“Celebrity Blogger” and Advocate for C.S. Lewis

Readers of Laughing Water will recall an enthusiastic post from last month about Lent Madness 2011, a kind of tournament with a 32-saint bracket. What you may not know, however, is that the organizer of “The Saintly Smackdown” invited four celebrity bloggers, which surprisingly included me, each to argue for one of four final candidates in this year’s quest for the Golden Halo. (I was tempted to describe it as the coveted Golden Halo, but that would obviously be sinful.)

The saints who remain on their marble pedestals are:  Perpetua, Clare, Thomas Becket, and C.S. Lewis. As with the previous rounds, people have an opportunity to read about them before voting for one. The polls will remain open until noon EDT/11:00 a.m. CDT tomorrow, which is Maundy Thursday, for both semi-final matchups: Lewis vs. Clare and Becket vs. Perpetua. The championship between the two saints that persevere will begin immediately thereafter.

I was asked to be an advocate for C.S. Lewis and, since this is also meant to include some humor, offer a bit of trash talk about the others. So here goes.

Three reasons to vote for C.S. Lewis (1898-1963):

• Lewis engaged others in the marketplace of ideas, like Paul in conversation with philosophers in the Areopagus of Athens (Acts 17). Lewis was well-educated at Oxford University, where he also taught, and came to Christian faith as an adult. He knew, therefore, how to address various audiences from those hostile to Christianity to those struggling to follow Jesus. Our churches could really use a 21st-century version of Lewis to do the same today.

• Lewis nurtured the imagination of children and famously corresponded with his young fans, taking seriously the invitation to allow the little ones to come to Jesus for a blessing (Matthew 19). The Chronicles of Narnia, a series of seven fantasy novels by Lewis that contain Christian themes, has become a classic of children’s literature. In a time when overly aggressive parenting is robbing kids of their childhood, we need the example of Lewis to stop the madness.

• Lewis married Joy Gresham late in life and raised her two sons after her death. The cancer that took her life caused Lewis to wrestle with the problem of suffering and tested his faith. So he knew the harsh realities of walking through the valley of the shadow of death (Psalm 23). This chapter of the Oxford don’s life was depicted in the 1993 film Shadowlands, starring Anthony Hopkins. Those who saw it and refuse to admit that they left the theater crying like a baby aren’t being honest with themselves.

As for the other so-called saintly contenders, consider the following:

• Clare and her followers slept on piles of twigs. That’s right, twigs. Gathering twigs over and over again obviously led to our current problems with deforestation and the despoiling of the environment. For the love of God’s creation, don’t vote for her!

• Becket demanded the use of separate ecclesiastical courts for clergy trials, which is not unlike the indefensible policies of too many bishops-in-the-news recently. And the excommunication scene in the 1964 film Becket is only cool in a creepy Darth Vader kind of way.

• Perpetua was arrested, placed in a dungeon, and had a vision about a golden ladder guarded by a dragon. I think this gives us a clue as to the true reason she got into trouble with the law. Can anyone say, “Puff, the Magic Dragon?” Just say, “No!”

You can read about Lewis and Clare and also vote for Lewis here!