Mrs. Stephanie Loomis Through the Lens with C.S. Lewis 2012

1. Through the Lens with C.S. Lewis
30-31October

2. Journal Prompt
“I didn’t go to religion to make me happy. I always knew a
bottle of Port would do that. If you want a religion to make
you feel really comfortable, I certainly don’t recommend
Christianity.”
― C.S. Lewis

3. Background
 Originally a series of BBC radio talks about right and
wrong
 “A series of talks on something like ‘The Christian
Faith as I See It—by a Layman’; I am sure there is
need of a positive restatement of Christian doctrines
in lay language.” J.D. Welch, Director of BBC
Religious Broadcasting Department
 Aired live Wednesday evenings in 1941
 Was so well received that the broadcasts continued
into early 1944
 Scripts compiled into book form and published in
1952

4. The Law of Human Nature
Book One
“Right and Wrong as a Clue to The Meaning of the
Universe”

5. What Christians Believe
Book Two
“The Rival Conceptions of God”

6. Christian Behaviour
Book Three
Three Parts of Morality

7. Beyond Personality
First Steps in the Doctrine of the Trinity

8. BBC address

9. Reviews
 “No writer of popular apologetics today is more
effective than Mr C.S. Lewis. He is a layman and and
for many years was not a Christian believer, and is
therefore not only entirely unprofessional in manner,
but also keenly aware of the difficulties commonly
levelled against the Christian faith.” (The Times Literary
Supplement 19 September 1942 p 460)
 “Mr C.S. Lewis has made the kind of public return to
the ancient faith which infuriates other intellectuals.”
(Martin Tyndal, Time and Tide, 19 September 1942)
 “The author shows himself a master in the rare art of
conveying profound truths in simple and compelling
language.” (G.D. Smith, The Clergy Review, December 1942)

10. Homework
Read Preface and Book One (pp 5-25)
Write a short response to the fifth section “We have cause to
be uneasy”
Create an image that illustrates the existence of “A
Somebody or Something behind the Moral Law”
Prepare a short presentation that includes both your artwork
and your written response

11. C.S. Lewis: My Life’s Journey
UC Television