On the 250th anniversary of Jane Austen’s birth, writer Sarah Street reflects on how the light of Jesus shines through Austen’s timeless stories of love and grace.
The famous and much loved author Jane Austen was born on the 16th December 1775; this year is being celebrated as the 250th anniversary of her birth. I’ve been reflecting on her classic novels and how often I see Jesus shining through her writing.
I have been a fan of Pride and Prejudice since I was a teenager, but after a spell of illness in 2023 I began to read the rest of Jane Austen’s novels, and I was really blown away by the wit, the stories and how real the characters felt, even 250 years later.
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Jane is known to have had a strong Christian faith; she grew up in the church with her father an Anglican vicar. Jane wrote six completed novels in her lifetime, sadly dying at just 41 years old, of an unknown illness. During her lifetime, the early years of her writing career saw a struggle to become published, and her fame was modest. Now, 250 years later, she is considered one of the greatest writers in the English language, and her books have been adapted into innumerable films, TV series, theatre productions and other fiction.
Jane Austen is not generally categorised as a ‘Christian’ writer, but her faith is what I believe makes her writing so powerful.
Jane Austen is not generally categorised as a ‘Christian’ writer, but her faith is what I believe makes her writing so powerful. Jane herself teasingly said ‘two or three families in a country village’ was her idea of a great novel; but of course, us fans love her work because it is so much more - Jane is interested in people, and their relationships, and in examining these she has much to reveal about Jesus’ teachings and how we can live for him.
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Many of us will have heard before that marriage is a picture of Christ and the church. I believe Jane Austen’s most famous novel, Pride and Prejudice, gives us a wonderful picture of the radical generosity and sharing that marriage entails, and Jesus offers.
As many of us will know, tThe book follows the story of Elizabeth Bennet, one of five daughters of a clergyman. Although the family are considered part of the ‘gentry’ (upper classes), they are struggling financially and in danger of losing much of their income, and their home.
Into this scene arrives the very wealthy Mr Darcy; owner of the palatial stately home and estate of Pemberley. He’s sought after by all the single ladies of high society, but ends up proposing to the vivacious Elizabeth Bennet despite her lack of fortune, limited connections and some very embarrassing family members!
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When I was at home recovering in 2023, I watched the 2005 film adaptation of Pride and Prejudice and I was really struck by the scene of Mr Darcy pacing the farmyard outside of Elizabeth’s home, anxiously waiting to hear if her father gives his permission for the marriage.
When I was at home recovering in 2023, I watched the 2005 film adaptation of Pride and Prejudice and I was really struck by the scene of Mr Darcy pacing the farmyard outside of Elizabeth’s home, anxiously waiting to hear if her father gives his permission for the marriage. This scene spoke to mescene speaks of how Jesus came from the glory of heaven to Earth, to the messiness of life with squalor and unrespectability of us humans, because of his great love for us. The story also illustrates the magnitude of marriage. Isn’t it incredible that our decision to partner with a stranger in marriage affects our life so dramatically; sharing our hearts, bodies, houses, and our money with them. Mr Darcy shares all this with Elizabeth when she agrees to marry him, and together they will own and manage Mr Darcy’s estate.
In the same way Jesus promises that when we say yes to him, we’ll be co-heirs in his kingdom. As we know marriage is a picture of Jesus and the church, Jesus and his bride; and Pride and Prejudice beautifully pictures the romance of this. Jesus offers us everything; to reign with him in his kingdom, to be his friends, and to be his beloved, with an intimate relationship with him. Jesus chooses us, to live in his palace and give us his righteousness through marriage.
Real life and real marriages are not often as perfect and beautiful as films and novels, much less Pride and Prejudice, but I believe the story is a picture and a preview of the bigger, older and everlasting romance of Jesus and his church that we are all invited to be a part of.
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