Dargo

He was not a Bible literalist. I think I read somewhere that he didn't even believe in hell since he felt a merciful god would not condemn humans to such a horrible fate. Of course, there was the part of the Last Battle where the sincere worshiper of another god got into Aslan's paradise.

DamagedGoods

In The Last Battle, the talking animals that didn't get into paradise became ordinary dumb animals and walked into Aslan's shadow, if I recall correctly. I took that as the soul of "those that didn't make it" simply ceasing to exist, so I wouldn't be surprised to find that Lewis thought Christianity worked that way as well.

Luiseach

Ah, I see what you mean. Yes, definitely, he wasn't a literalist. This would make sense, I think, considering he was a literary critic (who tend not to be literalists when it comes to interpreting any written text).

I read that Lewis viewed the Narnia series as a 'supposal', rather than a straight 'allegory'...perhaps it was on account of his anti-literal stance that he insisted that his stories weren't meant to be viewed as direct parallels with biblical texts.

Thanks!

Amos

Well thanks again Luise. I remember "Mere Christianity" because it is discussed quite often here. My problem is that I forget things easily and I see that as a benefit of ageing.

Yes I did read LWW when I was about 35 or so and found it quite interesting. It is difficult for me to compare it with the bible because I had never read any of the bible so I could not see any resemblance there. But yes, there was some religious symbolism and I did recognize that.

In case you wonder, I completed a BA as mature student with a major in philosophy when I was 39. Most of this was by correspondence at the U of Waterloo. I actually did it just to pass time and give some direction to my thoughts. Yes, it was a good time and I did a lot of reading during those four years. What troubled me is that soon after that I needed reading glasses and have not read a book since.

WinAce

No offense, but it's not really surprising he would sign a letter as "your Godfather". Is that really any different than signing one "Your faithful husband" or "Your loving uncle"?

Luiseach

I've already explained the significance of Lewis signing his prefatory letter with the word 'godfather.'

Luiseach

You're very welcome, Amos. I highly recommend Lewis's essays in Compelling Reason. They can give one quite an insight into the thinking that went on behind-the-scenes of Lewis's fictional works and Christian apologetics.

The strange thing about ideology - Christian or otherwise - is that it can exert influence beyond the written text wherein it is literally inscribed and permeate the climate of a culture.

Have you ever thought of listening to books on tape instead?

Amos

Don't be silly girl, I can read very well and would sooner read than listen to tapes. I will, I promise and thanks for the suggestion.

Amos

You did that very well, Lewis is a "godfather at large."

DamagedGoods

I thought 40 was the average age when presbyopia started to set in. I suspect it was just concidental with all that reading (I am not a doctor, though). Sorry for the off-topicness of my post.