Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis
Week 7: Book II, Chapter 1 — The Rival Conceptions of God
Read Book II, Chapter 1 of Mere Christianity ('The Rival Conceptions of God')
Previewing Week 7 of Mere Christianity
Read 3 of 6 discussion questions below. Unlock the complete 29-week guide when you’re ready.
Lewis begins Book II by charting the landscape of belief — and makes a move that surprises many readers by taking a position that will offend both the religious and the irreligious.
Discussion Questions
6 questions1.Lewis opens Book II by distinguishing between Pantheism (God is everything, or the sum of reality) and Theism (God made the world and is distinct from it). What are the practical differences between these two views for how we think about good and evil?
2.Lewis introduces his famous argument from atheism: as an atheist, he had felt the universe was 'unjust' — but this very sense of injustice presupposes a standard of justice that transcends the universe. How does his own story illustrate the self-defeating nature of certain kinds of atheism?
a.Have you ever argued that 'the world is unfair' while simultaneously claiming there is no objective standard of fairness? How does Lewis's point land?
b.What does Lewis say he was actually doing when he called the universe cruel — and why did this trouble him?
3.Lewis concedes that the problem of evil is one of the strongest arguments against the existence of God — but then turns it: evil only makes sense as a problem if there is a standard of Good against which we measure it. Do you find this reversal convincing?