I’m in the process of worldbuilding for my next contemporary Christian romance series. As I worked on fleshing out the small Norwegian town where my characters live, work, and fall in love, I began thinking about their church. It will probably be an important part of the story since it has a big role in their lives.
My mind wandered to other fictional churches in Christian romance and how they’ve fitted into the stories. Churches pop up in most of my books. In my first novel, the characters visit a village church in Africa.
The church in my second book has a more important role in the story, since it’s my characters’ home church. They attend worship services and other church activities and get one-on-one counseling from their pastor.
But in my third book, there’s no church at all, as far as I can remember. I assume the characters attend regular corporate worship but the way the story played out, it never happens on the page. There’s plenty of church attendance in my fourth book, but that’s to be expected since the male lead is a youth pastor.
I remember being taught that church is not a building but the people. It’s a community of Christians fellowshiping together and meeting the Lord in worship. I was brought up “in church” and growing up, can only remember missing service twice. Once I told a fib about having a stomachache, and the other time we stayed home because of a big winter storm.
Having attended church as long as I can remember, including being actively involved in the worship ministry, I’ve seen a lot of things. Some good, others not so good. Churches are full of fallible humans, after all. But so far, none of the imperfect side of church life has yet made its way into my stories.
I’m deliberately vague about denominations, but all the churches in my books are solid, Bible-believing places of worship.
I’ve deliberately not mentioned any specific denominations in my books. They’re all Bible-believing churches whose statement of faith is the same as my own, but I don’t go into detail about potentially divisive doctrinal issues.
Do churches play a central role in any of your favorite Christian romance novels? And if you’re a writer, do churches feature in your stories? Do you model them on churches you know?
I write fiction that reflects my Christian faith. I love happy endings, heroes and heroines who discover sometimes hard but always vital truths, and stories that uplift and encourage. My family and I live in the east of England where we enjoy rambling in the countryside, reading good books and making up silly lyrics to our favorite songs.
I most enjoy church scenes which emphasize the characters and their interactions. I certainly don’t mind hearing what the preacher has to say during his sermon, but I appreciate more the people side. Show me the big, burly policeman who is down on his knees hugging the 5-year-olds in his Sunday School class. Show me the two old men on the back row who complain about the sound system. One says it’s too loud because it blasts out his hearing aids and the other says it’s too soft because he refuses to wear his. Or how about the two friends in the alto section of the choir who are both worried about the complicated harmony in that day’s choir music, only to have it sound beautiful when the time comes. They smile, lean together and say a quick and quiet prayer of thanks.
Those pictures of the people mean almost as much to me as a reader as seeing a main character respond to the Word during a sermon. There are also ways other than a sermon that the Word can be shared (Bible teacher, friend’s testimony, living example, etc.). If the church is going to be a vital part of the story world, I would love to see it fleshed out beyond the stereotypical.
I have definitely patterned church scenes in my own writing after churches I have known.
Love it!!! Thanks, Lincoln.
Like you church is the congregation rather than a building to me. The characters and their stories are my favourite rather than the buildings. Curious if there are any Norwegian customs fir churches though.
The state church in Norway is Lutheran. Although the vast majority of the population are atheists and rarely darken the church’s doors on a regular Sunday, church-related rites of passage are deeply integrated into their cultural identity. Infant baptism and confirmation at 15 are still a huge part of the culture, and most people go through both.
I’ll probably model the church in my books it after the ones we attended, which were non-denominational.
I’ve added small town churches. One book the played a larger role than the other. I tend to focus on the spiritual growth of the individuals and mention church casually but you have inspired me to send my characters to church more often. :)
Hi Milla! Interesting blog. Since I have attended several church services in my international travels to Germany and have had contact with people who lived in Scandinavian countries, I am wondering – have you personally attended church in Norway???? Church affiliation in Germany depends on region – Lutheran in the north, Catholic in the south. I have attended non-denominational churches in my visits. As a reader and retired pastor’s wife, how church /religion / faith / prayer / Bible reading is woven into stories by readers fascinating. Best wishes.
Ha ha! Not saying characters have to go, because I never sent mine there intentionally. I was just doing a mental “inventory” of how often church appears in my stories. :-)
Hi, Renate! Yes, I have attended church in Norway, although never a Lutheran one. :-) I lived in Norway for over seven years (three of our children were born there) and am a naturalised citizen.
I read a book where people came together to praise in the forest or nature, I found it very beautiful.
I would like to see more Christian books for teenagers or university students because they reflect the reality of Christian youth: You go out with your friends from the Church and they will see a movie, not partying or get drunk (as in many secular books) and within the same group they will pass the classic teen messes of who likes who. And let’s not count the different rules that each household has: which parents believe that controlled consumption of liquor is not wrong and those who prohibit it, who have permission to go out with someone vs those who do not until it is a courtship with a view to marriage.
(In case anyone is interested, I know a couple of couples 😂 who got married just after finishing university, there are those who want to get married earlier but today’s society will look down on those who married at 18-19 … although a missionary couple that I know They got married at that age and they are 30 years old. They are not “people from another era” hehe
The sense of community and support is more important to me than the building itself. :)
It is comforting to read about a person being involved in church or going to church. Thank you for sharing. God bless you.
I like Churches in books especially if a Church wedding takes place.
Most of the time it’s more about the congregation, but not usually about doctrine.
I like books that have churches in them. I have been slowly writing & none yet have had a church but soon will have a few in them.
One thing that surprised me in America in the east where my friend is (near Chattanooga) There seemed to be a church on every corner (ok maybe not that many but there were so many we would pass where ever we went.) It reminds me of some of the LI books by Ruth Logan Herne who has a book with several church all in the same area of the main street.
I like that the churches are not a particular domination and like it when an author doesn’t go into some of the more decisive issues.
I agree church is the people not the building. I do like when there is a reason to be in church (Not just cos an author thinks putting in a service makes a book Christian if you get what I mean). I Remember one of Narelle Atkins novella has a young adult fellowship meal at someone place where they would have a meal then bible study.
Faith, not churches, tend to be central.
Those are very interesting thoughts, Lilly! I can see how questions of alcohol consumption could be a source of conflict.
I’m always fascinated by couples who got together at a young age and are still going strong years later. My brother is like that. He and his wife started dating at 18, got married at 26, and they’re now in their late 40s.
Absolutely, Natalya! I want to capture that and reflect that well in one of my stories, and I feel I haven’t done it intentionally yet.
I fully agree!
Church weddings are wonderful in stories! As lovely as in real life.
That’s been my observation, too, Denise. Particularly the more divisive doctrinal issues.
I enjoy them, too. I have one book with no mention of anyone going to church, but that’s because it didn’t really fit in the story. Just like we don’t need to mention every single meal a person has over the course of a book, we don’t have to include church attendance if it’s not directly relevant to the story.
I totally get what you mean by a scene in a church being used to rubber stamp a book as Christian. Narelle’s novella sounds like exactly the kind of story I’d love to read!
Absolutely right, Mary!
Interesting, my fathers family were Lutheran until the Pastor refused a marriage where her husband was Anglican and therefore heathen, so they all shifted to the local Methodist church congregation. Interesting how religion can divide or unite people. Looking forward to reading when finished. :)
I’ve read many books that have church in them….sometimes it’s more of mention other times it’s central to the book. What I like most is when faith is played out more than church, because like you said, church is a building and going to church should play out in a person’s faith & life. Does that make sense?
I’m definitely not putting down churches, because it is where we as Christians should gather to be feed the Word of God and have fellowship with other believers. Scripture is very clear about gathering together in this way. But to me in a story, the building isn’t the important part, it’s when characters live out their faith in everyday life. :-)
It makes total sense, Trixi! And just as I love seeing Christian romance model healthy relationships built on godly standards, I think, where appropriate, it’s wonderful to see edifying church life reflected as well. I haven’t done that intentionally before, but it’s something I’d like to explore in future books.