Dear friends:
C.S. Lewis was an Oxford don of English Literature, theologian, author and thoughtful Christian. Among his most enjoyable works is The Screwtape Letters in which a senior devil instructs a junior devil in the fine art of interrupting lives (people he calls “patients”) bent toward faithful Christian discipleship.
This is one of my favorites:
“Consider whether we should make the patient an extreme patriot or an extreme pacifist. All extremes…are to be encouraged. Not always, of course, but at this period. Some ages are lukewarm and complacent, and then it is our business to soothe them fast asleep. Other ages such as the present one are unbalanced and prone to faction, and it is our business to inflame them.” The Screwtape Letters, C.S. Lewis
It’s true, isn’t it? Inflamed extremism is a source of great conflict, and the tools to fan the flames — social media, cable news, and talk radio — have been refined toward great effect.
And yet, this week’s scripture passage still stands, and it offers a great challenge. We’ll explore it in depth this weekend as we continue our sermon series “The Space Between Us.” I trust you will find it helpful and hopeful.
Join us, and invite a friend.
