Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons^™

Review Of The C. S. Lewis Phenomenon: Christianity And The Public Sphere, Suzanne Bray

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

Review of Samuel Joeckel, The C. S. Lewis Phenomenon: Christianity and the Public Sphere (Macon, GA, 2013). 427 pages. $30.00. ISBN: 9780881464375.

Review Of Mere Lewis: A Critique Of C. S. Lewis’S “Mere Christianity”, Joel D. Heck

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

Review of Craig A. Hart, Mere Lewis: A Critique of C. S. Lewis’s “Mere Christianity” (CreateSpace Independent Publishing, 2011). 80 pages. Kindle edition. $0.99. ISBN: 9781468128892.1

Review Of C. S. Lewis: Twentieth Century Pilgrim, Laura Schmidt

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

Review of Janet Hamilton, C. S. Lewis: Twentieth Century Pilgrim (Greensboro, NC, 2011). 128 pages. $28.95. ISBN: 9781599351124.

Review Of C. S. Lewis Goes To Heaven: A Reader’S Guide To The Great Divorce, Charles A. Huttar

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

Review of David G. Clark, C. S. Lewis Goes to Heaven: A Reader’s Guide to The Great Divorce (Hamden, CT, 2012). xxi + 181 pages. $14.95. ISBN: 9781936294091.

Review Of Screwtape’S Master Plan. A Satirical Take On Christianity And Culture, David G. Clark

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

Review of Charles H. Anderton, Screwtape’s Master Plan. A Satirical Take on Christianity and Culture (Eugene, OR, 2012. x + 88 pages. $14.00. ISBN: 9781610979252.

Hell And Damnation, Freedom And Responsibility, P. H. Brazier

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

A review essay on Joel Buenting, ed., The Problem of Hell: A Philosophical Anthology (Farnham, 2010). 236 pages. $88.84. ISBN: 9780754667636, and Jordan C. Ferrier, Calvin and C. S. Lewis: Solving the Riddle of the Reformation (Allendale, 2010). 172 pages. $8.99. ISBN: 9781479101283.

No End In Sight, Sørina Higgins

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

A review essay on three biographies of C. S. Lewis: Alister McGrath, C. S. Lewis – A Life: Eccentric Genius, Reluctant Prophet (Carol Stream, IL, 2013). $19.25. 448 pages. ISBN: 9781414339351; Devin Brown, A Life Observed: A Spiritual Biography of C. S. Lewis (Grand Rapids, MI, 2013). $11.90. 256 pages. ISBN: 9781587433351; and Duriez, Colin, C. S. Lewis: A Biography of Friendship (Oxford, 2013). $13.34. 256 pages. ISBN: 9780745955872.

C. S. Lewis As Spiritual Mentor By Mail, David C. Downing

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

Lewis’ published correspondence provides a kind of autobiography-in-progress, and it offers a revealing glimpse of his opinions as a literary and culture critic. But perhaps the letters of most permanent value are those which Lewis saw as a part of his Christian vocation: his insights to friends, casual acquaintances and complete strangers about questions of theology, faith, spiritual formation, and even marriage and family relationships. In his later years, letter-writing became a burdensome task for Lewis. In one note, he mentions that he had composed thirty-five letters that day. In another, he mentions that he had just spent nine hours …

The Continuing (Ir) Relevance Of C.S. Lewis, Robert Macswain

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

found myself profoundly frustrated with the polarization that became evident between Lewis’ friends and foes, devotees and detractors. At the extremes of this debate were those who apparently regarded Lewis’ work as, for all intents and purposes, Holy Writ; at the other end of it were those who, for whatever reason, regarded Lewis with disdain and contempt. Sane, balanced, objective, sympathetically-critical and critically-sympathetic assessments seemed so rare as to be almost non-existent. The devotional attitude was largely characteristic of the United States, where I had grown up; and the disdain and contempt seemed especially prevalent in England, where I was …

Review Of Lewis On The Christian Life: Becoming Truly Human In The Presence Of God, Jennifer Neyhart

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

Review of Joe Rigney, Lewis on the Christian Life: Becoming Truly Human in the Presence of God (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2018). 310 pages. $21.99. ISBN 9781433550553.

Review Of Further Up And Further In: Orthodox Conversations With C. S. Lewis On Scripture & Theology, Gale Watkins

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

Review of Edith M. Humphrey, Further Up and Further In: Orthodox Conversations with C. S. Lewis on Scripture & Theology (Yonkers, NY: St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press, 2017). 301 pages. $28.00. ISBN 9780881415971.

The Spectrum Of Human Nature From Anthroposophy To Radical Difference From God In Owen Barfield, C. S. Lewis, And Karl Barth, Stephen Thorson

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

Among many achievements, Barth redefined the problem of objectivity in theology as well as proposed a theological anthropology of continuing influence. The question of objectivity also exercised the minds of C. S. Lewis and his close friend, Owen Barfield, during that same decade, leading to their own versions of idealist anthropology. Although Lewis claimed that the resulting epistolary controversy between them was a “major turning point” in his life,6 scholars of Lewis’s life and works, including biographers, have largely ignored this hint, and skipped this part of his intellectual conversion.7 Their debate began over objectivity in human knowledge, especially in …

In Memory: Walter Hooper (1931-2020), Steven A. Beebe

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

No abstract provided.

Review Of Apologetics And The Christian Imagination: An Integrated Approach To Defending The Faith, Corey Latta

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

Review of: Holly Ordway, Apologetics and the Christian Imagination: An Integrated Approach to Defending the Faith (Steubenville, Ohio: Emmaus Road, 2017). 195 pages. $22.95. ISBN 9781945125386.

Review Of Preparing For Easter: Fifty Devotional Readings From C.S. Lewis, Gina Dalfonzo

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

Review of: C. S. Lewis, Preparing for Easter: Fifty Devotional Readings from C. S. Lewis (New York: HarperOne, 2017). xi + 215 pages. $17.99. ISBN 9780062641649.

Review Of How To Pray: Reflections And Essays, David N. Beckmann

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

Review of: C. S. Lewis, How To Pray: Reflections and Essays (New York: HarperOne, 2018). 157 pages. $22.99. ISBN 9780062847133.

Review Of From Atheism To Christianity: The Story Of C.S. Lewis, Kevin Belmonte

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

Review of: Joel D. Heck, From Atheism to Christianity: The Story of C. S. Lewis (St. Louis, Missouri: Concordia Publishing House, 2017). 214 pages. $14.99. ISBN 9780758657237.

The Psychology Of Hell: Privation, Exclusion, And Banishment As Symbols Of Hell In The Life Of C.S. Lewis, Reggie Weems

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

These few examples demonstrate that Lewis’s fundamental view of Hell was primarily influenced by Christ but also shaped by Christian history and literature. This does not mean that his choice of the particular words "privation, exclusion and banishment" is solely dependent on biblical, historical, or literary influences. It may very well be that Lewis employed these particular expressions because they represented certain traumatic Hell-on-earth experiences endured in his formative years—events that personalized the doctrine and added significant, practical weight to his academic, theological, philosophical, and literary understanding of its horrifying reality.

"The Packed Reality Of Heaven": C.S. Lewis's Imaginative Re-Education Of The Modern Pilgrim, Monika B. Hilder

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

How to think of Heaven then, which Lewis says “is, by definition, outside our experience,” when the fact is that “all intelligible descriptions must be of things within our experience” is a question that Lewis took seriously, especially since the scriptural imagery “[a]t first sight . . . chill[ed], rather than awake[ned], [his] desire.” He asked how a “typical modern” like himself might interpret the heavenly concept of glory. The first idea of fame suggested to him hellish competition; the second idea of brightness suggested the “ridiculous” image of becoming “a kind of living electric light bulb.” Indeed, he contends …

Review Of Reasoning Beyond Reason: Imagination As A Theological Source In The Work Of C. S. Lewis, Nikolay Epplée

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

Review of: J. T. Sellars, Reasoning Beyond Reason: Imagination as a Theological Source in the Work of C. S. Lewis (Eugene, 2011). 256 pages. $29.00. ISBN: 9781608995035.

Review Of C. S. Lewis And Friends: Faith And The Power Of Imagination, David Robinson

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

Review of: David Hein and Edward Henderson, eds., C. S. Lewis and Friends: Faith and the Power of Imagination (London, 2011). 159 pages. $18.00. ISBN: 9780281062249.

Review Of The Passionate Intellect: Christian Faith And The Discipleship Of The Mind, P. H. Brazier

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

Review of Alister McGrath, The Passionate Intellect: Christian Faith and the Discipleship of the Mind (Downers Grove, 2010). 210 pages. $22.00. ISBN: 9780830838431

"There Is No Emperor": Merlin And The Ideal State In That Hideous Strength, L. S.B. Maccoull

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

C. S. Lewis’ Merlin has been brought forward from the sixth century. In the world he knew, though there was no longer a Roman Emperor in the West, there certainly was an Emperor reigning in Constantinople who could be called upon for aid. A closer look at Lewis’ depiction of Byzantium reveals what role the positive qualities he attributed to the city played in the development of his own views regarding the nature of the realm (or world) we should strive to realize here on earth.

"A Dreadful Thing": C.S. Lewis And The Experinces Of War, Timothy J. Demy

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

From a Christian perspective, war entails the death and killing of people who are all created in the image of God and therefore have inherent dignity and incalculable worth. And yet, even after experiencing war at firsthand, C. S. Lewis believed that war is sometimes justifiable and necessary.

Like others of his generation, Lewis was deeply affected by the experience of war. He lived through the First and Second World Wars, serving as an officer on the Western Front between November 1917 and April 1918. His brother Warren (“Warnie”) was a career officer serving in the British army in both …

A Friend's Death: C.S. Lewis' Disagreement With St. Augustine, Jason Lepojärvi

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

Lewis did nothing to conceal his admiration of—and theological pedigree to—Augustine: as he wrote, Augustine “is a great saint and a great thinker to whom my old glad debts are incalculable.”3 This is why the only time he explicitly disagrees with Augustine on an important point concerning love, he does so “with trembling.”4 Lewis’ sentiments in having to disagree with Augustine may be comparable to Stanley Hauerwas disagreeing with Lewis. It is difficult, Hauerwas wrote, “to criticize a writer who has done so much good as C. S. Lewis.”5 The purpose of the present article is to evaluate the gentlemanly …

Jack Lewis And His American Cousin, Nat Hawthorne: A Study Of Instructive Affinities, D. G. Kehl

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

When he was a student at Oxford University, C. S. Lewis wrote to a friend expressing his great admiration of and enthusiasm for the novels of Nathaniel Hawthorne, particularly The House of the Seven Gables and Transformation (British title of The Marble Faun). This study examines the parallels between these two kindred spirits and their works, focusing on their similar worldviews, their personal backgrounds and lifestyles, and the "Ultimates" they both pondered. It discusses common themes in their works, such as myth, scientism, and "the great power of blackness." Their respective attitudes toward these issues and others, such as faith, …

Addressing The Intergenerational Disconnect Through Small Group Ministry In A Rural Church, George Russell Strickland

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Programs and activities at church are designed primarily to minister to the needs of specific age groups. Though this style of ministry has its place in the church, if not monitored, it can cause a division among the generations in the church. The division that exists can create a “we versus them” mindset. The generational division can create an attitude that affects the unity of the church while also a competition for resources and style preference in the church. This division also creates a culture of anemic discipleship from a lack of investment across generational lines that is a biblical …

Natural Christology: The Necessity Of Christ By Analysis Of Natural Religion, Jared Anthony Smith

Masters Theses

The hero’s journey [or the monomyth] and the perennial philosophy are two conceptions of human experience that popularize a single old idea: a common human plight recurs across time through humanity’s socio-cultural variety. The monomyth highlights this through narrative modes; the perennial philosophy does this through religious modes. Both distillations have garnered a Christian counterattack, being thought to dangerously depart from the gospel in their essence as they nonetheless borrow its language and timbre. Yet, their incorporation of the gospel ventures beyond appropriation. Supposing these secular notions esteem the recurrent human journey with any alacrity, a careful apologetic discerns and …

Restitution Is A Necessary Part Of Biblical Forgiveness: A Look At How The Bible Provides A Legal And Moral Solution For Transgressions Committed, Robert Andrew Pannier

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this dissertation is to examine the principle of restitution and how it is an essential part of biblical forgiveness. What makes this principle so important is that God wanted to ensure that there was no barrier to the unity of the body of Christ and unforgiveness related to a transgression can be a huge barrier as it creates resentment and anger. Since the ultimate goal of God is the unity of His creation, God provided a system where true forgiveness could be achieved, both from a legal standpoint, where a debt was repaid, and from a moral …

Relational Evangelism: Family-To-Family Through Recreational Activities, Kimberly R. Williams

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The goals of this Doctor of Ministry thesis project are to explore and implement an approach to evangelism that has the potential of family connection through relational evangelism. The approach delivers the gospel message through family to family encounters in recreational activities. The church, Idlewild Baptist Church (IBC) has a unique communal opportunity to enhance ministry efforts through relational evangelism. The church leaders at IBC realize that they can do more with their recreation center on their campus by using it as a resource for outreach connecting with unchurched families and families without a church affiliation. An identifiable dilemma in …