Category: Special Feature

RETROSPECT: June 12th – 21st

William OFlaherty Jack in Retrospect, Special Feature

Highlights for the second third of June (12nd – 21st) include: the birthday of his closest friend, beginning his longest employment and an explanation of “an old textbook method” that the devils use.

Warnie LewisLewis was the youngest in his family. His only sibling was his brother, Warren who was nearly three-and-half years older. Born on the 16th in 1895, the elder brother became close friends with his junior over the years. This doesn’t mean they had the same interests, in fact, a major difference in their tastes from their younger years turns out to be a pretty good summary of their most outstanding talents. Lewis from his early days was intrigued by fairy tales and fantasy stories. Warnie had more of an interest in history.

RETROSPECT: June 1st – 11th

William OFlaherty Jack in Retrospect, Special Feature

The following is part of a series reflecting on the life of C.S. Lewis. This is accomplished by summarizing various events or happenings during his lifetime for the noted period and may include significant events related to him after his death.

Highlights for the first third of June (1st – 11th) include: two standout letters to children about Narnia, the acceptance of a new position late in his professional career and his most famous sermon.

Before the magic of Narnia started in 1950 C.S. Lewis had a magical year in 1941. In April he gave his first RAF talk, in May his first letter by Screwtape was published, in August he gave his first radio talk on the BBC and was asked to do a second series in September, then in December he gave a special series of lectures that became A Preface to Paradise Lost. But it is during the first part of June, 1941 that some would say was the best thing

RETROSPECT: May 22th – 31st

William OFlaherty Jack in Retrospect, Special Feature

Highlights for the final third of May (22nd – 31st) include: A prize-winning essay, his first Christian book that was his only true allegory and a Pentecost sermon.

Lewis’s first book after becoming a Christian was very different in several ways than his two previous works. Those initial titles were poetry, while The Pilgrim’s Regress: An Allegorical Apology for Christianity, Reason and Romanticism, publishedon the 25th in 1933 was his debut prose effort. Additionally, the story was pure allegory. Interestingly, it was such a difficult read that Lewis himself even admitted it and ten years after its release he wrote a preface to explain his approach to the story.

C.S. Lewis Said What? YES, He Really Did!

William OFlaherty Special Feature

I’ve been working on a short talk for the 2014 Taylor Colloquium (9th Frances White Ewbank Colloquium on C.S. Lewis & Friends) about quotes falsely attributed to Lewis. Along the way I’ve come across some lesser known quotations that some might have a difficult time believing he DID say. While a collection of quotes of this nature could contain a variety of categories, I’ve chosen to share sayings that are generally humorous (however, some may be more ironic, than funny).

“A good toe-nail is not an unsuccessful attempt at a brain: and if it were conscious it wd. delight in being simply a good toe-nail.”

(Letter to Hugh Kilmer from April 5, 1961 in The Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis, Volume 3)

“If you think you are a poached egg, when you are looking for a piece of toast to suit you, you may be sane, but if you think you are God, there is no chance for you.”

(Essay – What Are We to Make of Jesus Christ? in God in the Dock)

RETROSPECT: May 11th – 21st

William OFlaherty Jack in Retrospect, Special Feature

Highlights for the second of May (11th – 21st) include: Initial publication of Miracles, the landmark first meeting with a famous friend and securing his longest employment.

“Miracles” is among the many misused words in our vocabulary today. This was true even back in 1947 when Miracles: A Preliminary Study was released on the 12th by C.S. Lewis. Of course, Lewis was addressing more of an unbelief in the miraculous. In fact, as the inside dusk jacket of the first edition notes, the subtitle isn’t about Lewis giving his tentative thoughts on the subject, but rather the book is designed to be “a study preliminary to any historical inquiry into the actual occurrence of miracles.” That is, before any examination of specific miracles one has to believe that the miraculous can genuinely occur. Nearly thirteen years later (as mentioned in the previous column) a new edition was released containing a revised third chapter.

RETROSPECT: May 1st – 10th

William OFlaherty Jack in Retrospect, Special Feature

Highlights for the first third of May (1st – 10th) include: Publication of a book about how Narnia started, the debut of Wormwood’s uncle and the release of a revised Miracles.

Over a decade apart on the exact same day two major events occurred in Lewis’s life during the first third of May. The origins of Narnia finally became known and the first of thirty-one soon to be famous letters were released. If you are even vaguely familiar with Lewis, then you are aware that I’m speaking of The Magician’s Nephew and the start of The Screwtape Letters.
The Magician’s Nephew came out on the 2nd in 1955, just eight months after the previous Narnia story (The Horse and His Boy). This was the shortest

RETROSPECT: April 20th – 30th

William OFlaherty Jack in Retrospect, Special Feature

Highlights for the final third of April (20th – 30th) include: Publication of Perelandra, a talk “On Three Ways of Writing for Children” and Lewis’s first marriage to Joy Davidman.

Before Lewis gain fame from a series of books about a place called Narnia, he had written a trilogy that had a science fiction theme. The second of those books, Perelandra, came out on the 20th in 1943. In it we take a trip to Venus with the main character, Ransom and follow his quest to save that world from impending corruption. In the U.S. it wasn’t released until a year later on the 11th. In 1953 a paperback version came out under the title Voyage to Venus. On some occasions in his life Lewis considered this novel to be his best (this was also said of Till We Have Faces). Perelandra was dedicated “To Some Ladies at Wantage,” as in Wantage,

Lewis on the Incarnation and Resurrection

William OFlaherty Special Feature

C.S. Lewis made comments on the Incarnation and Resurrection in several writings over the years. Previous on my C.S. Lewis Minute blog I shared this post and felt there were those who probably hadn’t seen it there, and so it would be useful to add it here.

From “Christianity and Literature” (found in Christian Reflections):

To believe in the Incarnation at all is to believe that every mode of human excellence is implicit in His [Jesus’] historical human character. . . . But if all had been developed, the limitations of a single human life would have been transcended and he would not have been a man; therefore all excellences save the spiritual remained in varying degrees implicit.

RETROSPECT: April 11th – 19th

William OFlaherty Jack in Retrospect, Special Feature

The following is part of a series reflecting on the life of C.S. Lewis. This is accomplished by summarizing various events or happenings during his lifetime for the noted period and may include significant events related to him after his death.

Highlights for the second third of April (11th – 19th) include: Publication of third BBC series; Publication of second book from BBC Talks; four posthumous books and the final installment about a bus ride to heaven.

Christian Behaviour: A Further series of Broadcast Talks tops the list of happenings over the years in the life of Lewis. It was first published on the 19th in 1943 in the U.K. (and nine months later in the U.S.). As you may be aware, it was just the second book printed of three that eventually became part of Mere Christianity. What gets confusing to some is that when you examine the book from 1952 Christian Behavior is stated as being “Book III.”

If I Had Lunch with C.S. Lewis (Review)

William OFlaherty Special Feature

In 2013 two books related to Lewis studies was released by Dr. Alister McGrath. Now this year another book by him, If I Had Lunch with C.S. Lewis recently became available. Last year we were presented with a biography and collection of new scholarly essays that evaluated Lewis’s life and the major themes of his writings. The present volume has a unique enough title to at least stop you long enough to make you wonder just what the book is aiming to accomplish. The subtitle offers some assistance: “Exploring the Ideas of C.S. Lewis on the Meaning of Life.” I’m not sure, but I think this is the first book with Lewis’s name in the title AND subtitle.