How important is it to read C S Lewis for your faith journey?

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bettercallpaul said:
Matter of opinion? I think the characterisation of Aslan provides a unique entry point to Christianity for non believers. (in narnia Chrinicles)
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I’m not a non-believer, never have been, and many other folks on this forum aren’t either, so you’re getting “believer” perspectives.

In any event, I don’t mean to be a party pooper, so if you get something out of the book, read it, but I would be very wary of introducing a non-believer to my faith by giving him a fantasy fiction book that wasn’t even written by a Catholic author. There are too many ways that can go way wrong. Most people would recommend something more prosaic like a Scott Hahn book, or just say “read the Catechism” so that people do not get wrong ideas of what Catholics believe.
 
This is my contention with Mere Christianity. It’s an ok introduction to Christianity, but again, without expressing a need for orthodoxy and an actual “church”, it’s easy to see how people may arrive on the “me and Jesus” side of the Tiber, and many I know aren’t the wiser.
 
For me, C. S. Lewis was pretty important. For someone like me, with extensive Catholic education, he puts the same facts together in a slightly different way, so I could see them again, in a brighter light. In many ways he is more important, or relevant, now than in his lifetime, because he saw how things would go in England, and eventually the US.

He refuted the errors of the next generations - our own time; and affirmed those virtues that would be specifically be lacking, or forgotten, now. Next to Chesterton, he is the most important Christian writer in English, in my opinion.

If nothing else, read “The Abolition of Man”, and the novel, “That Hideous Strength”, both from WWII era. This, sadly, is the world we live in today.
 
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You should be able to read anything (moral) that you like.

I am a fan of C.S. Lewis. Mere Christianity was the 1st book I read when I became interested in Christianity/Catholicism and I loved it, as I do many of his writings. That does not mean it is necessary, however.

I am also a big fan of Scott Hahn and Fr. Jacques Philippe. I read Jesus Shock by Peter Kreeft in my early days as well, but his writing style wasn’t my taste. That does not mean it won’t suit you or others, however.
 
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When I came back to the Church, I did a lot of study/prayer/reading. Two books that had a very big impact were God In the Dock and Mere Christianity, both by Lewis. I have since read a number of his books and find him a wonderful Christian writer.He was Church of Ireland so his theology was little different than Catholic. His writing is old fashioned but I like it. He is well worth reading.

Patrick
 
michaelArc said:
Not that important for me. Though I get it, I found Mere Christianity to be somewhat of an irritating read.
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@michaelArc

It has been a number of years since I read it. I’m curious, what was it that made it irritating for you?
 
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I’m not a fan of Hahn either. But I’m trying to be open-minded, as he apparently does lead people to the faith.

Lewis is a better read, but like I said, there is potential for somebody to get a wrong idea if they aren’t already fairly well versed in Catholicism.
 
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bettercallpaul said:
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commenter:
If nothing else, read “The Abolition of Man”
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That is the one Peter Kreeft highly recommends.
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The same ground is covered in his novel “That Hideous Strength” written around the same time - if fiction is more your thing.

Among other things, Abolition describes:
  • The trend towards secular humanism;
  • The tendency to worship technology, not as a tool to help people, but as a means for some people to control other people;
  • The social impact of scientific advance, which may or may not be tied to political agendas
  • The use of education and media to manipulate;
  • The tendency to focus on gut feelings, rather than “heart”.
 
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RKS89 said:
never addresses the need for a church or orthodoxy.
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He said the reason he did not do so was because he was nowhere near qualified enough to differentiate between the many denominations and that he was focusing on what Christians agreed on rather than the divisions.
 
i enjoyed the chronicles of narnia. mere christianity…not so much. his “liar, lunatic, or lord” thing was so stupid i couldn’t believe he actually wrote it
 
Right, I’m aware of his reasoning for not addressing it, and I understand his intentions as both an author and a Christian apologist, I just think (with the advantage of hindsight) it can be misleading to some people. And that isn’t conjecture, it’s from personal experience.
 
Fair enough.

I went to a catholic high school, despite not being Catholic at the time, and the religion teacher taught MC in his senior religion class, but within the context of the Catholic Church. So my experience may be skewed.

I didn’t stay in that school for my senior year, but I think the catholic influence from my past when I read it last year was still there.
 
And I have to give him credit for starting me on my journey towards Christianity. And like I said, I really like some of his other books. I’ve just seem too many people in my generation read MC and join a non-denom group because they’ve given no thought to church history or denominational differences. A lot of them don’t even know he’s Anglican and what the implications of that theology are. Because of my own weird spiritual journey I hesitate to ever totally write someone’s work off if it seems to be helping move you forward, and that certainly applies to Lewis.
 
I think that has more to do with people in general being ignorant to history than anything you can blame on Lewis. Were non demoms even a thing in his time? Particularly given his primarily British audience they’d have certainly been more likely to read in light of an established church.
 
commenter said:
Abolition describes:

The trend towards secular humanism;
The tendency to worship technology, not as a tool to help people, but as a means for some people to control other people;
The social impact of scientific advance, which may or may not be tied to political agendas
The use of education and media to manipulate;
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As you or someone else said, it is all coming true now. So Lewis was a kind of prophet
 
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