Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis
Week 16: Book III, Chapter 5 — Sexual Morality
Read Book III, Chapter 5 of Mere Christianity ('Sexual Morality').
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Lewis tackles the subject modern culture most fiercely resists — and his argument is both more nuanced and more demanding than either its critics or its defenders often admit.
Discussion Questions
6 questions1.Lewis uses the analogy of an audience that goes wild watching a strip-tease act with food to introduce his argument about the state of sexual appetite in modern culture. What is he suggesting about the relationship between the appetite and the culture that feeds it?
2.He distinguishes between the Christian standard for sexuality (chastity) and the idea that sex itself is shameful or wrong — a distinction he says Christianity has never held. Why is this distinction important, and how does it reframe chastity as a positive rather than negative virtue?
a.How has 'sex-negative' religion (treating sex as inherently dirty) caused damage you have seen?
b.How has 'sex-positive' permissiveness (treating desire as its own justification) caused damage you have seen?
3.Lewis says that chastity is the most unpopular of the Christian virtues. He does not soften the standard, but he does say that those who fail should pick themselves up and try again — and that a long series of failures should not lead to despair. How do grace and standard coexist in Lewis's account?
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