C. S. Lewis

Possibly one of the most famous literature Authors is C. S. Lewis; however, with this fame comes controversy of the content produced by this writer. This bestselling literature, author did not only stick to fiction but after Becoming a Christian wrote a number books on the topic of religion. Many of these books, while containing aspects of Christianity, are written as stories with symbolism referencing Christianity rather than the doctrine alone. Many creative liberties were taken in the writing of these books, one of which was the great divorce. With discernment, readers will see through the exaggeration and profit from the great spiritual learning. Despite the potential confusion, C. S. Lewis’ books pertaining to Christianity are a
great source of spiritual insight although each should be taken with a grain of salt. While these books are written with Christianity in mind, not all of the ideas inside of his books of this nature completely line up with the Bible.
To numerous readers’ surprise, many people say this Christian author confuses readers and fights everything the Bible stands for. One of these people wrote, “C.S. Lewis is perhaps the biggest FRAUD in Christianity today and accepted by many Christians... C. S. Lewis was a brazen heretic and must be shunned by every Christ-loving Christian.”() Although this is an extreme example, this source is not alone in questioning the validity of Lewis writings. Another person wrote concerned with Lewis’ teachings by saying, “Lewis’ books are mostly aimed at children, and he uses demonic devices to lead them into the dangerous realm of the occult.”() Readers will see this with the Screwtape Letters. The entire book is written from a demons perspective, instructing the inexperienced demons in destroying human’s lives. This fact is clearly and obviously validated by the content of many of Mr. Lewis’ books; however, he portrays magic as dark, evil, and something to be avoided. While these clams are partially true, Lewis’ writings clearly show the evil of magic, thus allowing him to write on this topic without encouraging this practice. Considering these ideas, people question whether some of the strange or new doctrines where intentional or not. Possibly the most controversial topic in these writings is his writings on the
afterlife. Not only do C. S. Lewis’ views on the afterlife different than common view, he position changes from book to book. One write assed this situation and wrote,

Block Quote “He leans on his literary mentor, George MacDonald, the old Scottish preacher and writer, for his understanding of hell and final judgment. At least as regards the final judgment, MacDonald did not hold an orthodox view of this. He believed that there may be a chance for the unrepentant on earth to repent after their death. Having read some of his fiction I could never quite nail down what he thought happened to those who were unrepentant after death. “() Readers may notice many of these inconstancies result from ignorance or different beliefs rather than blunt abandonment of correct doctrines. It should also be recognized that Lewis was not trained as a Bible scholar; rather he was a literary professor at Oxford, and later in life Cambridge. When looking at these views Blank wrote, “Any “pastor” who attempts to use C. S. Lewis quotes, books, or movies to show spiritual truth is a wolf. God gave us the knowledge of Him via His written Word in the 66 glorious books therein.”() Lewis’ books, containing strange end time views, should not be a base for doctrine. Lewis’s writings may provide insight, but the Lord gave us the Bible to be our guide; all things should be lined up with the Bible before they are taken as fact. Also, although some of Mr. Lewis’ ideas may be far fetch, just because they others do not believe similarly does not give a reason to label Lewis as an Antichrist as some have. These arguments, harsh and bold, contain validity in the fact that Lewis entertained many ideas he expected the reader to see though as fiction but wrote as fact.
At a brief glance this may look similar to leading others astray; however, Lewis wrote a disclaimer at the beginning of his books of this nature, stating that creative liberties were taken to help support the main topics. An argument often used to show the incorrect doctrines is used by Blank, “Earth operates between Heaven and Hell, according to Lewis, in a kind of purgatory-type state because it is not distinctly separate from either Heaven or Hell.”() A common idea of the time was that before entering heaven people would wait to be purified in purgatory. The Bible contains no direct evidence of this although some denominations interpret the Bible with purgatory. Another example comes directly from Till We Have Faces, “One could attend to them or ignore them at will as you do with the dirt on a window pane. I noticed that the grass did not bend under their feet: even the dew drops were not disturbed” (Lewis Chapter 3) The Bible never mentions spirits simply drifting between Heaven and Hell. This seems like a section where the creative liberties come into play. Lewis needed this interaction between the travelers from Hell to Heaven; without this change, The Great Divorce would not contain an intriguing story line and likely would not portray the important ideas as
vividly.