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Lewis on Grace

The man. The myth.

Lewis on Grace

Postby postodave » July 26th, 2010, 5:56 pm

I have been reading Philip Yancy's 'What's so Amazing about Grace?' It tells a story along the following lines:
During a conference on comparative religions, C.S.Lewis walked into a protracted debate on what, if any, belief was unique to the Christian faith. The assembled experts had gradually eliminated various possibilities. Lewis who was passing came in to find out what all the noise was about. On hearing the topic for debate C.S.Lewis said, "Oh that's easy. It's grace."
Yancy gives a reference for this but the whole thing feels apocryphal to me. What was Lewis doing at this conference? Was he invited? If not how did he come to be strolling past? Did people even hold conferences on comparative religion in Lewis's day?
What do people reckon? Did this really happen?
So I drew my sword and got ready
But the lamb ran away with the crown
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Re: Lewis on Grace

Postby chrimarnz » July 28th, 2010, 7:43 am

Sounds a bit odd for Lewis and I doubt he would mention this sort of event in his own writing as it would appear self-congratulatory. The original publication of this recollection must surely have referenced an eyewitness testimony from a friend or colleague in attendance (if indeed the incident happened at all).

Yancey cites Scott Hoezee, The Riddle of Grace. GrandRapids: Eerdmans, 1996, pg 42 as his source. I tried finding Hoezee's source by looking on Google Books but it would not let me view page 42. It looked like Hoezee used footnotes rather than endnotes therefore his reference should be on p.42. Maybe somebody has a copy of "The Riddle of Grace" and can name Hoezee's reference?
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Re: Lewis on Grace and Peter Kreeft

Postby postodave » July 28th, 2010, 5:01 pm

So I drew my sword and got ready
But the lamb ran away with the crown
postodave
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Re: Lewis on Grace

Postby anastasia » July 28th, 2010, 5:52 pm

I saw this interview of Douglas Gresham with Max McLean a couple weeks ago and remembered Mr. Gresham mentioning this exact incident...

http://video.christianpost.com/20100617 ... f-cs-lewis

The interview is 25 minutes long, Mr. Gresham describes this occasion around minute 23. Yancy describes it incorrectly - Nice to hear it straight from Mr. Gresham. The whole interview is very enjoyable! Enjoy : -)
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Re: Lewis on Grace

Postby postodave » July 29th, 2010, 5:36 pm

Well that version is much more plausible; it took place during an impromptu discussion in a common room at Oxford. It shows how a story can develop when it gets passed on. Thanks.
So I drew my sword and got ready
But the lamb ran away with the crown
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Re: Lewis on Grace

Postby anastasia » July 29th, 2010, 11:20 pm

Yep, sure thing!
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Re: Lewis on Grace

Postby agingjb » July 30th, 2010, 8:10 am

And is grace, in fact, unique to the Christian faith?
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Re: Lewis on Grace

Postby postodave » July 30th, 2010, 4:06 pm

So I drew my sword and got ready
But the lamb ran away with the crown
postodave
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Posts: 848
Joined: Oct 2004

Re: Lewis on Grace

Postby agingjb » July 31st, 2010, 7:34 am

I wouldn't know enough about the precise meaning of grace in Christian traditions, let alone its parallels in other faiths, to comment. I did just wonder if CSL's comment implied more than that Christianity was unique because he believed it to be true, and therefore that its concept of grace wasn't replicable.
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Re: Lewis on Grace

Postby Fairfax » August 1st, 2010, 2:26 am

Just exactly what is "grace"? I hear that word a lot, but what exactly does it mean? In Chrisianity, we are supposed to be "saved by grace." Often, when used by those evangelizing that prhase is followed by "not works." Which often makes it sound pitifully easy to get into heaven. When it is talked about the amazing grace of Christ, it is meant that the only requirment for salvation is "believing"--though it is open to interpretation what it means to "beleive." If you're an eternal securist (and most in my church are), you never have to do any thing else, you don't even have to obey God's law. If you think you have to, you'll be accused of "legalism" or beleiving in a "works salvation".

I had an argument with my pastor last SUnday. He beleives that infants who die will automatically go to hell precisely becuase they are too young to accept Christ. others in the class did not agree. they argued that infants will be saved "by God's grace" for the same reason. If we are saved only through Jesus, that could actually happen in a number of ways. Christ could let us into heaven just because he wants to, or He might require us (at those capable of accepting him) to beleive in him first. Or He might require works as well. In all cases we are saved through Him. Actually, the teachings of Christ are full of the importance of helping the less fortunate, which most of modern christianity tends to ignore or sweep under the carpet when talking about "God's grace."
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Re: Lewis on Grace

Postby maralewisfan » August 1st, 2010, 7:28 pm

fairfax,
I pulled this information from the FAQ section of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod (LCMS) website. I thought it answered the question well. I don't know if you have read Bonhoefer...

Cheap Grace/Costly Grace

Q. Please comment on cheap grace/costly grace as per Dietrich Bonhoefer's book "Cost of Discipleship."

A. First, allow me to state the Biblical concept of grace. The saving grace of God is His undeserved, unearned favor given freely out of great love in Christ to those who have sinned against Him, who deserve death for their sins, who while still His enemies (Rom. 5) received His grace and were saved. It is God who bestows grace on us. It does not have its origin in us, nor can we demand it.

Cheap grace, according to Dietrich Bonhoefer, is the failure to take seriously, in faith and in the Christian life of discipleship, the depth of human sinfulness and what it cost God to redeem human beings. In the first chapter of his Cost of Discipleship, Bonhoefer summarizes what he means by the concept by stating the following:

"Cheap grace," writes Bonhoefer, "means the justification of sin without the justification of the sinner. Grace alone does everything, they say, and so everything can remain as it was before....Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, communion without confession, absolution without personal confession. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate.

"Costly grace is the hidden treasure in the field; for the sake of it a man will gladly go and sell all that he has....Such grace is costly because it calls us to follow, and it is grace because if calls us to follow Jesus Christ. It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life. It is costly because it condemns sin, and grace because it justifies the sinner. Above all, it is costly because it cost God the life of His Son: 'ye were bought with a price', and what has cost God much cannot be cheap for us. Above all, it is grace because God did not reckon His Son too dear a price to pay for our life, but delivered Him up for us, Costly grace is the Incarnation of God."
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Re: Lewis on Grace

Postby postodave » August 8th, 2010, 3:41 pm

So I drew my sword and got ready
But the lamb ran away with the crown
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