I reread Gareth Higgins’ and Brian McLaren’s little book, The Seventh Story: Us, Them and the End of Violence this week. In it, the authors lay out a theory that people use basic story lines, made up of experiences in all aspects of our lives, to make sense of the world. These stories we tell ourselves not only give our lives meaning but also determine the way we interact with each other and the world. Six of these stories have at their center a quest for security, for both the individual and those recognized as ‘family’ or ‘tribe’. They are:
- The domination story (us VS them)
- The revolution story (us overthrowing them)
- The isolation story (us staying apart from them)
- The purification story (us cleansing ourselves of them)
- The accumulation story (us having things that they don’t)
- The victimization story (us being more important than them because of our competitive suffering)
All six of these stories are inherently violent in that they separate the world into a duality, and see security as predicated on ‘us’ maintaining power in some way over ‘them’.
7. The story of reconciliation (some of us for all of us)
The Seventh Story breaks this mold of violence by replacing the protagonist of ‘me’ and/or ‘my tribe’ with love. Its central theme of embracing interdependence with others and creation overrides the goal of security, a move which depends on cooperation instead of competition (and large amounts of compassion and forgiveness). Most of us don’t learn this story line growing up but must intentionally embrace it and discipline ourselves to act out of it later in life.
Why is this significant for authors and readers? Because the stories we write, and the stories we read, reinforce the stories we live.
On season five of McLaren’s podcast, Learning How to See, he explains each of these story models, and then he and Higgins explore books, movies and scripture which support and encourage these patterns. Guess what stories our most popular entertainment promotes? It’s not the Seventh Story. But there are novels, movies and certainly scripture which illuminate and encourage the story line of love, and examples are given of that in the podcast and book as well.
I wonder how much power novels have to affect the way we live in this world. I do believe creative acts matter. Even if small, they prod reality towards a certain expression. To write a book changes the author. To read a book changes the reader. Both acts transform us in some way. If McLaren and Higgins are right about this theory — which direction we push or are pushed is important!
I also wonder if I should, or could, be more intentional about the stories I craft. I don’t think I have a lot of weight as an author, but what I have I’d like to throw behind the Seventh Story, nudging the world toward a reality of love. However, creative writing, for me at least, is not a logical endeavor. I don’t start a project knowing where it’s going to end up. I seem to follow along where my characters drag me. I’m grateful that Jerry, the protagonist in my first novel Eden.2, perceived the world through a Seventh Story lens. And Alice, hero of the upcoming Intersecting Eternity, finds her way to that perspective as well. Perhaps (hopefully) working on my own reality lens—actively seeking to live a life with love at the center—will tune me in to more characters who also see their worlds through the Seventh Story.
By the way, I learned that Intersecting Eternity now has a release date of October 15. If you haven’t yet read Eden.2, there’s still time before the sequel arrives! Get it here…. https://www.amazon.com/Eden-2-Margaret-Babcock-ebook/dp/B08X3NMFTQ/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1B9QPDRJZP1IP&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.kSDNsUDK8QMy94Lsd5E0Pg.vKPYqMH_hyoYyCYtO6T25D_ukuEQr332Fq9Ot6SBjmY&dib_tag=se&keywords=Eden.2+Margaret+Babcock&qid=1719523820&sprefix=eden.2+margaret+babcock%2Caps%2C152&sr=8-1
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