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Horror and Theology

Your parents told you, “horror is of the devil.” I tell you the Bible is one of the two most horrific books I’ve ever read.

In the Bible, people die all the time. There are supernatural forces. Demons. Disasters. Murders. Mutilations. The central character dies in an excruciating way, crucifixion… where we even get the word “excruciating.” Floods. The end of the world. The Bible is a work of horror.

What do we make of these things? Is the Gospel in Halloween?

These are some of the artistic works that, I believe, belong in theological conversations and arguments. And if we’re talking about suffering… is there a greater work of fiction than the entire horror filmography? That’s what Beyond the Logos is all about. Why we suffer, and what we do when the heavens are silent. Which, to me, completely fits the definition of horror.

  • Pamela Voorhees holding a knife beside Jason Voorhees in his hockey mask, from the Friday the 13th franchise.

    Have Sex and Die: The Theology of Friday the 13th

  • Carrie White drenched in blood, walking home at night beside a picket fence in Carrie (1976).

    Carrie (1976) and the Theology of Withheld Knowledge

  • Seth Brundle and Veronica Quaife at the computer controlling the telepods in The Fly (1986)

    The Theology of the Fly (1986)

  • Bronze hooded monk sculpture in Havana illustrating horror movie classics and their biblical themes

    5 Horror Movie Classics… and Their Biblical Themes

  • Theology of Heretic (2024): The Anti-Apologetics of Mr. Reed

    Theology of Heretic (2024): The Anti-Apologetics of Mr. Reed

  • threads (1984)

    Threads of Meaning in Ecclesiastes Brutal Truth