The 'C' we loved.
The language of 'S. Lewis'

His sharp gaze sharpens the dull soul!
A feast of famous writings that transcend genres

C., author of The Chronicles of Narnia and Mere Christianity
C. S. Lewis, A Forest of Spirituality and Intellect that Breathes Life into Everyday Life!
S. Lewis is widely known for his extensive writings on key topics of the Christian faith, including God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, the Bible, sin, evil, nature, sex, the Christian life, prayer, faith, compassion, guilt, and forgiveness.
This book is a treasure trove of provocative, ingenious, and insightful wisdom, and it is a perfect introduction to a great figure who has had a profound impact on modern Christianity.
It is not simply a collection of witty and wise sayings, but rather a collection of concepts shaped and colored by Lewis's unique way of thinking.
A rich and expansive anthology, combining vast knowledge, logic, and imagination!

While believing that the modern world was truly going from bad to worse, he always maintained his vitality.
He was a true mystic in that he was a true intellectual and yet he believed in God absolutely.
If you look at it from a microscopic perspective, Lewis is full of paradoxes, but in fact, if you look at the whole picture, it is not like that.
Because the true nature of a believer is so unfamiliar to the world, it is easy for him to appear strange.


He placed little emphasis on human merit, so he spoke of his own writings in the most belittling terms, and sometimes he could not even remember the titles of some of them.
Although he could easily justify serving God by writing religious books and making a profound impact, he believed that Christians should confront others directly for God's sake.

--- p.12~13

A creature who rebels against its Creator rebels against the source of all its power, including the power to rebel.
… … It is like the fragrance of a flower trying to harm the flower.
A Preface to “Paradise Lost,” Chapter 13
--- p.177

Strangely, we mistakenly believe that our sins will be forgiven with the passage of time.
He even laughs as he talks about the cruel behavior and lies of his childhood as if they have nothing to do with his current self.
I've heard that from others, and I've said it myself.
But neither the sin itself nor the responsibility for that sin changes with the passage of time.
It is not time that washes away guilt, but repentance and the blood of Christ.
The Problem of Pain, Chapter 4
--- p.178

The idea that Satan put into the minds of our first parents was that they too could be 'like God.'
It was as if we were self-created beings, capable of becoming independent, masters of ourselves, and creating our own happiness outside of God.
Money, poverty, ambition, war, prostitution, class, empire, slavery - almost all of human history has its origins in that hopeless attempt.
In other words, it is a long and miserable story of humans trying to find happiness in something other than God.
Mere Christianity, Part 2, Chapter 3
--- p.184

We are each born with a self-centered life.
So we whine for praise, exploit other people's lives, and exploit the entire universe.
In particular, they try to keep their distance from anything that is better, stronger, or higher than them, or anything that might make them feel inferior, and just remain alone.
This ego fears the light and air of the spiritual world.
It's like someone who grew up dirty is afraid of taking a bath.
In some ways, it's only natural.
He knows that if he were to get caught up in the spiritual life, all his self-centeredness and stubbornness would be shattered.
So, they desperately try to fight to avoid such a situation.
Mere Christianity, Part 4, Chapter 5
--- p.185

A person is most arrogant when he pretends to be humble.
Christian Reflections, “Christianity and Culture”
--- p.198

In fact, a good heart is a gift from God to us, not a gift from us to God.
… … A world where people are good and satisfied with their goodness, and turn their backs on God without wanting anything more, such a world is in desperate need of salvation, just as much as this miserable world.
In fact, it may be more difficult to be saved.
Mere Christianity, Volume 4, Chapter 10
--- p.198

“There have been people like that before.
They were so intent on proving the existence of God that they had no interest in Himself… … .
As if the good Lord had nothing left to do but simply exist! Some were so absorbed in spreading Christianity that they never even thought about Christ himself.” The Great Divorce, Chapter 9
--- p.236

Wormwood, don't be fooled.
At no point is our purpose more imperiled than when we, though our hearts are not moved, still seek to carry out the will of the enemy, or when we question why he has abandoned us, even though even his traces seem to have vanished from the universe, and yet we still obey him.
The Screwtape Letters, Chapter 8
--- p.236

Every day, we must rely on God again as if it were the first time in our lives.
Letters, circa September 1949
--- p.238

The prayer, “Give us this day our daily bread (not a pension for life)” applies equally to spiritual provision.
He gives us a little support each day to help us overcome our daily trials.
Life is something we have to face every moment of every day.
Letters (Collection of Letters), July 17, 1953
--- p.238

More often than any passion or desire, petty worries and decisions about what to do in the near future have swarmed like mosquitoes and interrupted my prayers.
The Four Loves, Chapter 5
--- p.261

The real challenge is … … to apply our firm belief in the tribulation to this particular tribulation.
Whenever hardship comes, I always feel like this is the only thing I can't handle.
Letters, June 2, 1940
--- p.276

No matter how many times we fall, if we get up every time, we will never fall.
Of course, when you get home, you'll be a dirty, muddy kid.
But there are towels hanging in the prepared bathroom and clean clothes on the shelf.
The only fatal thing is giving up in anger.
When we recognize the dust, God is most present within us.
That in itself is a sign of His presence.
Letters, January 20, 1942
--- p.278

God gives us the strength to handle what actually happens, not a thousand other things that might happen.
The Collected Letters of C.
S. Lewis, Volume III(C.
S. Lewis Letters, Volume 3), August 3, 1956
--- p.280

God's concern is not limited to so-called Christian writers, but extends to all kinds of writing.
Likewise, the holy calling is not limited to the so-called priesthood.
Even those who weed in a field serve God.
God in the Dock, “Questions and Answers”
--- p.284

God has never tested me to find out the quality of my faith or love.
He already knew.
I just didn't know.
In this trial, He gives us the defendant's stand, the witness stand, and the judge's stand.
He always knew that my temple was a house of cards.
The only way He could make me realize this fact was to tear down that house of cards.
A Grief Observed, Chapter 3
--- p.285

There is no neutral ground in space.
God claims every inch of space, every second of time, and Satan opposes that claim.
Christian Reflections, “Christianity and Culture”
--- p.290

“In the end, there are only two types of humans.
One is the person who confesses to God, “Your will be done,” and the other is the person to whom God will ultimately declare, “Your will be done.”
Everyone in hell volunteered for hell.
There can be no hell without your own choice.
On the other hand, any soul that earnestly and consistently longs for joy never misses it.” The Great Divorce, Chapter 9
--- p.292

If you choose this earth over heaven, in the end this earth will always be just a part of hell.
But if we put heaven before this earth, then this earth was ultimately a part of heaven from the beginning.
The Great Divorce, “Preface
--- p.309

Metaphorically, you are a seed that silently survives the winter underground.
The gardener is waiting to bloom in his time.
Then you will fully awaken and come out into the real world.
If we look back on our entire lives from that point on, it will only seem like we were still half-asleep and in a daze.
We are in dreamland now, but dawn will come soon.
I am closer to that dawn now than when I began this letter.
The Collected Letters of C.
S. Lewis, Volume III(C.
S. Lewis Letters, Volume 3), June 28, 1963
--- p.323

You cannot fully love your fellow human beings without loving God. The Great Divorce, Chapter 11
--- p.334

A ray of sunlight shining through the forest shows you a side of the sun you will never get from an astronomy book.
This pure and natural joy is a 'ray of God' shining in the forest of our experience.
Letters to Malcolm, Chapter 17
--- p.356

The ancients appeared before God (or gods) like a defendant before a judge.
But in modern times, the roles have been reversed, with humans being the judges and God in the dock.
Humans are quite generous judges, and if God can offer a rational defense for allowing war, poverty, and disease, we are ready to listen.
The trial may find God innocent.
But the important thing is that humans are in the judge's seat and God is in the defendant's seat.
God in the Dock

--- p.392