Christian Truths in the Screwtape Lettters by C.S. Lewis Essay

These pages describe how a novice demon named Wormwood was given the huge task of securing the damnation of a young man identified as the patient. In addition, a senior demon named Screwtape, the uncle of Wormwood, was in charge of coaching his young inexperienced nephew. After reading the first few pages in this book, I was reminded of personal stories I heard regarding Adolph Hitler. When I was younger in History class, I heard how Hitler attempted to wipe out the Jews, God's chosen people. I remember hearing someone say, “There's a special place in hell for him”. While reading the pages in the Screwtape Letters, I understand why this was said. I have concluded that this would mean that there are different degrees to hell. Since it's

“The Screwtape Letters” written by C.S. Lewis and first published in 1942 formed a new perspective in which christians could recognize the evil in temptation easier. Displaying the demon’s side of the story and adding a bit of humor in the process. C.S. Lewis was playing with the idea of how us humans are being tempted daily and we don’t even notice it. Yet he still adds an interesting way to express the story by making it look like his uncle “Screwtape” is attempting to help his nephew “Wormwood” learn to take someone's soul by tempting them into hell. His so called “patient” is his test subject as he attacks his christian mindset and even uses it against him. The demon uses friends, families and knowledge against the patient in order to take

Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis, is an interesting novel containing the interaction between a devil named Screwtape and his young nephew Wormwood. The book is comprised of letters corresponding between the two devils. Screwtape is a senior devil and is tasked as a mentor to his less experienced nephew. Screwtape instructs Wormwood on how to tempt a new Christian, or "patient". He suggest many different intricate ways of using human emotions, thoughts, and weaknesses to tempt their faith, and keep them from the kingdom of heaven. The ultimate goal to attain humans for their master in hell. Wormwood is at first encouraged by his uncle Screwtape, but is later criticized because he can't control his patient, and fails at keeping him from church.

C. S. Lewis, one of the greatest spiritual writers the world has known, wrote the Screwtape Letters to mock the evil works of the devil and give us an understanding of spiritual warfare that is constantly going on all around us. Many people refuse to believe their lives are being interfered with by spiritual forces, but it is not something that should be ignored. Lewis saw the importance in recognizing spiritual warfare in order to learn how to fight it, and that is one of his inspirations for writing this book. Although we aren’t sure how demons attempt to lead us away from God, Lewis gives a detailed account on what he believes is a way they could go about it.

The Screwtape Letters is an inverted approach to Christianity that parallels the ideals in Ignatian spirituality. In a discussion of hell as a means of business, an Uncle, Screwtape, writes letters of psychological insight for his nephew, Wormwood, to coax his subject into turning towards Hell. Though C.S. Lewis writes from the perspective of demons, this organically highlights the truths of Christianity. Screwtape pushes Wormwood to have the patient discover evil in every dimension of his life as the patient begins to become a follower of Christianity. To note, the Christian God is labeled as the “Enemy” whereas the Devil is labeled as “Our Father Below”. In order to turn the subject away

In the book The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis, one of the major themes is war. War is not just a conflict between one country and another; it is what people make out of it, and how people respond to it. In the book, The Screwtape Letters, it’s not talking about war against another country, the theme war is between heaven and hell. The book gives the reader a spiritual side of reality. C.S. Lewis gives us understandings into how the powers of evil work to trap and destroy humans who want to follow Christ. For Lewis, it is not an “obligation that we must be delivered from demons that possess and control us”; it is that we are constantly influenced and manipulated by them. The demons are finding new ways to corrupt and pollute, trying to make

The Screwtape letters is another great work of Lewis where he uses imagination to explain the truth upside down through letters between two devils. It is like reverse psychology in a way for example if something is good in Screwtape then it is bad in reality or if something is a setback it is actually a victory in struggles against evil ( Brown 177). Lewis then talked about his idea of the 'devil'; he does not believe the devil is the opposite force against God, rather he says it is angels that have become bad. He goes on to explain that these demonic representations are just symbolic and these symbols of concrete reality are used in the Screwtape letters (Brown 178). The first letter is basically saying that Wormwood (the younger devil) cannot use reading and

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.

In the book The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis, Uncle Screwtape sends a collection of letters to Wormwood, always signing your affectionate Uncle Screwtape. Screwtape, the older demon, counsels Wormwood on how to tempt “the patient”, a human. Through the course of the letters his “Patient” becomes a Christian. When his “patient” die, the human ascends to heaven and Wormwood descends to Hell. We can all agree these demons were manipulative and harmful, but we disagree whether they are pitiable.

Mere Christianity, by C. S. Lewis, is written as set of guidelines of Christian belief. Lewis does not say there is any particular way to believe but he does make a point that the topic of religion itself is serious. As you consider whether you want to believe or not, you have to recognize how much thought it requires, and how thought provoking a process this decision is. Lewis covers Christianity in four different books within his book. In book one, Lewis discusses the Law of Nature and makes note of a tendency in humans of appealing to a standard of absolute truth in quarrels and arguments. He calls this standard the Law of Nature or the Moral Law. The Law isn't the same as the law of gravity

The Screwtape Letters is a novel that's written in an epistolary and satirical style. The novel is comprised of letters that's written from the perspective of a senior demon named Screwtape to his nephew, Wormwood, who is a less experienced demon. Screwtape is trying to mentor him through a series of letters since Wormwood is trying to guide a human toward “Our Father Below” from "the Enemy”. According to The New Yorker, “For believers, the letters are theology in reverse, teaching the love of God through the wiles of the Devil, but for all readers, regardless of belief, the letters frame human experience as a familiar sequence of trials…..” Justice Scalia, , also said “that’s a great book. It really is, just as a study of human nature”. Love is an important theme in “The Screwtape Letters”. Screwtape fails to fully comprehend God’s love for man, which he understands as real but irrational. C.S. Lewis mentions that love is vital for human civilization but that we can’t let love replace other human qualities. In the story, Lewis put forth the idea through the protagonist in the story, Screwtape, that human love is selfish and that divine love is faithful. Lewis implies that we shouldn’t fully rely on as well as love imperfect things. He says that he wants people to lessen their love with other emotions and ethics such as respect and loyalty. He

In The Screwtape Letters, the topic of love appears continuously throughout the text. In different ways, it is seen that the theme of love is used. Love is commonly understood as a deep feeling for another but C.S describes God’s love as so much more. God’s love is unchanging and no matter what wrong is committed, he will continue to love. Whether it is seen in the patients love of Christ, his love of his mother, or his love for his romantic partner, they all point to one prominent thing, God. Screwtape and Wormwood continuously fight throughout the book to strip the patient of the things that he loves in his life to ultimately lead him away from the true source of love, which they call the enemy, Christ.

“The world, that understandable and lawful world, was slipping away. Once there was this and that; and now- and the ship had gone.” Pg 91

Through the past four months, I have learned a lot by reading The Screwtape Letters and writing many reflective essays. When I started to read the book, I saw it only as a school assignment that I needed to complete to make sure I kept my grades up. However, after the first couple of essays, I actually started to get interested in the book and what it had to say. Before this book, I thought I knew almost all I needed to know about sins and what was a sin and what was not. I quickly found out that I was wrong and I had a lot to learn about sin and temptation by the Devil. By reading this book, I really learned more about my spiritual life and areas of life I need to take a deeper look at and make some changes. I would have never known I needed to change certain parts of my life had I not read this book. It is scary to think if I had not read this book, I could be committing a lot of sins I never knew about. For this reflection, I chose the four chapters that I thought I could best relater to and see in my everyday life. I chose chapters one through four. My mom also read these chapters, and we discussed how each of us

Question 2: The part Screwtape cannot understand is that God desires for us to be completely united with Him while maintaining our free will. He even admits that this is true and not “propaganda.” Why does God’s desire confuse Screwtape so much? The answer to Screwtape’s confusion lies within the differences between God’s plan and the Devil’s version of the plan.