February 21, 2025 • 8 mins
John Trumby "The Anatomy of Genres" is a book that help us understand the human condition regarding the fear of death, as he lays out the building blocks for horror films. For the Christian family it serves as a reminder that teaching children about sin, death, hell and heaven are questions the soul demands to be answered.
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Episode Transcript
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Ethan (00:01):
Raising joyful children in an angry world, a podcast
dedicated to faithful parentsnavigating their families
through a stormy culture
Teaching children about sin,wrath, and hell are essential in
the raising of a Christianfamily.
These are heavy topics.
Let me help you understand whythey're important today.
(00:22):
This is Raising Joyful Childrenin an Angry World.
I am your host, Paul Osborne.
I want to point to a writernamed John Trumby.
He is both a screenwriter andconsultant for films.
He has written a book called TheAnatomy of Genres.
And he explains what writerscall the beats.
These are the building blocks ofany story and they're found in
(00:45):
every genre.
He explains these beats, theseways to understand a film and
his explanation of horror filmsand the beats that are in them,
the topics of sin and wrath anddeath and hell.
Oh, there are very important.
And these stories, Play a rolein our fear of death.
(01:09):
These stories are significantand they're popular and they
keep being produced and havebeen even before there were
films that were written storieslike them from Edgar Allen Poe
and on because they deal withthe human psyche of the fear of
death, of having to confront it.
And it is interesting as you seethese beats.
(01:32):
They explain the films, but theyalso explain the human condition
and these beats aren't new tothe modern world.
They have been around for a verylong time.
can't take Trumby's explanationsthough, without hearing some
ancient approaches to death andto sin.
And you have to understand thatwhile some people become fearful
(01:55):
and anxiety ridden by thesefilms and unhappy, others get an
adrenaline rush.
And so I'm not so much concernedabout whether these are
appropriate or not appropriateor how old you should be.
But what they point to us is theneed for the human condition in
our kids to understand and havethe truth about sin, about God's
(02:17):
wrath, about death, about heavenand Bart Swain pointed out in a
recent article entitled, it'sall evangelicals fault.
I'm not really related to whatI'm looking for out of it, but
he points out that whensocieties try to answer
spiritual questions bysubstituting things like
political zealotry, you end upwith a custom made spirituality
(02:40):
and superstition and all sortsof crazy ideas.
Those are the ones we see kindof floating around in American
life today.
I had a conversation here nottoo long ago with a relatively
new friend of mine.
He explained to me that indeath, he believes you join this
force for good in the universe.
He had no basis for his belief,but he said it made sense to
(03:03):
him.
It's what Swaim calls bespokespirituality.
It's the same term bespoke of acustom made suit.
It's just made for you.
I can't imagine.
Being on my deathbed and hopingthat my lucky stars are going to
welcome me into some sort offorce.
But this is what, this is whatwe end up with when we have not
(03:23):
dealt with this issue.
And this is why parents mustexplain death and wrath and
heaven and hell to our kidsbecause it is part of their
psychological makeup.
It is part of the nature oftheir the need to answer the
questions regarding sin anddeath.
The story of the human racereflects the need to know.
(03:46):
From Genesis, throughout theBible, which we believe to be
the word of God, the realexplanation.
There are plenty of mythologiesand stories throughout human
history that deal with this.
And I would suggest all of thoseare evidence of our need to deal
with it.
One of the things I often hearfrom parents is I sent my kid
(04:07):
off to college and they cameback with a set of values
completely foreign to mine.
think you can do everythingright.
And that can happen.
So I'm not into the blame game,but I often wonder what was the
young person taught?
What was ingrained in theirthinking before they were
inserted into college life?
Was faith simply, some sort of,You know, it's a list of virtues
(04:29):
and good behavior.
Did it deal with death, withwrath and mercy?
Was heaven and hell a seriouspart of it?
Because I think without it, thenyou become vulnerable things
that we're seeing throughout oursociety of people getting into
all kinds of spiritual thingsthat are basically made up.
And I think what can happen tous is we might tell a story of
(04:52):
Jericho, right?
And, but we forget about thestory of a chain that follows
his rebellion, his massive sinand the wrath of God that comes
upon him.
We see the same thing in Moses.
We might talk about the 10commandments and the golden
calf, and then we might minimizethe rebellion of Cora.
Another story that reveals thiswrath of God, the issues of
(05:15):
God's wrath for the Christianchurch.
I think is important because itfirst provides a sense of
gratitude.
We understand that we have beensaved from that wrath.
Hell also informs us that thereis an eternal justice.
Nobody gets away with anything.
There's going to be a place inwhich this is going to have to
be paid.
And therefore in this kind of,explanation, God's mercy then
(05:41):
can be truly understood andappreciated.
And this is why, I mean, I thinkthe Bible says in Proverbs that
the fear of God is the beginningof wisdom.
If we don't get our kids forwhatever reasons, if we dismiss
the issues of death and fear andof sin and of hell.
Amen.
(06:01):
They're going to be vulnerableto the filmmaker, the novel
writer, the spiritualist, allthese people that come along
with all sorts of explanationsbecause that thing, that fear of
death, it, it doesn't go awayunless we get the truth that
comes from God to deal with it.
I mean, you will be vulnerableto all sorts of political
(06:23):
zealotry to all kinds of blamegames and it is not something
that we want to have in ourhome.
The prophet Isaiah, let me sumit up the way he says it in
chapter 30.
We follow a plan, but it's notGod's plan.
We take directions, but they'renot his directions.
We seek the protection ofpolitical kings, but not King
(06:45):
Jesus.
We seek the false prophet, thesoothsayer, instead of God's
word.
And even when we see the wrathof God in full display, with
things crashing around us, likea potter smashing plates and
cups and vases, We are like ahorror film movie.
We flee from it.
(07:06):
We run from it.
We jump on horses trying toavoid the destruction.
And then the prophet tells us,yeah, God waits for us.
He waits for us to be graciousto us, to show us mercy, and
then promises us when we finallywake up, that we'll dwell in the
house of the Lord.
(07:26):
We'll dwell in the house ofZion, and we will be blessed
when we wait on him Death andhell and heaven help us see the
reality of our condition.
They give us hope for truejustice.
They give us gratitude for God'smercy.
These topics are heavy, but thechild that has been taught to no
(07:47):
longer fear death because Godhas defeated death becomes an
adult who walks without fear.
Receives mercy for their flawsbecause the ultimate question of
what happens to me when I dieand what is the payment for my
sin is answered in the death andresurrection of Christ and his
(08:12):
gospel.
The ultimate battle for theheart and soul is a fight for
identity.
Our king invites our kids toknow who they are, what to
believe, and where they belong.
Until next time, let's rememberthe words for theirs is the
Kingdom of Heaven.
Raising joyful children in an angry world, a podcast
dedicated to faithful parentsnavigating their families
through a stormy culture
Teaching children about sin,wrath, and hell are essential in
the raising of a Christianfamily.
These are heavy topics.
Let me help you understand whythey're important today.
(00:22):
This is Raising Joyful Childrenin an Angry World.
I am your host, Paul Osborne.
I want to point to a writernamed John Trumby.
He is both a screenwriter andconsultant for films.
He has written a book called TheAnatomy of Genres.
And he explains what writerscall the beats.
These are the building blocks ofany story and they're found in
(00:45):
every genre.
He explains these beats, theseways to understand a film and
his explanation of horror filmsand the beats that are in them,
the topics of sin and wrath anddeath and hell.
Oh, there are very important.
And these stories, Play a rolein our fear of death.
(01:09):
These stories are significantand they're popular and they
keep being produced and havebeen even before there were
films that were written storieslike them from Edgar Allen Poe
and on because they deal withthe human psyche of the fear of
death, of having to confront it.
And it is interesting as you seethese beats.
(01:32):
They explain the films, but theyalso explain the human condition
and these beats aren't new tothe modern world.
They have been around for a verylong time.
can't take Trumby's explanationsthough, without hearing some
ancient approaches to death andto sin.
And you have to understand thatwhile some people become fearful
(01:55):
and anxiety ridden by thesefilms and unhappy, others get an
adrenaline rush.
And so I'm not so much concernedabout whether these are
appropriate or not appropriateor how old you should be.
But what they point to us is theneed for the human condition in
our kids to understand and havethe truth about sin, about God's
(02:17):
wrath, about death, about heavenand Bart Swain pointed out in a
recent article entitled, it'sall evangelicals fault.
I'm not really related to whatI'm looking for out of it, but
he points out that whensocieties try to answer
spiritual questions bysubstituting things like
political zealotry, you end upwith a custom made spirituality
(02:40):
and superstition and all sortsof crazy ideas.
Those are the ones we see kindof floating around in American
life today.
I had a conversation here nottoo long ago with a relatively
new friend of mine.
He explained to me that indeath, he believes you join this
force for good in the universe.
He had no basis for his belief,but he said it made sense to
(03:03):
him.
It's what Swaim calls bespokespirituality.
It's the same term bespoke of acustom made suit.
It's just made for you.
I can't imagine.
Being on my deathbed and hopingthat my lucky stars are going to
welcome me into some sort offorce.
But this is what, this is whatwe end up with when we have not
(03:23):
dealt with this issue.
And this is why parents mustexplain death and wrath and
heaven and hell to our kidsbecause it is part of their
psychological makeup.
It is part of the nature oftheir the need to answer the
questions regarding sin anddeath.
The story of the human racereflects the need to know.
(03:46):
From Genesis, throughout theBible, which we believe to be
the word of God, the realexplanation.
There are plenty of mythologiesand stories throughout human
history that deal with this.
And I would suggest all of thoseare evidence of our need to deal
with it.
One of the things I often hearfrom parents is I sent my kid
(04:07):
off to college and they cameback with a set of values
completely foreign to mine.
think you can do everythingright.
And that can happen.
So I'm not into the blame game,but I often wonder what was the
young person taught?
What was ingrained in theirthinking before they were
inserted into college life?
Was faith simply, some sort of,You know, it's a list of virtues
(04:29):
and good behavior.
Did it deal with death, withwrath and mercy?
Was heaven and hell a seriouspart of it?
Because I think without it, thenyou become vulnerable things
that we're seeing throughout oursociety of people getting into
all kinds of spiritual thingsthat are basically made up.
And I think what can happen tous is we might tell a story of
(04:52):
Jericho, right?
And, but we forget about thestory of a chain that follows
his rebellion, his massive sinand the wrath of God that comes
upon him.
We see the same thing in Moses.
We might talk about the 10commandments and the golden
calf, and then we might minimizethe rebellion of Cora.
Another story that reveals thiswrath of God, the issues of
(05:15):
God's wrath for the Christianchurch.
I think is important because itfirst provides a sense of
gratitude.
We understand that we have beensaved from that wrath.
Hell also informs us that thereis an eternal justice.
Nobody gets away with anything.
There's going to be a place inwhich this is going to have to
be paid.
And therefore in this kind of,explanation, God's mercy then
(05:41):
can be truly understood andappreciated.
And this is why, I mean, I thinkthe Bible says in Proverbs that
the fear of God is the beginningof wisdom.
If we don't get our kids forwhatever reasons, if we dismiss
the issues of death and fear andof sin and of hell.
Amen.
(06:01):
They're going to be vulnerableto the filmmaker, the novel
writer, the spiritualist, allthese people that come along
with all sorts of explanationsbecause that thing, that fear of
death, it, it doesn't go awayunless we get the truth that
comes from God to deal with it.
I mean, you will be vulnerableto all sorts of political
(06:23):
zealotry to all kinds of blamegames and it is not something
that we want to have in ourhome.
The prophet Isaiah, let me sumit up the way he says it in
chapter 30.
We follow a plan, but it's notGod's plan.
We take directions, but they'renot his directions.
We seek the protection ofpolitical kings, but not King
(06:45):
Jesus.
We seek the false prophet, thesoothsayer, instead of God's
word.
And even when we see the wrathof God in full display, with
things crashing around us, likea potter smashing plates and
cups and vases, We are like ahorror film movie.
We flee from it.
(07:06):
We run from it.
We jump on horses trying toavoid the destruction.
And then the prophet tells us,yeah, God waits for us.
He waits for us to be graciousto us, to show us mercy, and
then promises us when we finallywake up, that we'll dwell in the
house of the Lord.
(07:26):
We'll dwell in the house ofZion, and we will be blessed
when we wait on him Death andhell and heaven help us see the
reality of our condition.
They give us hope for truejustice.
They give us gratitude for God'smercy.
These topics are heavy, but thechild that has been taught to no
(07:47):
longer fear death because Godhas defeated death becomes an
adult who walks without fear.
Receives mercy for their flawsbecause the ultimate question of
what happens to me when I dieand what is the payment for my
sin is answered in the death andresurrection of Christ and his
(08:12):
gospel.
The ultimate battle for theheart and soul is a fight for
identity.
Our king invites our kids toknow who they are, what to
believe, and where they belong.
Until next time, let's rememberthe words for theirs is the
Kingdom of Heaven.
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