C.S. Lewis: What were his disagreements with the Catholic Church?

[Roman_Catholic_1]

He was tolerant, and rarely had a harsh word to say about other Christians or denominations.

This has been my experience as well. In Mere Christianity he says something to the effect of Christianity being a room with many doors off to certain churches. We all must discern which door is for us to take but we should not look down on another because they did not chose our door. This is Lewis saying this of course. Now whether or not this is a correct analogy to use is besides the point. At the time I read this I was just about to enter the Catholic Church and my fundamentalist father in law was sending my wife and I every anti-Catholic fundamentalist article that he could to convince us that the Catholic Church was not Christian. The only Protestant literature that I was familiar with prior to reading Mere Christianity were things of that nature. The fact that Lewis, a Protestant, considered the Catholic Church as one of those doors had a great impact on my opinion of him in particular and it radically changed my opinion on Protestants in general.

God bless

 

[GKC]

From another web site -

George MacDonald (1824-1905) "was the single greatest human influence on C. S. Lewis; indeed MacDonald was Lewis’s “spiritual father.” So, if you wish to understand C. S. Lewis, you must read George MacDonald.

Lewis built MacDonald into “The Great Divorce” as a sort of spiritual adviser.

Since I also collect George MacDonald (beginning with PHANTASTES and LILITH, on Lewis’ recommendation), I’m not overly surprised to hear that. 45 years of collecting Lewis also revealed it; the intro to GEORGE MACDONALD: AN ANTHOLOGY in particular. What I didn’t follow was your wording about MacDonald, in DIVORCE. Still don’t.

GKC

 

[Gottle_of_Geer]

You may address that point to Walter Hooper. It does make for increased sales.

But I’m thinking you might be thinking of “Christian Reunion”, first published posthumously in 1990, in CHRISTIAN REUNION, a collection of essays. If so, and without any prejudice to any particular point in it, one way or another, it is one of the problematic works that Hooper introduced to the world, not known until he did so.

GKC

If memory does not fail me, I very much suspect that you’re right. Thanks Maybe that’s why the review by Hutchens is based on “The Pilgrim’s Regress”, & leaves the essay unquoted. I’m aware of the fact of a controversy over which posthumously-published works are by Lewis, but that is the extent of my knowledge of it. Though I did like “The Dark Tower”; it did not seem any more unlike most of his undoubted works than “Till We Have Faces” does. ​

 

[Bob_Crowley]

Since I also collect George MacDonald (beginning with PHANTASTES and LILITH, on Lewis’ recommendation), I’m not overly surprised to hear that. 45 years of collecting Lewis also revealed it; the intro to GEORGE MACDONALD: AN ANTHOLOGY in particular. What I didn’t follow was your wording about MacDonald, in DIVORCE. Still don’t.

GKC

To explain myself properly, I’d need to quote parts of the episode where MacDonald appears in The Great Divorce. Since I don’t have a copy now, and I’m quoting off the top of my head, I can’t clarify what I mean. We’ll have to leave it at that for the time being.

 

[GKC]

To explain myself properly, I’d need to quote parts of the episode where MacDonald appears in The Great Divorce. Since I don’t have a copy now, and I’m quoting off the top of my head, I can’t clarify what I mean. We’ll have to leave it at that for the time being.

Ok. Here’s the part that I can’t follow:

“At one stage he bumps into a McDonald, who played the part of a deceased Christian pastor and writer who had heavily influenced Lewis himself. The character states “There’ll be no Childe Rowlands …”, that is, he didn’t want Lewis to pretend he was literally describing heaven or hell themselves.”

A MacDonald? Who played the part of a deceased preacher and writer who had heavily influenced Lewis? Lewis introduces into the story the historical character of George Macdonald, who was (not played) a preacher and writer, in life. And who did, certainly, influence Lewis, in life. It is your wording (a Macdonald, played) that I don’t follow.

And I don’t think there are any Childe Rowlands there. Swedenborgs and Vale Owens, yes (p. 131).

GKC

 

[GKC]

If memory does not fail me, I very much suspect that you’re right. Thanks Maybe that’s why the review by Hutchens is based on “The Pilgrim’s Regress”, & leaves the essay unquoted. I’m aware of the fact of a controversy over which posthumously-published works are by Lewis, but that is the extent of my knowledge of it. Though I did like “The Dark Tower”; it did not seem any more unlike most of his undoubted works than “Till We Have Faces” does. ​

I read “The Dark Tower” long before I heard of the controversy. My reaction was “I don’t know who wrote that, but it wasn’t Lewis”.

The subject was most pursued by the late Katheryn Lindskoog, in two books. I agree with her.

GKC

 

[Bob_Crowley]

Ok. Here’s the part that I can’t follow:

“At one stage he bumps into a McDonald, who played the part of a deceased Christian pastor and writer who had heavily influenced Lewis himself. The character states “There’ll be no Childe Rowlands …”, that is, he didn’t want Lewis to pretend he was literally describing heaven or hell themselves.”

A MacDonald? Who played the part of a deceased preacher and writer who had heavily influenced Lewis? Lewis introduces into the story the historical character of George Macdonald, who was (not played) a preacher and writer, in life. And who did, certainly, influence Lewis, in life. It is your wording (a Macdonald, played) that I don’t follow.

And I don’t think there are any Childe Rowlands there. Swedenborgs and Vale Owens, yes (p. 131).

GKC

I put in “a” MacDonald for no other reason that at the time I couldn’t remember his first name, viz. George. As I said I didn’t have the book with me, and I was quoting off the top of my head. It wasn’t till I read your subsequent post which gave his first name, that I was then able to go and look up a succint summary of his influence on CS Lewis.

And that’s the only reason.

 

[GKC]

I put in “a” MacDonald for no other reason that at the time I couldn’t remember his first name, viz. George. As I said I didn’t have the book with me, and I was quoting off the top of my head. It wasn’t till I read your subsequent post which gave his first name, that I was then able to go and look up a succint summary of his influence on CS Lewis.

And that’s the only reason.

Ok.

GKC

 

[Writer]

I read “The Dark Tower” long before I heard of the controversy. My reaction was “I don’t know who wrote that, but it wasn’t Lewis”.

The subject was most pursued by the late Katheryn Lindskoog, in two books. I agree with her.

GKC

I didn’t like “The Dark Tower,” but didn’t you see some style similarities to Lewis’ writing found in the Space Trilogy? I remember reading or hearing somewhere that, shortly following Lewis’ death, a friend of his came across a relative of Lewis burning a pile of Lewis unpublished writings. While a tragedy to English literature in my book… perhaps “The Dark Tower” would have done well there.

 

[Roman_Catholic_1]

I remember reading or hearing somewhere that, shortly following Lewis’ death, a friend of his came across a relative of Lewis burning a pile of Lewis unpublished writings.

I am angered right now

God bless

 

[GKC]

I am angered right now

God bless

Do not be. The story of that story is too long to tell, but the source is Walter Hooper and this is a part of the controversy that surrounds much of what Hooper says about his experiences with Lewis, and events just before and after his death. The "bonfire " story was denied by independent witnesses, who were in a position to know. For this and much more on this controversy, I recommend Kathryn Lindskoog’s writings. In brief,a great deal of the writings that Hooper presented as Lewis’, post Lewis’ death, are, in a word, controversial, and much of his original assertions about his relations with Lewis toward the end of his life, are shaky, at best. For all that, he has become a bona fide Lewis scholar.

GKC

 

[GKC]

I didn’t like “The Dark Tower,” but didn’t you see some style similarities to Lewis’ writing found in the Space Trilogy? I remember reading or hearing somewhere that, shortly following Lewis’ death, a friend of his came across a relative of Lewis burning a pile of Lewis unpublished writings. While a tragedy to English literature in my book… perhaps “The Dark Tower” would have done well there.

See my comment above. I strongly recommend Kathryn Lindskoog’s LIGHT IN THE SHADOW LANDS.

As to the first question, none whatsoever. And I’ve been reading and studying Lewis for over 45 years.

GKC

 

[Writer]

See my comment above. I strongly recommend Kathryn Lindskoog’s LIGHT IN THE SHADOW LANDS.

As to the first question, none whatsoever. And I’ve been reading and studying Lewis for over 45 years.

GKC

That’s fascinating. Thanks for the book recommendation. I look forward to getting a copy, as that short story is about the only piece of Lewis’ writing with which I never felt any kind of a connection. Any thoughts what Hooper’s motivation would have been to create the bonfire story, if it is indeed untrue?

 

[GKC]

That’s fascinating. Thanks for the book recommendation. I look forward to getting a copy, as that short story is about the only piece of Lewis’ writing with which I never felt any kind of a connection. Any thoughts what Hooper’s motivation would have been to create the bonfire story, if it is indeed untrue?

Personally, none I’d care to suggest, though some come to mind. Hooper says that the DARK TOWER was among the rescued pieces, unknown until he rescued it (and lots of other stuff) from the fire that Paxford the gardener was feeding (Paxford denied the story as Hooper told it) it. But I recommend the late Mrs. Lindskoog. A slightly different version of that book is SLEUTHING C. S. LEWIS. An earlier version, much shorter, is THE C. S. LEWIS HOAX.

Most of the more prominent figures in the Lewis world do not support her (but some do). I note that her arguments are rarely addressed, and ad hominem is the most commonly used tactic against her. Now that she is dead, she cannot reply, of course.

I note again that even before I learned of this controversy, I was struck by the chronological impossibilities in what Hooper said of his relationship with Lewis, when I first read of them in the late 60s (most critics admit his account was inaccurate) and also decided that whoever had written DARK TOWER, it wasn’t Lewis, when I first read it in the late 70s. Some technical criticism techniques applied to DT by some technical experts in that field have suggested possible solutions. The same is true for some of the other posthumously appearing pieces that Hooper presented. IMO, anything that was not known, from independent sources, to be from Lewis’ hand, before he died, is suspect.

GKC