Beowulf was written by a known Christian. Therefore, it is no surprise that in the story of Beowulf, several parallels to the Christian faith are illustrated. For example, the story contains characters representing a higher power and a lower power, namely, God and Satan. These two authorities are constantly at battle with one another. Also, the story includes a heroic code, which is like the Bible. These are all aspects through which the story parallels the Christian faith.
In the story, Beowulf represents Jesus, the Savior to those of the Christian faith. Just as Beowulf was born as a king, Jesus was born the savior. Beowulf was known as the helmet and shield of his people.(Greenblatt, 28). Beowulf was looked to as the protector, the one who would come running as soon as needed. Beowulf let a lot of things get to his head; he did a lot just for the fame and power. Jesus is also viewed as the Christian faiths protector. Jesus is an heir to the Kingdom of Heaven. Beowulf was born in the yards, and Jesus was born just as lowly, in a manger. Beowulf was sent by a higher power. Likewise, Jesus was sent by God. Both were sent to comfort people. Beowulf is a hero in the story he was known as their prince of goodness (pg. 44, ln 676). Jesus is a hero to those of the Christian faith. For example, Jesus is also known to Christians as the Prince of Peace and wonderful counselor. Beowulf was king and was looked to as Christians look to Jesus. In the Bible, Jesus was sent for mankind. He was crucified on the cross and shed his blood for us. Jesus died for our sins so that we could be saved. He saved us from the depths of hell so that we could live with him eternally in heaven. The story shows that the character of Beowulf and the Savior to those of the Christian faith have several common attributes.
In this story another similarity to the Christian faith is the character Grendal. He is represented as Satan. To the Christian faith Satan is considered a demon. In the beginning of the story it is said that, The God-cursed brute was creating havoc (pg. 33, ln 121). In the story it talks about Grendal causing destruction and pain: nor stop his death-dealing nor pay the death-price. (pg. 34, ln 154). Satan is the fallen angel from heaven. He will stop at nothing to cause pain in our everyday lives. He wants to have the power of our heavenly father. Grendal despises Beowulf in this story and would love nothing more than to destroy him. The same is for Satan. He will never have the power that our Lord Jesus Christ has, but he will despise Him and make the human kind think that he does. The character of Grendal symbolizes Satan.
The heroic code in Beowulf is like the Christian Bible. Just as the heroic code presents guidelines of how to be a hero, the Bible presents guidelines on how to live a godly life. For example, the heroic code says to always be ready for action. Likewise, the Bible says to put on the full armor of God which includes the belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness, shield of faith, helmet of salvation, and sword of the Spirit. Furthermore, the Bible also says to always be ready for attacks from Satan. In the fight with Grendal, Beowulf did not wear any armour. Grendal was protected from the harms of metal. As a Christian we look at the armour figuratively because it cannot be seen. We must just have it ready spiritually at all times. In conclusion, the heroic code of the story is like the Bible to Christian life.
In the story of Beowulf, several parallels to the Christian faith are illustrated. The characters representing a higher power and a lower power and the heroic code all contain similarities to aspects of the Christian faith. Jesus and Beowulf were both important in their times. Also, Beowulf was a beloved lord and Jesus is likewise a Savior sent from the almighty God to save us from our sins so that we might repent and choose heaven over hell. Also, Grendal and Satan were similar constituents of their respective societies. Furthermore, the heroic code represented to the people of the story what the Bible represents to Christians. Based on his own personal beliefs, the author of Beowulf presented the story in such a way as to relate it to the lives of those of the Christian faith.
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