Murder Mysteries

From the 1920s through the ’40s, the detective novel and Western were wildly popular because, in a culture where modern fiction was denying God and morality, these stories still portrayed a world in which right was right, wrong was wrong, murder was evil, and justice was pursued. But as writers grew “sophisticated,” even mysteries and Westerns began excusing evil with psychological explanations, blurring moral boundaries and leaving readers frustrated. Today’s growing appetite for TV shows featuring a good policeman or detective fighting clear evil proves people still long for sharp distinctions between righteousness and wickedness. Yet in real life, we avoid such clarity because it must begin with judging our own sin; most men want moral reform everywhere except in themselves. Only Christ draws an absolute line between good and evil and alone can remake us according to His righteousness. But as long as people prefer moral clarity only in fiction and not in their own lives, their lives will remain blurred, weakened, and decaying.