What was it like to know C.S. Lewis as a friend? A stepfather? A benefactor? Meet with those who knew him best as family and friends of Jack Lewis reminisce about a man of integrity, scholarship, and humor.
Gain an insider’s glimpse into formative influences on Lewis’ life. Consider how he integrated his Christian faith with work and personal pursuits. Beginning with a biography of Lewis’ life and conversion, each day’s discussion will introduce you to another of Lewis’ closest contemporaries.
If you have ever read The Lion, the witch, and the wardrobe then you know how brilliant C.S. Lewis was. Clive Staples Lewis wrote so many great works that it is hard to compare him to other authors. He wrote both fiction and great logical works to show the greatness of God and his writings did just that.
This conference features speakers that have studied his work as well as a few who knew the man. They delve into his mind to talk about his love for God and his desire to proclaim God’s grandeur.
Session 1: Walter Hooper (Literary Adviser)
Session 2: Bruce Edwards (Editor of: C.S. Lewis, his life, work, and ministry)
Session 3:Walter Hooper (Literary Adviser)
Session 4: James Como (Author of Remembering C.S. Lewis)
The audio comes from the “C. S. Lewis: The Man and His Work” Conference held at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary last October.
Thanks to Mark Sommer from Hollywood Jesus for the information about the source of the audio.
Last month, we informed NarniaFans that CS Lewis’ secretary, Walter Hooper, would be auctioning off signed first edition copies of three of the Narnian Chronicles. We are delighted to report that the books were able to help raise £34,000.
The three Narnian books auctioned were The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, The Horse and His Boy, and The Last Battle . It was expected that each of the books would only take in £3,000. The Oxford Daily Mail reports that, ” The Voyage of the Dawn Treader raised £10,625; The Horse and his Boy £10,000; and The Last Battle raised £9,375.
The proceeds from the sale of this auction went to the renovation of the Oxford Oratory Church of St Aloysius. Eight other books by CS Lewis were auctioned off as well.
A former secretary of Oxford author CS Lewis is giving away signed first editions of the author’s Narnia books to raise money to renovate a city church.
The Oxford Oratory Church of St Aloysius, in Woodstock Road, is set to receive the windfall thanks to the generosity of Walter Hooper.
The church is launching a £3m appeal to carry out renovation work and build a new chapel and student accommodation.
Mr Hooper, 77, who lives in North Oxford, briefly worked as CS Lewis’s private secretary in 1963, shortly before the author’s death.
After Lewis’s death, Mr Hooper devoted himself to The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe author’s memory and co-wrote the author’s biography, and edited his letters and diaries.
He said: “I have kept these books close to me all these years but when this appeal came up, I wanted to do something.
“In a way it will be a wrench to part with the books but in another way I’m glad, because they might do some good.
“CS Lewis gave away two thirds of his income and it was wonderfully liberating to see a man who did not seem to amass wealth at all – he really was a good man.”
Mr Hooper will retain a copy of Lewis’s poetry volume Spirits in Bondage, because he still finds inspiration from the verses.
Mr Hooper has donated 11 CS Lewis titles, including three signed first editions – The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader, The Horse And His Boy and The Last Battle.
All 11 books are estimated to sell for up to £3,000 each at auction in London next month, with the hammer price boosted by the release today of the movie version of Prince Caspian. The books will be auctioned by Sotheby’s in London on July 17.
This year marks the 110th anniversary of Lewis’s birth in Belfast on November 29, 1898.
Philip Berrington, books specialist for Sotheby’s, said: “With the film of Prince Caspian coming out, the timing for this auction couldn’t be better. The connection between Walter Hooper and CS Lewis makes these books very collectable.”
The Oxford Oratory was built in 1875. Redecoration will restore marble, stonework and stencilling of the original Victorian design.
A smaller chapel for Masses, pilgrimage groups and baptisms will be added, together with a small garden.
by Lauren Crane
In the months before he died, British author and Christian apologist C.S. Lewis predicted his literature largely would be forgotten by the beginning of the 21st century.
Forty-four years after his death, the presence of approximately 270 people at a conference honoring “C.S. Lewis: The Man and His Work, a 21st Century Legacy” spoke of his continuing impact upon scholars and avid readers. The Oct. 26-27 conference at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, N.C., combined four plenary sessions with featured speakers as well as the presentation of about 40 papers on different topics relating to Lewis’ works.
The conference was the first major event sponsored by Southeastern’s L. Russ Bush Center for Faith and Culture, named for the well-known Southern Baptist apologist and longtime dean at Southeastern.
The first and third plenary session addresses were given by Walter Hooper, a trustee and literary adviser to the C.S. Lewis estate for the last 44 years, during which time he has edited approximately 30 books of Lewis’ materials. During the last year of Lewis’ life, Hooper also worked as personal secretary to Lewis, a relationship which began as an admiration for Lewis and his works.
Hooper recounted that after Lewis’ death in 1963 there was much confusion over what to do with his literary estate. The responsibility had largely fallen to the estate’s lawyers, and Hooper said they were willing to give over that responsibility to him, honoring Lewis’ request.
Noting the “rational oppositions” with Lewis, or “Jack” as he called him, Hooper said one discussion regarded whether Lewis’ works would continue to be well-known after his death. Lewis believed they would die out, as most authors’ works do, while Hooper promised to keep them in print.
“I have waited more than 40 years to tell the world I won an argument with C.S. Lewis. He was afraid his books would stop selling,” Hooper said. “When I see what has happened with his writings, I think we have reason to be joyful.
“I don’t think he had any opinion of himself or his writings,” Hooper said. “He more than once said to me, ‘You think too highly of my books.’”
In fact, Hooper said the presence of so many people gathered to honor Lewis and his works is a testament to the timelessness of Lewis’ writings and shows that others think “highly of his books” as well.
Hooper said Lewis’ close friend, J.R.R Tolkien, once said, “Jack Lewis is the only friend I have that has published more after his death than before.”
C.S. Lewis Expert to Talk: C.S. Lewis expert Walter Hooper will give two public lectures in Central Texas next week and will receive an honorary doctorate from Concordia University in Austin. Hooper, once the private secretary to the beloved Christian writer, co-authored a biography on Lewis and wrote a guide to his work, which includes the “Chronicles of Narnia” series and “Mere Christianity.”
Hooper serves as the adviser to the Oxford C.S. Lewis Society in England and is the literary executor of the C.S. Lewis estate. He will speak at Concordia’s Beto Academic Center, 3400 Interstate 35 in Austin, Texas, at 7 p.m. Monday (3/26). For more information go to concordia.edu. At 7 p.m. Tuesday (3/27), Hooper will give a talk at Texas State University’s Centennial Hall, 601 University Drive, San Marcos, Texas. For more information, go to txstate.edu.
An appeal has been issued to find the relatives of an Ulster woman who received a letter from CS Lewis in 1944. The letter was found in a Belfast auction several years ago, but a Co Tyrone-based Lewis biographer believes it might be an entry point into a much bigger story, much like one of Lewis’ magic wardrobes.
Dr Ronnie Bresland, author of The Backward Glance: CS Lewis and Ireland, said: “Although this letter is not very significant it is every collector’s dream to find a collectable letter in an old book. “It would be interesting to find the relatives of the addressee today as you never know what further stories would be unearthed.” The letter was found in an old copy of the CS Lewis book The Screwtape Letters and was signed by a Jean Walker on May 22, 1944. CS Lewis addressed the letter to Miss Walker and, as the book was found in a Belfast auction, the owner thinks she probably lived in greater Belfast.
Oxford-based Mr Walter Hooper is editing Volume III of the Collected Letters of CS Lewis and promised to include it in the supplement. He said: “I can verify that the letter is genuine, it was typed by the author’s brother, WH Lewis, and signed by CS Lewis.”
London book collectors Maggs Brothers estimated it could fetch between £750 and £800 at auction. A spokeswoman said: “The fact that the letter is typed makes it less valuable than if it had been entirely in his hand, however, he does mention his work, which is of interest to collectors.” Anyone who thinks they may know a CS Lewis fan called Miss Jean Walker who lived in greater Belfast in 1944 is asked to contact the News Letter on 90 680 189 or email p.bradfield@newsletter.co.uk
C.S. Lewis may have died 40 years ago, but his voice still resonates today.
And if you listen closely, you’ll hear it March 12-14 at the Upland campus of Taylor University during its Fourth Frances White Ewbank Colloquium on C.S. Lewis and Friends. It will bring together a prestigious group of scholars, international experts and devotees of the writings of C.S. Lewis.
Sponsored by the C.S. Lewis And Friends Committee, this event will present a side of Lewis seldom seen by the general public. Walter Hooper, private secretary to Lewis who is closely affiliated with the Lewis estate, will speak at the event. His insight into the writings of Lewis, coupled with his personal relationship with the man, will give attendees unprecedented access to the heart and mind of the Christian scholar.
Also coming from England are Barbara Reynolds, who will speak on Dorothy L. Sayers, a writer whom Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien held in high regard, and Ian Blakemore and Rachel Johnson, who will speak on George MacDonald, a poet, preacher and novelist whose work influenced Lewis.
“This will probably be the last time that you will have Barbara Reynolds and Walter Hooper in the same venue in America,” said Pam Jordan, associate professor of English at Taylor University Fort Wayne and chair of the C.S. Lewis and Friends Committee. “There will be opportunity for question-and-answer after the presentations of our main speakers.”
Jordan said this event is one-of-a-kind on this side of the Atlantic. One would have to travel to England to the Kilns, Lewis’ home-turned-study center to come close to the experience the colloquium offers, she said.
The jewel in the crown for this event will be access to the Edwin W. Brown Collection, considered by at least one appraiser as the third most valuable collection of materials by and about C.S. Lewis in the world, owned by and housed at Taylor University.
Included in this collection are first English and American editions of books written by Lewis, personal letters in his hand, manuscripts, letters, books and pictures from the likes of MacDonald, Tolkien, Lewis Carroll and Joy Davidman Lewis.
“About a year after we first acquired the collection, we thought we should open the collection for others and thought that offering a colloquium would be the best way to do that. It was a natural outgrowth of having the collection,” Jordan said.
Lewis was a multifaceted writer and scholar who may be best known by many as the author of “The Chronicles of Narnia” series.
He also was the writer of science fiction. His space trilogy began with “Out Of The Silent Planet” in 1936 and introduced the hero, Edwin Ransom, a philologist. This character was modeled roughly on Lewis’ good friend, Tolkien.
In addition to his fiction writing, Lewis was a popular writer and broadcaster of Christian apologetics during World War II. His essay “The Problem Of Pain” was his attempt to answer the question, “If God is good and God is all powerful, why is there pain and evil in the world?” His 15-minute radio talks became canonized in the book “Mere Christianity.”
Insight into Lewis
What: Fourth Frances White Ewbank Colloquium on C.S. Lewis and Friends
When: March 12-14
Where: Upland campus of Taylor University
Cost: $95, including all presentations, a dinner on March 12 and a live performance on G.K. Chesterton on March 13, if ordered before Sunday. After that, tickets are $110 and the banquet and performance tickets will be on a space-available-basis only.
Tickets: Call 1-765-998-5245 or visit www.taylor.edu/cslewis
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