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The Great Divorce CS Lewis 9790007672386 Books

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The Great Divorce CS Lewis 9790007672386 Books

This edition was edited by "Susan Brawtley" (no presence on the internet) by Brawtley Press (no website). No effort what-so-ever has been made to format the book according to any sensible rules of language. Sometimes the letters are arranged vertically, rather than horizontally (see image). It is a travesty to so mistreat Mr. Lewis!! The back cover is a cut and paste job from Wikipedia.


Tags : The Great Divorce [C.S. Lewis] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. A stunning new edition of this timeless allegory of heaven and hell, repackaged and rebranded as part of the C.S. Lewis Signature Classics range. C.S. Lewis's dazzling allegory about heaven and hell and the chasm fixed between them,C.S. Lewis,The Great Divorce,Harpercollins Pub Ltd,0006280560,History - General,Religion

The Great Divorce CS Lewis 9790007672386 Books Reviews

CS Lewis brings a great passion filled fiction of heaven in this great tale. Though fiction, one may read it and get a full grasp of what Lewis meant in writing the book; the dark sides of human nature holding onto selfishness and ego, versus the nature of Christ in us that finds its full perfection when we surrender everything and all to Him alone.

I found this book captivating, it is a short read but packs some major depth and detail in it. I would definitely recommend this to any follower of Jesus looking to understand more about their flesh, other's flesh, and ultimately our full identity and role as followers of Jesus. One may find many things in common with the "ghosts" in the story, but hopefully you find more in common with the "spirits" in exalting the Lord Jesus above everything, including yourself.
This is a convicting parable about the next world, beginning with a flying bus trip.

The departure point is a huge, empty grey city that keeps spreading its borders because quarrelsome people only need to imagine a new house, and it's theirs. Some folk are happy to stay there, since they don't recognise it as a type of hell.

For those who do jump on the bus, their choice to settle in heaven depends on their willingness to give up whatever holds the greatest grip on their hearts. It's really all about our idols, and the passengers are filled with all sorts of attitudes and hang-ups which they're loath to relinquish. There's always something they insist on clutching tight, even at the price of misery.

There's 'Ikey' the businessman, who's determined to take plunder from the heavenly realm back down to the grey city, where he thinks he'll make a killing. He only manages to lift one tiny fallen apple through the sheer force of his will.

There's a pathetic society woman whose earthly finery, which she was so proud of, appeared like rags in heaven. She was devastated, because she felt it was her whole identity, which she'd devoted her life to maintaining.

There's a learned man who believes that the grey hell city could really be heaven, for its 'continual hope of morning and field for indefinite progress.' He's an ex-bishop who has written a book. In fact, libraries on earth turn out to be some of the most haunted places, filled with the ghosts of authors who keep wondering if people are still reading their books.

The plight of creative people in this story is interesting. One artist was stressed because he saw no need to paint anymore, since everything was so annoyingly perfect. It's Lewis' warning to creative folk of the trap of being sucked in to pay more attention to their own work and reputation, rather than what it's all about. 'Every poet, musician and artist, but for grace, is drawn away from love of the thing he tells to the love of telling.' Wow, I guess our world does have a way of honouring the conduit, until it's hard for them to stay humble.

One fascinating person in the new land is Sarah Smith of Golders Green, a lady of 'unbearable beauty and grace' with a procession in her honour. The narrator is anxious to learn her identity, but she turns out to be nobody he would have ever heard of. Just a humble person faithfully doing small things in her supposedly ordinary life. But people are regarded differently in heaven to how they ever were on earth. Great news for anyone who's ever felt overworked, unnoticed and under-appreciated.

The narrator, who presumably represents Lewis himself, gets to meet his hero, George MacDonald, who becomes his guide around heaven. I knew Lewis was a fanboy of MacDonald's (see my review of Phantastes) but what a tribute this is, as he tries to find words to tell him all his writing has meant to him, since his teens.

Overall, it's a great read for anyone who'd like a bite-sized, but meaty bit of C.S. Lewis, for it's short enough to read in one day. It leaves me with the impression that I would've liked being a witness when Lewis actually did meet MacDonald.

Here are some quotes.

'What can be called 'the Sulks' in children, has 100 different names in adults, such as injured merit, self-respect, tragic greatness and proper pride.'

'There are only two kinds of people. Those who say to God, "Thy will be done," and those to whom God says, "Thy will be done."'

'Joy on earth is defenceless against those who would rather be miserable. But in heaven, our light can swallow up your darkness, but your darkness can't affect our life.'
Hear me out here. I know this is a beloved book, but I just can't rate it highly. I had never read this before, but I knew it was fictional, like Screwtape Letters, with the topic being heaven and especially hell. And although this was true, but I didn’t think it was anything near as clever, clear, or helpful as Screwtape Letters. In fact, I found that it might have been quite unhelpful at times, especially concerning Christian truth. Here’s why.

I honestly admit this to people all the time my greatest struggle out of all Christian doctrines is the doctrine of everlasting torment in hell. It’s just so difficult to swallow when you really think about what it means. I have literally wept over Revelation 149-10. Now, I do believe it because Jesus so clearly taught it, and his apostles followed clearly in his footsteps. I don’t think one can seriously consider the biblical texts and walk away a Universalist (like Rob Bell has recently), or an Annihilationist (like John Stott surprisingly did at the end of the his life). I am not tempted toward Universalism, but I see the appeal of Annihilationism. But once again, the Bible simply will not have it. Even Stott’s arguments fall flat. Eternal, conscious torment is the biblical doctrine.

I say all that because that makes me approach this book with an even bigger hesitancy. I think the doctrine of hell is so serious and frightening. Again, what the Bible teaches is quite clear and solemn. And so, I think that the human mind is understandably prone to try to minimize what Jesus and his apostles taught. And I think that Lewis in this book did that a bit.

Now, Lewis wasn’t teaching Universalism or Annihilationism, but I do think his description of hell was less like Jesus’ or his apostles’. For example, after reading this book, I don’t know how you can understand Lewis’ hell as a place of ‘weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ I don’t see how you can square Lewis’ picture of hell being like a weary town to the apostle John’s description of it being a place where “the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever, and they have no rest, day or night.”

I recognize that Lewis made it very clear that his book was an analogy, even a dream as he made clear at the end of his book. But still, I think he romanticized hell and tried to take the biblical bite and seriousness out of it. And it isn’t mainly that this is ‘wrong’ or ‘misdoctrine’, I think it is quite hurtful.

Lewis I know talks like this in his other writings. He often makes hell a place where people want to be, because they won’t accept divine love, because they are so consumed with themselves. And I actually agree with him here. We see this in the parable of the rich man and Lazarus. The man didn’t want to leave, and he never repents of his wrongs. However, what Lewis misses is the torment that they still face there. In Lewis’ description of hell, he often then makes it sound like their life is then very similar to what it was here, just with them being totally self-consumed. And I think this description isn’t as biblical. Once again, in the rich man and Lazarus parable, the rich man didn’t want to leave, and he wasn’t repentant, yes, *and* he also was in pain and suffering. He wanted at any cost to tell his relatives to not come to the same place. Lewis misses this last point in his description of hell usually.

That all being said, I do think when Lewis talked about heaven, he was fascinating and helpful as he usually is. His ideas of joy, solidity, and brightness all were intriguing. His God-centered emphasis on heaven was spot on. And his picturing of humanity glorified was beautiful. It is for these that this book is a 3 or even 4 star.

But in the end, the book isn’t helpful overall because of his blunting of hell. And this can be very detrimental to the faith of Christians. His insights about human self-centeredness and idolatry were great. But I think he pictures hell way too lightly. It simply can’t square with the biblical teaching. And I think his view of hell—even with it being just an analogy and dream—can lead one away from the weeping and prayerfulness that should occur when one considers the true, biblical teaching of eternal conscious torment.

To sum it all up, Lewis’ picture of hell makes you think, “Wow. People would be much happier and glorious in heaven, and it doesn’t sound fun to live in hell. But hell doesn’t sound so so bad as many Christian have said in the past. It sounds so self-focused, and without deep joy, but it isn’t *that* terrifying.” While on the other hand, the biblical doctrine of hell and eternal, conscious torment makes you think, “Wow. People would be much happier and glorious in heaven, and it sounds terrifying to be in hell forever. Eternal, conscious torment, like in Revelation 149-10, sounds so awful I can hardly bear it. But since it is true, I will weep, I will pray. I want no one to go there.” For this distinction, it is hard for me to recommend Lewis’ book or any of his views on hell. He is clever on the selfishness and idolatry of man, but he blunts the tragic and terrifying truth of hell.
To agree with Sandy, the content is not the problem, it is the edition. There are numerous typos and glaring typesetting problems. I mean ridiculous things, like when the print is compressed into a single column of characters. Find a different edition, DO NOT BUY THIS ONE. I am frankly amazed that allows it to be sold.
This edition was edited by "Susan Brawtley" (no presence on the internet) by Brawtley Press (no website). No effort what-so-ever has been made to format the book according to any sensible rules of language. Sometimes the letters are arranged vertically, rather than horizontally (see image). It is a travesty to so mistreat Mr. Lewis!! The back cover is a cut and paste job from Wikipedia.