C.S Lewis
Afton Rios
Msc #225
Apologetics
Paper #1
Clive Staples Lewis, or C.S Lewis, was a well known novelist and Christian Apologist. However, he it was only in his later life that he argued for the existence of God. He andured many hardships in his childhood. With his mother’s passing, influence of the boarding school he attended, along with other life situations caused Lewis to reject Christianity and become an avowed atheist. But today he is best known as an apologist, probably the most successful Christian apologist of the twentieth century. Lewis forms his apologetic argument for Christianity with three stages. First, he set out to establish the existence of God on grounds that are philosophical. Then he sought to show how God has revealed himself in Christ and in the Christian religion. Finally, he defends theism and Christianity against common objections, such as the problem of evil. But, his own favorite proofs are those from morality, from reason, and from desire.
Lewis believed it was possible to demonstrate the existence of God, at least in the sense of making God 's existence more likely than his non-existence. If there was no higher power, then where else would what he called “Moral Law “come from? The argument from morality begins with the idea that we are somehow as human beings bound to do good and avoid evil. All normal human beings judge that certain actions are wrong and ought not to be done. They know their actions should be truthful, honest, just, and loving toward others. And such actions as adultery, murder, and the like, are frowned upon on no matter what culture you are part of. The only explanation he maintains is that we are subject to a higher will, to which we are accountable for the use we make of our freedom. In Lewis’s book “Mere Christianity”, he breaks down his moral law. Lewis states that the moral law is like the law of nature in that it was not contrived by humans. However, it is unlike natural laws in that it can be
Msc #225
Apologetics
Paper #1
Clive Staples Lewis, or C.S Lewis, was a well known novelist and Christian Apologist. However, he it was only in his later life that he argued for the existence of God. He andured many hardships in his childhood. With his mother’s passing, influence of the boarding school he attended, along with other life situations caused Lewis to reject Christianity and become an avowed atheist. But today he is best known as an apologist, probably the most successful Christian apologist of the twentieth century. Lewis forms his apologetic argument for Christianity with three stages. First, he set out to establish the existence of God on grounds that are philosophical. Then he sought to show how God has revealed himself in Christ and in the Christian religion. Finally, he defends theism and Christianity against common objections, such as the problem of evil. But, his own favorite proofs are those from morality, from reason, and from desire.
Lewis believed it was possible to demonstrate the existence of God, at least in the sense of making God 's existence more likely than his non-existence. If there was no higher power, then where else would what he called “Moral Law “come from? The argument from morality begins with the idea that we are somehow as human beings bound to do good and avoid evil. All normal human beings judge that certain actions are wrong and ought not to be done. They know their actions should be truthful, honest, just, and loving toward others. And such actions as adultery, murder, and the like, are frowned upon on no matter what culture you are part of. The only explanation he maintains is that we are subject to a higher will, to which we are accountable for the use we make of our freedom. In Lewis’s book “Mere Christianity”, he breaks down his moral law. Lewis states that the moral law is like the law of nature in that it was not contrived by humans. However, it is unlike natural laws in that it can be
Bibliography: Lewis, C. S., C. S. Lewis, C. S. Lewis, and C. S. Lewis. Mere Christianity. London: Fount, 1997. Print. Lewis, C. S. The Great Divorce. New York: Macmillan, 1946. Print. Olsen, Ted. "C.S. Lewis." Christian History 19.1 (2000): 26. Academic Search Premier. Web. 18 Oct. 2012. Lewis, C. S. The Problem of Pain. [San Francisco]: HarperSanFrancisco, 2001. Print. "C.S. Lewis Biography." C.S. Lewis Biography. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Oct. 2012. <http://www.narniaproducts.com/cslewis.php>.