Anne Rice: Jesus Freak?

I confess to never having read one of her novels (nope, not a one) but I might just take a peek at her next one:

In two weeks, Anne Rice, the chronicler of vampires, witches and—under the pseudonym A. N. Roquelaure—of soft-core S&M encounters, will publish "Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt," a novel about the 7-year-old Jesus, narrated by Christ himself. "I promised," she says, "that from now on I would write only for the Lord." It's the most startling public turnaround since Bob Dylan's "Slow Train Coming" announced that he'd been born again.

Meeting the still youthful-looking Rice, you'd never suspect she'd been ill—except that on a warm October afternoon she's chilly enough to have a fire blazing. And if you were expecting Morticia Addams with a strange new light in her eyes, forget it. "We make good coffee," she says, beckoning you to where a silver pot sits on the white tablecloth. "We're from New Orleans." Rice knows "Out of Egypt" and its projected sequels—three, she thinks—could alienate her following; as she writes in the afterword, "I was ready to do violence to my career." But she sees a continuity with her old books, whose compulsive, conscience-stricken evildoers reflect her long spiritual unease. "I mean, I was in despair." In that afterword she calls Christ "the ultimate supernatural hero ... the ultimate immortal of them all."

Good on her.  I hope her conversion is genuine, I hope her faith withstands the ebbing and flowing of fidelity to God and more than anything I hope some of her readers will be moved to follow in her footsteps.

Comments

[lyn]

We would do well to heed the example of Bob Dylan (who seems to have left the evidence of his conversion back in the 1980s) and not put Anne Rice on a pedestal. A new believer who views Jesus through the lens of a supernatural thriller makes a poor spokesperson for historic Christianity.
More at Bloggin Outloud. Thanks, Lyn

[NeutralDude]

A great writer is destroyed by religion. Its a sad day for fiction. Ill never buy another Ann Rice book, her fear drove her to irrational mythical beliefs. Too bad she wasnt stronger

[jlkeeney]

If she is not against us...maybe she is for us...I give praise for her genuine conversion...mercy triumphs over judgment...and He is the only judge...so I guess what I am saying is that "only God knows her hear"...He came to seek and save that which was lost...and that includes everyone...I pray that you will pray for Anne, I am sure that she is in a very BIG spiritual battle...and I am sure it is hard...I do not want to be the one that judges her.