Recorded at the 7th Annual Mockingbird Conference in New York City, which took place at St. George’s Episcopal Church, April 3-5, 2014. Property of Mockingbird Ministries, all rights reserved (www.mbird.com).
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A highlight, if not the highlight of our recent NYC Conference had to be Francis’ talk from Saturday morning. A true must-watch for anyone interested in speaking/writing/talking about Christianity in a modern context, as well as (what we would like to think are) our animating principles:
On Not Being C.S. Lewis ~ Francis Spufford from Mockingbird on Vimeo.
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5 responses to “On Not Being C.S. Lewis – Francis Spufford”
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This is a fantastic talk! I always found C.S.Lewis, as a Christian apologist, to be a little boring and primarily good for making Christians feel better about being Christians. It made me want to stretch out and take a nap, knowing that there must be a logical explanation out there for every conceivable objection to my Christian faith. (On the other hand, years ago I recall reading some of his scholarly writing on the literature of the late Middle Ages and it was amazing and extremely helpful.) What is remarkable to me is that as dead as Lewis’ apologetic writing is to current ears, the works of St. Paul continue to resonate in incredibly fascinating ways with the likes of Slavoj Zizek.
I know many thoughtful people who find the apologetic writing of CS Lewis anything but “boring” or “dead.” For some of us, it was nothing short of a miracle – a way back into a faith we’d long ago abandoned and didn’t even know we missed. (Maybe that only works for “regular” people who aren’t theologians?) Having said that, I thoroughly enjoyed this talk – especially when Spufford read from his own work, and was so clearly moved. I will be ordering his book, for sure. Thank you for sharing.
Clearly, God moves in many different ways for different people at various times and places. I am glad Lewis was such a help to you, MargaretE.
He’s been a help to many, I think. For some of us non-theologians who are nevertheless readers and thinkers – who, in fact, read and thought ourselves OUT of any sort of religious belief – Lewis can hit a certain sweet spot. He’s an entryway. Reading Lewis gave me permission to consider things I thought I’d never consider again. It was the right voice at the right time. I can definitely see how he might be boring to a learned theologian.
[…] Spufford is not C.S. Lewis — he told us so himself at our 2014 New York Conference. If Lewis is the great apologist for the reasonableness of […]