C. S. Lewis Research Paper
Around the world, millions of people have appreciated the writings of C. S. Lewis (McGrath, 2013, pp. 367-379), myself included. Lewis’s writings provide a way of perceiving and understanding reality from a multidimensional perspective. Rather than a single dimensional view, Lewis integrates reason, imagination, and longing in a compelling and insightful manner. This characteristic provides a refreshing and attractive perspective from which numerous benefit. Moreover, few modern writers have affected me as has C. S. Lewis, whose impact on me personally has been both dramatic and profound.
The most significant and life altering influence that Lewis’s writings produced is my personal conversion to Christianity. Unfortunately, that story is too …show more content…
Undeniably, however, the longing I experienced in my heart was for the “bath and tea”—that nearness by approach. I discovered I had been living according to what I now realize is closer to the Stoic philosophy of such individuals as Seneca and Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius, rather than Christianity—a philosophy supported by secular society. Altruism, I believed, was what God desired. Altruism, as defined by Dictionary.com, is, “the principle or practice of unselfish concern for or devotion to the welfare of others.” “Unselfish”, they state, is defined as, “not selfish; disinterested; generous; altruistic.” Kenrick, Neuberg, & Cialdini (2015), authors of the psychology textbook, “Social Psychology: Goals in Interaction”, further define altruism in a PowerPoint (2010) presentation by describing it as “behavior that benefits another intentionally for no external or internal reward” (slide 66). This, I have come to believe, is the world’s understanding of altruism, not a Christian understanding. For a long time, I held this perspective of love; I strove to become “selfless.” This approach left me dry and empty. My Christianity, which was more duty, obligation, and obedience, reinforced this style of living. One is, of course, supposed to be unselfish. It was not until I read “The Weight of Glory” that my life again, turned completely
The most significant and life altering influence that Lewis’s writings produced is my personal conversion to Christianity. Unfortunately, that story is too …show more content…
Undeniably, however, the longing I experienced in my heart was for the “bath and tea”—that nearness by approach. I discovered I had been living according to what I now realize is closer to the Stoic philosophy of such individuals as Seneca and Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius, rather than Christianity—a philosophy supported by secular society. Altruism, I believed, was what God desired. Altruism, as defined by Dictionary.com, is, “the principle or practice of unselfish concern for or devotion to the welfare of others.” “Unselfish”, they state, is defined as, “not selfish; disinterested; generous; altruistic.” Kenrick, Neuberg, & Cialdini (2015), authors of the psychology textbook, “Social Psychology: Goals in Interaction”, further define altruism in a PowerPoint (2010) presentation by describing it as “behavior that benefits another intentionally for no external or internal reward” (slide 66). This, I have come to believe, is the world’s understanding of altruism, not a Christian understanding. For a long time, I held this perspective of love; I strove to become “selfless.” This approach left me dry and empty. My Christianity, which was more duty, obligation, and obedience, reinforced this style of living. One is, of course, supposed to be unselfish. It was not until I read “The Weight of Glory” that my life again, turned completely