era.

My goal is not to handcuff any Christian’s entertainment’s choices or impinge on their creativity. My goal is to keep sheep safe from wolves. Because wolves are real and they can kill.

You’re correct. Greek myths were once very popular in “Christendom” but only after those traditions were completely dead and gone.

The main reason I wrote about KPop Demon Hunters … is because KPop Demon Hunters is ostensibly for kids, and it is a musical.

I have two little boys and anything they like they watch over and over. Musicals for kids are especially meant to be watched ad infinitum. That’s sort of their purpose: to be memorized.

- -

But as regards creativity and imagination? Well, maybe you could compare spirits to alcohol (pun intended). There’s nothing inherently evil about imbibing “entertaining various mythologies” as you have phrased it. However, a lot depends on the content, the strength, and the constitution of the alcohol of the plot.

I mean, never-ending drinking of the sugary sweetness of Disney romances can be like living on coke. Not too bad for kids, but sure it can harm you in great amounts and if you never drink water or have a healthy diet to compensate.

But say, Harry Potter and old Greek myths detached from a living culture are like say… a fine after-dinner port. Great stuff in moderation. Like Lewis and Tolkien, I’m a connoisseur too. I can talk and compare and savor like any other expert. As an English major, I’m very well-trained in the topic.

But “drinking” other spiritual things, like Ouija… is like guzzling Draino. Always bad, always deadly. Never drink it. Don’t even taste it.

For me personally, I simply cannot stomach almost any modern literary horror. (With the exceptions of certain OG classics like Dracula and Frankenstein.) I also hate bourbon. But I know a lot of folks who like both, and can handle them both fine.

KPop Demon Hunters? Perhaps, it’s like vodka… most adults can handle it.

Some ought not.

I swirled it around, and swallowed it down, but boy did it burn on the way down.

And when I read respected Christian influencers say that water and vodka are interchangeable because they’re both clear… and both are good for kids? Well, that’s when I reply in a Substack post agreeing that water and vodka are both clear, but also suggesting that perhaps water and vodka are not interchangeable.

I mean most rubbing alcohol probably won’t make you go blind… but why try?

Honestly, KPop Demon Hunters is not on the level of an ouija board or anything… but it’s getting far too close to Everclear for my tastes.

YMMV.

And honestly some folks are more resistant to alcohol than others. This I take it is Paul’s idea of the liberty of the believer in his letter to the Corinthians.

Yeah, maybe you can do ten vodka shots just fine. But can your brother? And which is more valuable to you? Your brother’s psyche or your vodka consumption?

Also “alcoholism” is a very real thing (to continue the metaphor).

Anyway, I’m glad your constitution is strong in this regard. But that’s not the experience of every Christian brother and sister around the world.

Again, YMMV.

- Sam

Sam,

You’re more than welcome to quote and cite me. I’m often hesitant to post comments like this, probably because much of my youth was misspent arguing on Internet forums. When I have another perspective to share, I’d much rather share it directly with the author. But if you want to share stuff from our back and forth because it’ll serve what you’re doing, please feel free.

By the way, I appreciate this back and forth. Whether or not we agree, this kind of dialogue is sharpening. Thanks for engaging.

I also appreciate what you’re trying to do here. Like you, I have kids who immerse themselves in the things they like. They don’t just watch movies and move on. When they find a film they like, they immediately use its soundtrack as the background for their play activities. My boys spend hours playing LEGO, and they’ll typically stream soundtracks on Amazon Music as they play. So yeah, I do care about what they imbibe and fill their minds with.

That said, I admittedly find it hard not to react to my sheltered, homeschooling upbringing. My parents weren’t the strictest parents in our community, but they forbade many things that I now have no problem with. Or if I share concerns, they’re starkly different concerns. An extreme example: we were not allowed to watch Beauty and the Beast. As a kid I thought it was because of the magic element; as a young adult, I learned it was because they were concerned about bestiality. I’m not saying the movie is perfect, nor do I think my childhood was ruined because we couldn’t watch it. However, that particular concern strikes me as farfetched and imaginatively ignorant.

Which I guess leads to the biggest question I wrestle with on such matters: what are we supposed to do with stories?

As a teenager, I was immersed in what I’d call “biblical worldview” culture. Folks like Gary DeMar and David Noebel were principal influences, along with RJ Rushdoony, Gary North, and Douglas Wilson. (Josh Harris was a more popularly known figure, though what he wrote and taught was more adjacent to this stream of thinking.) I mention names just to give a specific reference, since “biblical worldview” is a broad term and could mean any number of things.

Looking back, I don’t find much value in this particular stream of “biblical worldview” thinking I swam in. These leaders all said some good and true things, but I think on the whole this approach left me ill-equipped to interact with stories and deal with the real world. When we read books or watched movies, we weren’t taught to consider character development or look for the humanity in the characters. Instead, it was all about understanding the ideas behind the story. “What does this mean and what worldview is it preaching?” were the primary questions we asked of every story. (Often the only questions.)

To be clear: I’m not denying that stories carry meaning. However, I do think that’s a poor way of understanding and interacting with stories. It cheapens them, treating their characters akin to mere sermon illustrations instead of real people. It also perpetuates a false sense of certainty: “If I think the right things and surround myself with the right ideas, I’ll be safe and sound.” It lacks any understanding of emotional health. It also leads to inevitable disillusion—and, in my case, paralyzing fear—when young people discover that living a good, flourishing life requires a lot more than the ability to diagnose worldviews and hold to the right beliefs. Many of the figures I named above are prime evidence: even if you agree with their thinking, their behavior has often fallen short of the lifestyle Christ called us to in the Sermon on the Mount.

And to be even clearer: I am NOT suggesting that your critique is like the type of thinking I described above. I’m trying to emphasize that my questions and counterpoints are not an attack on you or your thinking. They’re really part of my ongoing efforts to figure out how I want to interact with stories, whether in books, movies, or in the people I meet out in the world.

This is probably way more personal background than you needed. However, I thought that might shed some light on where my questions and counterpoints are coming from.

Dear [“Christian Writer Friend”],

I totally get it. I also was homeschooled. We also were denied a lot of stories that I now consider totally kosher.

(To continue the alcohol metaphor, this would be like a prohibitionist trying to ban all alcohol for everyone at all times, just because they came from an abusive alcoholic home.)

Like you, I reacted STRONGLY against this upbringing (though never fully abandoned my Christian faith) when I was in college. In fact, I probably reacted even more violently against my upbringing than what you’re describing.

I swung all the way the other direction on the pendulum. And I was Mr. Woke Christian before such a thing even existed. I was way ahead of the curve! But then I lived in Hollywood, and worked at MIT and I saw the excesses and evils of the other side of the pendulum (and they are legion).

So in the past decade, I’ve moderated my rebellion against my youth.

Like you, I’ve lived through many foolish mistakes made out of a misguided zeal. In fact, my parents have both admitted their mistakes and apologized for them.

(To be fair to them, it’s hard to be a parent in any era. It is so easy to fall off the road on either side of the path!)

But that reminds me of one of my favorite C.S. Lewis quotes:

“A thing does not vanish—it is not even discredited—because someone has spoken of it with exaggeration. It remains exactly where it was.”

Many of our parents made mistakes. (Just as we are currently, I’m sure.) They exaggerated threats, and some folks were just plain silly.

But an exaggeration does not remove the realness of any threat, nor mean that every warning is as misapplied.

I think we have to grieve the past, repent of foolishness, but not allow our past mistakes to swing us into future mistakes on the other side. For example, this past decade of “woke” will certainly have a lot of Christian parents regretting their choices. And yes, human nature being what it is, I know there will be a false penance by the pendulum swinging too far the other way, and tossing out the baby with the bathwater. I’m concerned for example that our obligations to the poor, the widow and the orphan might be lost for a little bit as we overcompensate to accidentally imbibing straight-up unadulterated Marxist thought.

In other words, we accidentally got drunk.

This happens throughout the history of the church (and also throughout the history of the world). We get drunk on ideas, trends and impulses.

Then through shame (and lack of personal repentance) we don’t heed the simple wisdom of that C.S. Lewis quote. Yes, things got exaggerated. Yes, zealous people did foolish things, things really got out of hand…

But even still, the original truth is not dented, nor discredited in the slightest. Truth is always truth, even if it gets looped into others (admittedly dangerous and damaging) exaggerations.

Sam,

Thanks for sharing some of your background. While I suspect our intellectual convictions vary at points, I think we’ve got a great deal in common and share a common goal: to think rightly and to read well. (Along with the other elements of Micah 6:8.)

One of those days it would be great to grab coffee (Or a beer? Or some vodka shots?).

Until then, keep writing! Glad to have your voice in my inbox on the regular.

SDG Morgan

Discussion about this post

Ready for more?