C.S. Lewis begins Mere Christianity by talking about the Law of Human Nature. He argues if there is a higher standard for something, a focal point for how humans should act, then that in itself points to the existence of a Creator. He talks about right and wrong and that it is not necessarily about what is right and wrong, but the fact that people believe in a right and wrong. He says people don’t believe they meet the standard for how they should act. Another point is that man did not make the Law of Human Nature because that law is a standard we cannot meet, but are always striving for. In fact, humans are anxious to make excuses for not behaving decently. Often times, people will justify their claims on what they are doing, which points …show more content…
If people were to follow any one instinct all the time, the results would be disastrous. Any instincts that come from flesh and blood cannot always be trusted. The Moral Law can suppress or increase certain instincts, because it dictates what is morally correct. There are some instincts that need to be suppressed given the situation, so it would be foolish to blindly follow one instinct all the time. So, the Moral Law will direct our impulses, depending on the situation. The Moral Law is not to be confused with the Rules of Decent Behavior, which is more social convention and can be learned through education. The Moral Law cannot be taught, and was not invented by humans. The Rules of Decent Behavior can differ depending on circumstance, or where you live; whereas, the Law of Human Nature is an innate understanding, or something we are born with. It isn’t governed by social convention; it’s a law of right and wrong that is as much a real truth as mathematics. The minute you compare one set of moral ideals to another, you are comparing it to a higher standard. Something I think a lot of people get hung up on about the Moral Law is what it entails. People get caught up on “what is right and wrong?” What is actually right and wrong does not matter in this context, it is not the point C.S. Lewis is trying to make. He is not talking about that, he is talking about the fact that such an idea exists--that a “Real Morality” exists--and is the standard that all other moral ideals are being compared to. That is what points to the existence of a Creator. In the next chapter, Lewis brings up that if such a law exists, where did it come from? If there is such a thing as a Moral Law or Law of Human Nature, and if it is something humans could not have created, then who did? Man does not exist on his own apart from the Law, man lives under the Law. This means that there is someone
C.S Lewis in his book Mere Christianity talks and describes human nature in the first chapter of his book similar to the Golden rule found in the bible. He also refers to Human nature as the law of human nature instead, then mention that it is optional for people to follow it,but is necessary for society's to grow. He proves his point to the reader by presenting a philosophical task of imagining a country where people would be honored from running away from battle or a society where people are proud when double crossing with each other. It's hard to imagine a country or a society being possible with traits such as treachery are being promoted and explains that a variety of early civilizations have followed teachings similar to the golden rule. I believe that the Golden rule is a part of human nature since the creation of man. When Jesus was asked which commandment was the most important his response “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy
Lewis' argument in the third book is most important to the point I want to discuss. He argues through this chapter the Christian behavior. Morality is what he considers to be the basics of good Christian behavior. Lewis states that morality is not simply, "something that prevents you from having a good time", but rather morals are the "directions for running the human machine". Every moral rule is there to prevent wear and tear on the way machine operates. He realizes that is why the rules seem to be constantly getting in the way of are natural behavior. Lewis sees that some people think in terms of moral ideals not rules and obedience. Ideals suggest preference to personal taste. Something that subjective would be meaningless in practice. Idealistic notions are meaningless unless we try to carry them out. Acting on ideals requires rules. Lewis uses the analogy of the ship to show how ideals without rules can go wrong. If the ships keep on having crashes they will not be able to sail. If their steering gears do not work they will not be able to avoid crashes.
The element of fog has been long recognized as a major symbol in That Hideous Strength by C.S. Lewis. Most scholars view the fog as a symbol of Mark feeling trapped (Cheaney) but in addition to that, it is believed that the fog is symbolizing a dark period of time where the town of Edgestow is being overtaken. The fog that begins to cover Edgestow symbolizes much more than just a thick cloud of tiny water droplets suspended in the atmosphere. The fog, made of water, is a kind of darkness which can be felt.
Book 3 of Mere Christianity contains 12 separate chapters, which has far too great a scope to address properly here, so a glimpse will have to suffice. In the first, Lewis examines three components of morality; the relations between men, the interior moral mechanics of a man, and the relationship between a man and the God who made him. Lewis makes the case that, since we are destined to live forever in one state or another, it is desperately important that we pay attention to the sort of Being we are becoming. Lewis points out that most of humanity can agree that keeping relations between men running smoothly are important, but varying world views and religions-or lack of religion, have produced some disagreements on the necessity of keeping one’s own ship in order, as it were, and it completely breaks down when the relationship between a man and his Maker are addressed, as there is virtually no agreement there.
The data protection act is created for personal information to keep secure by John Lewis or by data protection act company and they must follow the rules that has been giving to John Lewis. For example, when customer come to John Lewis and when the customer buy’s product with credit card and that credit card must not give to any one they must keep secure or they can only give to the right person. Data protection act for John Lewis must not allowed keep customer details for no longer 3 years and then they must delete it and they must not sell to any third party company. You must have CCTV in your backup room where all data is there and it so if anything happened to that room or any one come to steal customer details and then they can track it down with CCTV. The data that John Lewis get from employees or customer it need to be accurate and relevant for
Although there are many turning points in John Lewis’ life. I will be discussing three of his turning points. These turning points are important because it helped him become resilient, determined, and gave him ways to elaborate on an issue that arose during that time which was Civil Rights. His first turning point was at age four when he got his first bible. The second turning point was when he was inspired by Martin Luther King’s speech on the Social Gospel and his view on Civil Rights. John Lewis’ attendance at Jim Lawson’s workshops about non-violent protesting was his third turning point.
C.S. Lewis covers many topics in his fourth book contained in Mere Christianity titled BEYOND PERSONALITY: OR FIRST STEPS IN THE DOCTRINE OF THE TRINITY. He addresses such topics as theology, what it means to be the Son of God, the three personal God, the relationship of God and time, the cost of being a Christian, how God works to turn us into image of Christ, why Christian growth is both hard and easy, and also what he thinks about our old personalities before becoming Christians. These are all relative topics that apply to us and our daily lives. Learning and understanding this book can help a Christian tremendously in forming a deeper relationship with God.
The Law of Nature is discussed greatly in the book Mere Christianity of C. S. Lewis, who asserts that it is the Law of Nature which makes humans obligated to do the right thing. According to Lewis, this law can also be referred as The Real Morality or the Standard to which all people follow, and which people use to evaluate their and others’ behaviors. The Law of Nature tells the people which circumstance is appropriate to execute certain actions, and which situation is not suitable for certain behavior. For instance, in every human, there is a warrior trait, which is said to be necessary by the Law of Nature in order to protect oneself against life-threatening beings, but to be wrong when it is used to injure the innocent people. However, the Law of Nature functions beyond the machinery of evaluating
C.S. Lewis is one of the greatest authors in history. His books are still widely available and sold to many interested readers. In Lewis’ childhood, he experienced a tragedy that affected his belief in god; in his middle life, he mainly focused on college and his studies, but his father’s death played a role in Lewis later becoming a Christian. In Lewis’ later life, he married one of his own fans. Clive’s passion for writing began when he was a small child, and it continued to grow as he furthered his education to become a college professor at Oxford University. Lewis is still remembered today for his great works, such as The Screwtape Letters and The Chronicles of Narnia, which is a popular series among children.
The question of whether or not God exists has been asked by billions of people since the concept of religion emerged. Many people try to explain things such as hurricanes and tornadoes as “Acts of God” or even the existence of human beings and the world itself to be “created” by an almighty power. Others claim that the harm they inflict was demanded of them by their God. CS Lewis argues that through the comprehension of standards of good and bad, God’s existence is proven. However, Lewis’s defense for the existence of God is adequate because it fails to acknowledge the possibility for people to be good on their own, without the instruction of a supernatural entity.
We have now come to the fourth and final book of Mere Christianity. In this book, the author takes us to the place in our Christian growth where we begin to rely more heavily on the power of God and less on ourselves to become the being that God originally intended for us to be — a son of God. He begins with an explanation of the difference between “making” and “begetting”.
Human cultures do tend to agree about some moral ideas, such as murder of one's own people, cruelty (except against enemies), rape, and other violent actions which force one person's will upon another. The fact that there is agreement seems to indicate a common source of moral conscience, a standard to which all humans attempt to adhere. C.S. Lewis called this idea the "Moral Law" or a natural law of morality [1], an idea similar to Immanuel Kant's "Law of Nature" idea. Kant grounds his concept in an a priori purely practical human reason, which Lewis identifies in the imago Dei within human nature. Kant's categorical imperative insists that morality is based on valid impersonal principles, in the intrinsic worth of right itself, upon
C. S. Lewis, a well-known author and apologist, is best known by people of all
However, something worth noting before delving into the argument of this essay, is the background of C.S Lewis. Although this is not a research essay, his personal religion does hold some relevance to the context of this essay. Despite some struggles with his belief in religion at an early age, by the time he was late into his adult years, C.S Lewis was a definite Christian. Not only was this his personal religion, but also very publicly so. He wrote novels explicitly outlining his Christian views and gave several
Matthew Lewis’s The Monk, published in 1796, depicts the Catholic Church in Madrid as the victim of religious perversion caused by the pride and lust of its leaders. The events of the novel, including the monk Ambrosio’s surrender to temptation, leading to the rape and murder of innocent Antonia, as well as Agnes’s imprisonment by the vain Prioress of St. Clare’s Convent, serve to emphasize the lack of true religious devotion in the city of Madrid. However, despite the shocking events of the novel, the city had already fallen prey to temptation, and had ultimately strayed from the path of the Church long before these new atrocities took place.