Evil is Real
One thing Stranger Things gets right that many today get wrong (or at least obscure) is that evil is real and goes beyond the human and the physical. Evil is neither a matter of personal perception and opinion, nor is it simply a result of human societies and systems.
The late theologian Michael Heiser argued that Stranger Things can point us to deep truths about the world. Stranger Things does not point to the specific truths we find in the Bible and through Jesus Christ, but it does point us towards some general truths that align with biblical truth. These general truths, although only part of the story, can lead us closer to (or help us better understand) the truth as revealed in Jesus Christ.
From the very first episode with the disappearance of Will Byers, the show points to the fact that all of us are lost, trapped by another reality, a spiritual reality that we cannot manage on our own. Although the show does not touch on the theological truth that we are separated from God and hopelessly lost if left on our own, it shows that we are in a struggle against evil and that the only thing that can save us is a “supernatural solution.”1
Christians often need to be reminded that there is a powerful spiritual reality around us at all times. We often act as if the physical world is all there is and our day-to-day life is unaffected by the realities beyond our own senses. Our imagination of the world is too small. A show like Stranger Things, although not Christian itself, can help reenchant our imaginations, reminding us through compelling stories that there is more to the world than meets the eye.
Where Evil Comes From
As Stranger Things reaches its climax and conclusion in Seasons 4 and 5, we learn more about the nature of evil and the ultimate “big bad guy” of the show. In Season 4, it is revealed that the power behind all the evil in the show is a monster named Vecna, a monster who was once a human named Henry. Evil is encapsulated in a human. But in Season 5, we learn that the evil that now dominates Henry did not come from him.
In his childhood, Henry came across an evil force (the Mind Flayer) that bonded with him and helped him to become the evil power known as Vecna. We learn in the show’s finale that, although initially terrified of the evil power, Henry ultimately chose to serve and work with it. Will Byers, on the other hand, came into contact with the same evil power and chose to fight against it, despite its constant attempt to overpower and control him.
Stranger Things is close to the truth in its depiction of the origins of evil. Just as evil did not originate from within Henry, evil existed before humans embraced it (Genesis 3:1-5, John 8:44). Sin is not our first or our ultimate nature. It is certainly in our nature now, like Will Byers, who must fight against the power of the Mind Flayer and Vecna through every season after being taken into The Upside Down in Season 1. Like the power that haunts Will, sin is in us, inescapable. But it is not us and it is not irresistible.
Henry and Will are both human characters who are given a choice to fight against or accept an evil power greater than themselves. Like them, we too have the choice of how to respond to evil, and must choose to reject it. Just as in Stranger Things, we need courageous companions who will support us in our shared struggle against the evil that wants to overcome us.
Reenchanting Our Eyes to the Unseen Realm
In the final conflict of Season 5, Will gives an invitation to Henry: “Help us fight it, don’t let it win.” Will tells Henry that he can reject the evil power he has embraced, that the evil he has done does not have to define him. When considering the harm and evil Henry has rained down on the town of Hawkins, Will’s invitation is an extravagant offering of grace and forgiveness. This is a picture of God’s grace and his invitation of forgiveness extended to all of us, even the worst of all sinners (1 Timothy 1:15). Will’s plea is not a denial of the evil done by Henry, but recognizes that the evil in Henry did not ultimately come from him. In the same way, Christ stands with arms open to us, not denying the evil inside us or the evil we’ve done, but telling us that our identity is not ultimately in our sin.
Not every aspect of Stranger Things is laudable, but one thing it does is reenchant our imaginations to remind us of the spiritual realities around us. In this reality evil is real and does not ultimately come from humans. Our calling is to struggle with that evil, neither identifying with it or acting blind to it, but instead living in the forgiveness offered by Christ and extended in his invitation to others.