The Outsider

Andrew Mason · 16 Dec 2010, 19:29 · from 2010-December.txt.gz

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From: andrew.mason53 at googlemail.com (Andrew Mason)
Date: Thu, 16 Dec 2010 19:29:58 +0000
Subject: (urth) The Outsider
Message-ID: <AANLkTimTMkRogjDAnsm4pQi72M42e71CciOYqzhYGhX5 at mail.gmail.com>

Wow! How did that happen? Rather than trace my way through the
discussion and reply to each bit separately, I'll just try to state my
view as a whole.

I think the Outsider is God, i.e. the God of Christianity  or, more
generally, of the Abrahamic faiths, also known on Urth as the
Increate. As evidence for this one could mention:
The Jesus references, both in Silk's visions (the man riding through a
city whetre people are waving palm leaves, the criminal on the
scaffold) and in what's already known about the Outsider in the Whorl
(the beating of the traders in animals).
The suggested identification with Ah Lah.
The identification with the 'maker' in the Pajarocu story.
The claim that according to a doubtful story he was the original
creator of humans,.
The statement that he was worshipped on the Short Sun Whorl (i.e. Urth).
I'm inclined to add his apparent power to raise the dead.

I don't think we can say precisely either that he is the Father or
that he is Christ. From an out-of-story perspective, if we are
Christians, we can say that he is the Trinity, but of course no one in
the story thinks of him that way. Some of the things said of him may
be more applicable to Christ. and some to  the Father - or indeed to
the Holy Spirit. (One of the voices which Silk hears is 'cooing')

I think it's clear there is an analogue of Christianity within the
_Sun_ world. The references are copious; there are crosses, not just
Dorcas's rood, but Ctesiphon's cross and the Sign of Addition - which
is not the same as the voided cross, Pas's symbol, and is hinted to be
the Outsider's symbol. (Also the red sign of addition as a medical
symbol!) Names of saints; the paschal candle; the Angelus; rituals
involving bread and wine; what look like direct quotations from
scripture, for instance Marble's reference in OBW to 'the sign from
the belly of the fish'. This could be explained in various ways:
that Jesus is actually present within that universe.
that there is an analogue of Jesus, who is merely a prophet.
that the stories have somehow been transmitted from another universe.
But I don't think the first is ruled out. Even if it is a past
iteration of the universe, the Son of God may have been incarnated in
it. Even if the idea of multiple incarnations multiple universes  is
not strictly Orthodox Christianity, it's not wild and beyond the pale.
It's the basis of the Narnia series, and Lewis is generally seen as
pretty orthodox. I don't see anything to make me say 'This is a
universe without Christ' - though at the time the events take place,
it's certainly a universe where Christ is not _known_.

Now, it is certainly true that a link is drawn between the Outsider
and Dionysus. But I don't see that as negating the connection with the
Christian God, but as suggesting a connection between the Christian
God and Dionysus - a connection which others (Lewis and Soyinka, at
least) have drawn, and which, therefore, can't be ruled out.

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