The Apocalypse Of Horror

Last updated on: October 17, 2022 at 3:02 am by Henry Karlson

The Apocalypse Of Horror 2022-10-17T03:02:58-05:00 Henry Karlson

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Jeremy Brooks: Shock Horror / flickr

Jesus taught the public through stories. “With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it; he did not speak to them without a parable, but privately to his own disciples he explained everything” (Mk. 4:33-34 RSV). Through stories, we can express our hopes and fears, our thoughts and desires, and work through all kinds of speculations and ideas which we have in our minds. While stories are written and shared, in part, to entertain (and, for many of them, that is their primary purpose), this doesn’t mean that they have nothing to teach us. Indeed, stories, even those meant for entertainment, teach us much about the human condition, for they rely upon the human condition to be told. There are all kinds of concepts, all kinds of givens, used in any story to generate the tale, and those concepts, fictional or not, speculative or not, impossible or not, provide us not only entertainment, but things for us to consider once we are done with the story.

When engaging stories, contemplating what is happening in them, we end considering all kinds of notions which we might not otherwise have considered, and in doing so, learn all kinds of new ideas. Even if we know the story is fictional, and much of what is done in it is impossible, we still discern in them various aspects of the human condition, for they show us how humanity could and would react if it had to deal with such situations. And, sometimes, what was once considered impossible, becomes possible, and such stories prove to be prophetic, helping prepare us for the future. Similarly, stories often reflect metaphysical principles in ways which seem grand or fantastic, but in doing so, they only present to us traces of the transcendent reality which lies beyond the fiction of our own historical narratives. Myths, for example, present elements of the transcendent truth in ways simple empirical narratives cannot do, and in this fashion, they often appear fantastic because they deal with non-empirical truths, and because they are not simple empirical narratives, we must not try to read them as histories if we are to understand them, even if they contain elements of history in them (which is why the book of Genesis, with its creation myth, must not be understood as simple history, for it is a myth, not a historical text). Myth, therefore, is often the best kind of story to use if we want to get beyond the limitations of pure empiricism, as Bulgakov noted:

Therefore the language of empirical history cannot be used to represent meta-historical events. The language of symbols or “myths” is the appropriate one. These symbols derive from mythologemas that are stored in the memory of humankind as an echo of anamnesis of prehistoric or meta-historic events. A myth, in the positive sense of this concept, is a story, expressed in a language not proper to the empirical domain, about what lies beyond this domain, about what belongs to the meta-empirical domain and meta-history. [1]

Hopefully, this will help us understand why fantastic fiction, in all its forms, can provide us comfort, not just because they entertain us, but they act as mini-apocalypses, revealing something about the inner nature of reality, the nature of reality which the author of the tale has, in one fashion or another, experienced for themselves (however exaggerated or developed it becomes in the telling of the tale).

Horror stories remind us, for example, of the demons around us, especially the demons of our own creation, though they can also show us the dark spiritual principles or demons which try to consume or destroy that which is good. That is, we are warned through them of the horror which lies all around us, the horror which we must face and overcome; we see in them that we can lose our fight to them, as many killed in such stories, but usually, there are those who remain to the end and overcome the evil they face, showing us that there can be victory over evil as the goodness of creation, and the goodness within us, can often holds its own against the evil which tries to destroy it. Good, in other words, is shown to survive, in some form or another, meaning good in and of itself transcends the power of evil, though we are also warned, we often face many such horrors in our life, as those who are victorious one day might have to face another demon, another horror the next day (which, sometimes is a repetition of the one we just faced and overcame, which explains why horror stories can become horror series, where one type of horror constantly returns). However, we also see in such stories, the charm and beauty which evil can have, as evil is never purely evil, pure monstrosity, but rather, it has a beauty of its own, a goodness which it uses and abuses to engage its onslaught against nature. This is why, as S.L. Frank surmised, beauty can be said to save the world, but not all beauty will, as some beauty can be said to be an evil beauty (which, of course, many horror stories demonstrate by showing how charming and seductive even the greatest of monsters can be):

Beauty as such does not save him from the destructive forces of evil or from the tragic nature of human life. Beauty as such is neutral. In a sense it is indifferent to good and evil. Symbolizing some potential harmony of being, it peacefully co-exists with actual disharmony. Furthermore, according to Dostoevsky’s profound insight, beauty combines itself in the “divine” and the “demonic,” for wherever we are seduced by deceitful appearances, there we have dealing with the demonic. This lack of concord between beauty – esthetic harmony – and the genuine reconciling, redeeming essential harmony of being was manifested concretely with astonishing persuasive force in the tragic life-experiences of such artists as Botticelli, Gogol, and Tolstoy. We can say that beauty is a sign of the potential harmony of being, of the possibility of actual, fully realized harmony. And if the world were perfectly beautiful, it would be perfectly harmonious, in inner accord, free of tragic duality. Therefore the dream of the ultimate transfiguration of the world is a dream of the complete triumph of beauty in the world. But it is precisely only a dream, which is opposed by the bitter reality of the inner discord and duality of being. Beauty is only a reflection of “paradise,” of the ontological rootedness of all reality in divine total unity.[2]

Evil, then, must be revealed for all it is, and horror stories can and should help us with that unveiling. Through them, we can find many of our ideas about evil are mistaken, even as we can find many of them are affirmed. We can seee in them the dangers which evil present to the world, but also the way the world can and does endure all the horrors given to it. We learn that there is psychological horror, where we risk becoming a monster ourselves, even as there is a cosmic horror, where the greatness of being itself is being attacked by the chaotic abyss. Moreover, there is also religious horror, where religion can be both a force for good as it is used to confront and overcome some particular horror, but it can also be a force for evil itself, as the pretense of holiness can create its own monsters. “For immoderate abstinence breeds in an arrogant boastfulness, which has no foundation; and, besides, it produces many terrors, which appear to be holy, but are not.”[3]

Horror stories should not to be dismissed because they deal with and reflect upon evil, as if they are themselves that evil. Rather, horror as a genre should be seen as an apocalyptic genre, one which not only shows what we are facing, but also gives up hope in all the terror, as they can show ways in which the light of goodness can and will resist evil. To be sure, sometimes, the victory of the good will merely be shown in the way it endures and finds a way to prevent itself from being snuffed out by some monstrous evil. But that is still a victory, and one which allows for other, further victories. Once any particular victory has occurred, healing then can take place. Thus, horror stories, far from supporting and promoting evil, actually help us see the limit of evil, the limit of even the most dark and dangerous evil, showing that in the end, evil can be overcome, and that all such evil, even the most powerful can, has its power, not from itself, but from distortion of what is good and beautiful. That revelation can and will then help us understand, in the eschatological sense, how evil is overcome by the incarnation. The story of the incarnation is, in its way, the ultimate horror story, as the God-man is killed and suffers the pains and sorrows, indeed, the horrors of the dead only to show that such horror can and will come to an end by the revelation of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. In the story of the God-man, we are shown that all the horrors found around us, all the demons and powers of darkness, will lead to their own doing. When they were at their greatest power, they led Jesus to the cross, and had him executed, and in the process, exhausted all their power, so that their apparent victory became their defeat, death overcame death, and what came forth was a good which would no longer suffer under their nihilistic hatred.

[1] Sergius Bulgakov, Bride of the Lamb. Trans. Boris Jakim (Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2002), 170.

[2] S. L. Frank, The Unknowable: An Ontological Introduction To The Philosophy of Religion. Trans. Boris Jakim (Brooklyn, NY: Angelico Press, 2020), 196.

[3] St. Hildegard of Bingen, “Letter 234” in The Letters of Hildegard of Bingen. Volume III. Trans. Joseph L Baird and Radd K Ehrman (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004), 33.

Stay in touch! Like A Little Bit of Nothing on Facebook.
If you liked what you read, please consider sharing it with your friends and family!

Progressive Christian

General Christian

Religious Music & Entertainment

Religious Art

Recreation, Outdoors and Religion

Previous Post

October 16, 2022

Honoring The Image Of God

Next Post

October 19, 2022 Rigid Legalism Will Only Wear Us Out

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Abortion Abraham abuse Aesthetics AI Aliens Ambrose Ancestors and Everything Andrew Angels Animals Anne Anthony Antisemitism apologetics Apophatic Apostle John Aquinas Artificial Intelligence Asanga Ascension Asceticism Assumption Atheism Attachment Augustine Authority Avarice Balthasar Baptism Beauty Biden birthright citizenship Bishops Black History Books Buddhism Bulgakov Byzantine Calendar C.S. Lewis Calcidius Catholic Catholicism Catholicism Celibacy Charity Chastity children Chrismation Christ Christmas Christology Church Climate Change Common Good Communion Confession Confirmation Conscience Constantine conventions conversion councils Covid Creation Cross Dead Death Death Penalty Debate Deception Demagogues Demons Desert Monks Desert Mothers Desire destruction development Dialogue Dignity Dionsyius Dionysius Discipline Diversity Division Doctor Who doctrine dogma Dormition Dualism Easter Easter Series Ecumenical Councils Ecumenism Education Election Empathy Environment Error Eschatology eschaton Eternity Ethics Eucharist Evangelism Eve Evil evolution Faeries Faith Fear femininity Ficino Florence Florensky Folktale Fools Forgiveness Freedom Future gender Gentile Gentiles Glory Gnostic God gods Good Samaritan Goodness Gospel Government Grace Great Fast Guns Hate healing Health Heaven Hell Hellenism Heresy Hierarchy Hildegard Hinduism History Holiness Holy Spirit Holy Week Hope Horror Human rights humanity Humility hypocrisy ICE icon icons Identification Identity Idol II Nicea Immigration incarnation Individualism Informal Reflections Inklings Intention Inter-Religious Interfaith Internet Interpretation Intrinsic evil Irenaeus Islam Israel Jacob Jerome Jesus Jews John Chrysostom John of Damascus John the Baptist Joseph Judaism justice Justification kenosis Kindnesss Kingdom of God Kingdom of Heaven Law Law of Moses Lazarus Leaf by Niggle Lent Lenten Reflection Liberation Theology Lies Life Listen Literature Liturgy locutions Logic Logos Love Marriage Martyrs Mary Mass Maximos The Confessor Meanness Meditation Mercy Middle Path Migrants Mind Miracles Miriam Morals Moses Movies Music Muslims Myths Names Nationalism Native Americans New Year Nicea Nicholas Nothing Novatian Obedience Occam's Razor Ordination Origen Original Sin Orthodox orthopraxis Pagans Palamas Palm Sunday Paradise Paschaltide Paul Peace Pentecost person Peter piety PKD Plato pluralism Plurality Poem Poetry Poiltics Politics Poor Pope Pope Francis Pope Leo XIV Post Office Prayer Pride Pro-life Prodigal Son propaganda Prophecy Prophets Providence Putin Racism Reading Reason Reflection Refugees Relationships Religion Religion Series Religious Liberty Repent Republicans Rest Resurrection Rich Rites Russia Sacraments Saints Salvation Salvian Santa Science Scripture Self-Giving Sexuality Sibyl Sick Silence Sin Singlehood Social Justice Society Sodom Solovyov Speculations Spiritual Reflection St. Cyril of Alexandria St. Justin Martyr Suffering Sunday of the Paralytic Man Sunday of the Samaritan Woman Superhero Supreme Court Teaching Technology Thanksgiving The Father the Universe Theological Reflection Theology Theosis Theotokos Thomas Timaeus Time Tolerenace Tolkien Tradition Transfiguration Trinity Trump Truth Uncategorized Unity Universities USCCB Value Vatican II Vegetarian Vices Violence Virtue Vocations War Water Welcome Wisdom Womanhood Women Work World View Worship Writing Zacchaeus

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz