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Surprised by Joy

Comprising most of Lewis' writings.
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Surprised by Joy

Postby Lori » September 18th, 2007, 5:42 pm

Looking for some insight on Surprised by Joy..from others who've read most of Lewis's other works. Seems like it's more of an autobiography than anything else. I'm about half way through, and sorry to say but I'm a little disappointed. Any other opinions?
"Human will becomes truly creative and truly our own when it is wholly God's, and this is one of the many senses in which he that loses his soul shall find it."
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Postby Sven » September 18th, 2007, 7:54 pm

Well, it is an autobiography, or actually, a memoir, focusing primarily on his spiritual life. As Lewis says in the beginning of it, "This book is written partly in answer to requests that I would tell how I passed from Atheism to Christianity and partly to correct one or two false opinions that seem to have got about."
Rat! he found breath to whisper, shaking. Are you afraid?
Afraid? murmured the Rat, his eyes shining with unutterable love.
Afraid! Of Him? O, never, never! And yet -- and yet -- O, Mole, I am afraid!
Then the two animals, crouching to the earth, bowed their heads and did worship.
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Postby Larry W. » September 18th, 2007, 11:21 pm

I loved reading Surprised by Joy. It's a very personal account of Lewis' conversion. By all means read and reread it. In some ways it is more enjoyable than his other book Mere Christianity because it is more like a personal journey than a debate.

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Postby Leslie » September 19th, 2007, 5:00 pm

What do you find disappointing about it, Lori?
"What are you laughing at?"
"At myself. My little puny self," said Phillipa.
--Rumer Godden, In This House of Brede
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Postby Lori » September 20th, 2007, 8:10 pm

I guess it's more of a story; not as though-provoking or interesting as his other works filled with analogies and metaphors regarding just about anything.
"Human will becomes truly creative and truly our own when it is wholly God's, and this is one of the many senses in which he that loses his soul shall find it."
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Postby rusmeister » September 21st, 2007, 3:55 am

"Eh? Two views? There are a dozen views about everything until you know the answer. Then there's never more than one."
Bill "The Blizzard" Hingest - That Hideous Strength
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Postby Karen » September 21st, 2007, 11:48 am

I have always imagined that paradise will be a kind of library. -- Jorge Luis Borges
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Postby Lori » September 21st, 2007, 6:15 pm

"Human will becomes truly creative and truly our own when it is wholly God's, and this is one of the many senses in which he that loses his soul shall find it."
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Postby Guest » September 21st, 2007, 8:27 pm

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Postby Leslie » September 21st, 2007, 11:39 pm

When I first read SbJ, I was deeply touched by Lewis' description of his experiences of joy, for I had had similiar experiences. In no other way was my life like his, and yet we had a kind of kinship through joy (and even some of the same "triggers" of joy). At that time, I was relatively young in Christian life, but old enough in years to appreciate Lewis' adult conversion. And now, over twenty years later, I still find it compelling reading.
"What are you laughing at?"
"At myself. My little puny self," said Phillipa.
--Rumer Godden, In This House of Brede
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Surprised By Joy

Postby Tuke » September 22nd, 2007, 12:46 am

Last edited by Tuke on September 22nd, 2007, 4:43 pm, edited 1 time in total.
"The 'great golden chain of Concord' has united the whole of Edmund Spenser's world.... Nothing is repressed; nothing is insubordinate. To read him is to grow in mental health." The Allegory Of Love (Faerie Queene)

2 Corinthians IV.17 The Weight of Glory
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Postby Guest » September 22nd, 2007, 2:58 am

Do you think this scenario ever played itself out at the Kilns?

::Jack enters the room with a book in hand.

Joy leaps out from behind the sofa and shouts, "Boo!"

Jack's book flys into the air, his heart racing.

"Did I surprise you?" asks Joy.

"Yes dear," says Jack. "Once again you have made a witty play on words from the title of my autobiography."::

- Dan -
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Postby A#minor » September 22nd, 2007, 2:00 pm

"My brain and this world don't fit each other, and there's an end of it!" - G.K. Chesterton
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Postby Leslie » September 22nd, 2007, 2:20 pm

"What are you laughing at?"
"At myself. My little puny self," said Phillipa.
--Rumer Godden, In This House of Brede
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Postby Lori » September 22nd, 2007, 10:22 pm

"Human will becomes truly creative and truly our own when it is wholly God's, and this is one of the many senses in which he that loses his soul shall find it."
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