Synopses & Reviews
"A potent anthology."--
Los Angeles Times "C.S. Lewis is the ideal persuader for the half-convinced, for the good man who would like to be a Christian but finds his intellect getting in the way."--Anthony Burgess,
The New York Times Book Review The church year, as described by C.S. Lewis's infamous devil, Screwtape, is always "The Same Old Thing." In answer to this, Father Walter Hooper, editor of this edition, draws from the rich canon of Lewis's work and presents these eloquent, clear readings as meditations appropriate for every day of the Christian year. Each entry, other than those for saints' days and holy days, is given a title to set the theme, such as "Half-Hearted Creatures," "Two Kinds of Good and Bad," and "The Humblest Love." Hooper illuminates his belief that C.S. Lewis was "one of the most realistic Christians we are ever likely to meet" by choosing readings that explore faith and morality together with joy, which, as Lewis wrote, "is the serious business of heaven." "The point about reading C.S. Lewis is that he makes you sure, whatever you believe, that religion accepted or rejected means something extremely serious, demanding the entire energy of the mind."--
Harper's C. S. Lewis (1898-1963) gained international renown for an impressive array of beloved works both popular and scholarly: literary criticism, children's literature, fantasy literature, and numerous books on theology. Among his most celebrated achievements are
Out of the Silent Planet, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Screwtape Letters, The Four Loves, and
Surprised by Joy.
Synopsis
A journey through the ecclesiastical year with Christianitys most eloquent and inspiring spokesman. “A potent anthology” (Los Angeles Times). Edited and with a Preface by Walter Hooper.
Synopsis
“Morals are the ‘ropes’ and ‘axes’ necessary for climbing those great heights from which a greater journey begins. That journey leads to the ‘happy land of the Trinity.’ It is there that joys, almost unimaginable in this world, begin. Begin—not end.”
—from the preface In The Screwtape Letters, C.S. Lewis’s famous devil derides the Christian year as “The Same Old Thing.” To combat this, Walter Hooper has drawn from Lewis’s vast bibliography, accumulating short meditations that correspond to each day of the Christian calendar. Hooper has chosen passages that emphasize Lewis’ illuminatingly matter-of-fact approach to religion, with each entry focused on themes such as “Nearness to God,” “Heaven and Sexuality,” or “Two Kinds of Good and Bad.” In addition to providing food for thought, these bite-sized excerpts facilitate a yearlong journey towards achieving the joy that Lewis wrote is “the serious business of heaven.”
"The point about reading C. S. Lewis is that he makes you sure, whatever you believe, that religion accepted or rejected means something extremely serious, demanding the entire energy of the mind." —Harper’s
"A potent anthology." —Los Angeles Times
About the Author
C. S. (Clive Staples) Lewis (1898-1963), one of the great writers of the twentieth century, also continues to be one of our most influential Christian thinkers. A Fellow and tutor at Oxford until 1954, he spent the rest of his career as Chair of Medieval and Renaissance English at Cambridge. He wrote more than thirty books, both popular and scholarly, inlcuding The Chronicles of Narnia series, The Screwtape Letters, The Four Loves, Mere Christianity and Surprised by Joy.