The Grace of Les Miserables

by Matt Rawle

Victor Hugo’s Les Misérables is a truly epic story. Whether you’ve tackled the 1,400-page 19thcentury novel, witnessed the Broadway musical (and memorized its soundtrack), or seen the several screen adaptations of it, you already know the power of its story.


In the six-week study The Grace of Les Misérables, author and pastor Matt Rawle dives into six ideals found in the story—grace, justice, poverty, revolution, love, and hope—each represented by a character in Hugo’s story. As these imperfect and relatable characters interact, we can see how these ideals work together (perhaps even in spite of each other) out in the world.


In keeping with his previous works, Matt Rawle brings us to the intersection of Church and Pop Culture by drawing parallels between the iconic story and musical and our Christian calling, inspiring us to both understand our faith and live it out in the world.



A DVD, Leader Guide, youth resources, and Worship Resource Flash Drive are also available for a six-week study.

Genres: Christian, Nonfiction, Spirituality, Religion

144 pages, Paperback

Published December 17, 2019

About the author

Matt Rawle is Lead Pastor at Asbury United Methodist Church in Bossier City, LA. Matt is an international speaker who loves to tell an old story in a new way, especially at the intersection of pop culture and the church.

Matt has a B.A. in music from LSU and an M.Div. from Duke Divinity School. He and his wife Christie have three daughters. Matt loves meditating on Scripture, listening to the heart of God, and inspiring people to do the work of God—Love. He also loves thinking about new ways to tell an old story.

He is the author of a new series of books titled The Pop in Culture Series. The series includes The Faith of a Mockingbird, Hollywood Jesus, and The Salvation of Doctor Who.

Reviews

[John Jenkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Matt Rawle’s The Grace of Les Miserables brings a creative approach to six important Biblical concepts, the most important of which is grace. Pastor Rawle combines examples from both the classic novel by Victor Hugo and the popular musical with appropriate scripture to help put the grace of God into a fresh perspective. It is notable that, while others use the terms grace and mercy in tandem, Pastor Rawle focuses almost exclusively on grace. The Kindle search feature shows that the term “grace” is used 95 times in this book, while “mercy” is only used 7 times.

The writing of the first four chapters (Grace, Justice, Poverty and Love) seems uneven. Some of Pastor Rawle’s profound observations are offset by incorrect pronoun choices and redundancies such as “He is a bit of a Robin Hood of sorts.” In his chapter on Justice, the criticism of Inspector Javert for sacrificing his integrity by pretending to join the rebels in order to spy on them seems misplaced. Isn’t it normal and appropriate for law enforcement representatives to go undercover?

On the other hand, the last two chapters (Revolution and Hope), are powerful. In the Revolution chapter, he very clearly defines the position and frustrations of Enjolras and the other doomed revolutionaries. He neither praises nor criticizes them, but he contrasts their revolution to the great revolution of Jesus Christ. Of course, Christ’s revolution of grace, forgiveness and salvation far transcends any human revolution!

In his final chapter on Hope, Pastor Rawle reminds us that the Bible is a collection of 66 different books; but, if someone had to come up with one name for the entire collection, he would nominate “A Tale of Three Gardens.” Then he provides a wonderful explanation for why the lessons of the Garden of Eden, the Garden of Gethsemane, and the Resurrection Tomb Garden tell us almost everything we need to know about God’s love for humanity.

[Samantha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was excited to get this book since my daughter and I love Les Mis and have seen the musical, watched the movie, & read the book several times. For one who has enjoyed Hugo's story, the message of grace is obvious, but this book digs deeper.

The author does a great job drawing Biblical parallels with many characters and themes in the book, and I LOVED that he gave Monseigneur Myriel (Bienvenu) several mentions as he is my favorite character in the book but often given minimal mention in other formats. He is grace and love personified - how does one not love him?

My only complaint is that the author goes on some lengthy & unnecessary political tangents that take away from the Biblical message he is telling. It strays into sounding like a self-righteous lecture rather than a study of grace, but thankfully not too often.

For those who love Les Miserables, this is a great little study.

[Peg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rev. Rawle has written a series of books based on Pop Culture and using books, movies, or plays to illustrate Christian principles. The Grace of Les Mis was the first exposure I had to this approach and I was immediately drawn in. We used it in our Sunday School as a Lenten study; there is a leader guide and a weekly video as well. I was so enthralled by the approach, I have purchased 4 or 5 others in the series to read on my own. Next up: The Faith of a Mockingbird (obviously based on my favorite novel). If you enjoy reading/studying theological principles illustrated by popular culture, these books are for you!

[Kimberly DuBois · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book for Les Mis fans. Author Matt Rawle parallels the famous novel/Broadway hit/movie with stories from the Bible and provided so much new insight in this in depth Bible Study. Having seen the movie several times and the Broadway show recently, I thought I understood the story line fairly well. Early in this book I realized there where many gaps in my understanding and relished learning some background to Les Mis scenes and music. So many times God’s grace is implied in this story! Might just have to watch it again…. Probably will not attempt to read the almost 1500+ page book! But who knows?!!

[Alex · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book, meant as a Lenten guide through the lense of a great work, reads like a book report turned in by a bright, but not particularly motivated, college freshman. Its insights are facile, its prose dull, and the whole affair an excruciating reading experience.

My pastor, knowing my love for Les Miserables, has asked me to lead a study based on this book. I think my only path through is to use the chapter titles and ignore the rest. Great literature, like 'Les Miserables,' makes us think. 'The Grace of Les Miserables' tries to do the thinking for us, and it's a waste of time.

[Jen]

"'There's nothing we can do' is something that the powerful love to say when they don't agree with what the powerless need."

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and the quote above does much of it justice. The fact that doing the right thing is never easy, and our context for right is difficult to find as it is not only the law, like Javert thinks. An interesting and passionate reading of the classic story of Les Miserables, the musical, the movies, and the book. I would strongly suggest it not only to re-enjoy the story but also to make you think about your own life and how you can be better.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been in a number of Bible related book studies and this one is the best yet, especially if you can also access the videos that accompany the readings. As a HUGE fan of the musical, I was excited to jump into this Lenten series. I've always been drawn to tears when the Bishop Myriel offers Jean Valjean his candle sticks once he's been caught stealing. Talk about grace! It's such a profound scene and Matt Rawle expertly displays the grace all throughout Les Mis, mostly sticking to the novel but pulling in the musical as well.

Well wroth your time.

[Deb · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an excellent book for a group of friends and I to read and study. We enjoyed our discussions, it enhanced our appreciation of Les Misérables, and it helped us to grow spiritually. We read one chapter a month - except chapter 5 which we broke into two parts. It was well worth it. Matt Rawle is an excellent writer and helped us dig deeper into the spirituality of Les Misérables.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 Overall I liked this book although I did not always agree with the author’s conclusions. Some areas seemed to be a stretch. The original book is over 1,000 pages, and while the musical/movie is enjoyable, it leaves out a lot of details relevant to understanding the story. This book generated a lot of discussion in our small group study so in that sense it was a worthwhile read.

[Judy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfect book for this crazy time we’re living. It was to have been my Lenten devotional, but I wanted to read it now. It has been a long time since I read Les Miz, but this book brings home all that makes it a beautiful tale.

[Shelley Alongi · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought the book rambled too much and incorporated biblical stories that didn’t really match the situations of each character. It took me several times sometimes to read chapters because I didn’t quite understand them. This was very academic and just generally kind of boring.

[Melanie]

Loved this book. It was an appropriate read during Lent (and I will probably read it again next year). I like how Rawle combined the message of grace with his daily life - many experiences that anyone can have or understand. I am looking forward to finding and reading his other books.

[Sarahb. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book with my Bible study group at church, unfortunately I missed most of the sessions due to work and had to finish it on my own. I did enjoy it, and it was my first time watching/reading any thing about Les Miserables.

[Jennifer Loschiavo · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good review/refresher of the play/book and history of the characters. A bit of the authors opinions but mainly meaning behind the main characters and plot. It was a nice quick read and overview with some good quotes. Pleasant to go through.

[Mindy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good read

[Beez Beasley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wish I had read this book decades ago when I first saw Lea Miserables. It would have made the production so much deeper for me

[Dawnmarie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic read!

[Leann Mclendon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing book and love the author’s writing style. Wonderful Lenten study

[Drew · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a great Lenten study! Loved the themes and really enjoyed his insights. I’ll seek out more of his books.

[Lynn B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting study of Grace and Justice . We are doing this as a Lenten Bible Study and it is perfect for the season.

[Joani]

Good correlation to the Easter story. Good study for embellishing your spiritual growth.

[Abi Emmett · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great book! Some solid lessons in there. Would probably only recommend to folks who love Les Mis otherwise it might not be so enticing.

[Janis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent read that gave thoughtful insights.

[B · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars.
Nice, reflective book about Les Mis and, according to the author, its ties to Jesus, the Bible, creation, the cross, and the future. An enjoyable read.

[Alice Yoder · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad for a Bible Study book. It helps if you've seen the movie starring Hugh Jackman and Russell Crowe. It also helps to have seen the PBS six-part series (much better than the movie).

[Dianne Oliver · Rating 3 out of 5]

Les Miserables is a veritable gold mine for any author to disseminate, so the topic is a 5, and it was fun to review the plotline, using Lent as the catalyst. It seems there are always things I miss that a summary makes clear, and this is true here.
Perhaps it's a personal pet peeve, but I can not bear personal stories mixed in with the topic I am reading on (I, I, I), and it abounds here, leaving the book with a simplistic feel, which does it a disservice. A 1*.
I compromise at 3, and used it to think through the beauty of Hugo's work. How we are defined not by our wounds, but by how we are healed- this most beautiful story of redemption in all it's forms.
I'm due a re-read.

[Karen P · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was asked to lead a small group using this book during Lent, 2021. Reading this gave me some new ways to consider God’s grace at work in the world through the story of Les Miserables.

I reread this book during Lent, 2022, as my Sunday School class used the material.

[Heather Faye · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one just had to reach to far for me to buy into what it was selling.