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<br>Interesting, but "Dickens in Heaven" and "his greatest plot is told in Heaven" and more Dickens in Heaven?<br><br>Good Lord! I bet Dickens himself would guffaw at that. Get a grip Mr. C.

[Steven M.]

Forgive me, but do you actually know who 'Mr. C' is?

[gilgilis]

I am not the person to whom this message is addressed and do know a little bit about GKC. But out of interest, does anyone know what were Dickens' own views on religion and the possibility of an afterlife? I assume he was an orthodox Anglican but that still allows some latitude. I admit I've not read much Dickens - Drood, Great Expectations, The Old Curiosity Shop, Pickwick Papers, Christmas Carol and, long ago, Oliver Twist - but it does strike me, even from MED, that Dickens didn't rate the contemplative or 'spiritual' side of religion very highly. He seems to have been decidedly more for the active, loving-god-through-doing-good-to-others aspect. Theological nitpicking also probably wouldn't have appealed to him.

I make this guess because in MED Jasper compares the stifling deadness of his life as a cathedral choirmaster to the pointless existence of a medieval monk. Also, though the cathedral is such a presence in the book I didn't get any sense that it's a place of spirituality and prayer: it's more like a big warehouse of the dead. Rev Crisparkle however is clearly a good man whose religion does not involve withdrawing from the world but taking an active part in it as a family member, teacher, concerned citizen etc.

I was disappointed to realise belatedly that Jasper was only a lay employee of the cathedral. It would have been lots more fun had he been an archdeacon or something.

[ex ponto]

Dostoyevsky called Dickens a real Christian. If anyone was, he was (among writers). And he probably wasn't ignorant about his beliefs.

[ex ponto]

Dostoyevsky called Dickens a real Christian. If anyone was a Christian, he was (among writers). And he probably wasn't ignorant about his beliefs.