50th Anniversary, CSL

EveningStar

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Yes, it is the 50th anniversary of John F. Kennedy's death. How can you possibly escape that news?

Back when it happened, the death of JFK utterly obliterated the passing of Clive Staples Lewis in his home, "The Kilns".

Time has knocked some of the surface glamour off the president, but Lewis' reputation lives on, promoted to new generations by some very wonderful movies.

Let's make sure that one Jack gets his share of notice while the other Jack gets trumpeted on the media.

God bless you, Jack Lewis.
 
Someday we will all follow him through the Stable Door. May we find the Real Narnia, and all those who have preceded us, in the Garden on the Mountain, and come to Aslan's country.

The older I get the more I appreciate how brief life is here, how little time we have. Some wish to devote that time to doing certain things or leaving particular legacies. I'm learning that the most important thing is to become a person of a certain type, because that leaves the impact that matters most. Jack Lewis proved that; I hope I can in my time.
 
In Paradise Lost, John Milton imagined an angel called Abdiel _refusing_ to join in Lucifer's rebellion against God. The words God says to Abdiel, He could appropriately have said to Lewis upon Lewis' arrival in Heaven:

"Servant of God, well done! Well hast thou fought
The better fight, who single hast maintained
Against revolted multitudes the cause
Of truth, in word mightier than they in arms...."


Incidentally, Lewis wrote commentary about Paradise Lost, in which he cut to pieces the absolutely _false_ notion which incompetent highschool teachers have spread, that Milton thought Satan was _heroic!_ As Lewis explained, Satan _flattering_ himself that he was a hero is very different from _being_ a hero.
 
Back when it happened, the death of JFK utterly obliterated the passing of Clive Staples Lewis in his home, "The Kilns".

Time has knocked some of the surface glamour off the president, but Lewis' reputation lives on, promoted to new generations by some very wonderful movies.

Such were my thoughts! I'm not sure what's the best to be said for 50th anniversary since death... so just hooray for C.S. Lewis and his creating Narnia! :D
 
My tribute

From my blog www.jesusandjaxyworld.com
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The Feast Day of my patron saint CS Lewis comes this Friday. He's a saint in the Anglican church, and the day of his death is commemorated as the day of his birth into everlasting life!

He died a month before I was born, and always had called himself Jack, or Jacksie as a boy, so I used to reason that a bit of him was reincarnated in me, the writer Jaxy...

He served Great Britain as a footsoldier in WWI, and served his country again during WW II through a series of radio addresses that explained Christianity and encouraged people through difficult times.

For me he was like a magic uncle who leapt off the pages of his seven books, The Chronicles of Narnia, to "tell me a story" that was beyond all imagining, about a mystical place where animals talked, where fauns, satyrs and centaurs were re-tooled as noble and faithful beings, where the Son of God came as a Lion the same way He came to this world as a Man. The Lion Aslan contributed so much to my first impressions of God the Father, without my even knowing it.

His grown-up works eventually came to my attention, too: Mere Christianity (which was born out of those radio talks during the War), The Great Divorce, Til We Have Faces, Miracles ... all wonders of apologetics and story-telling.

And of course The Space Trilogy, which was like Narnia for adults, a wonderful fairy tale fantasy that ranges from Mars and Venus to earth -- set against the backdrop of Arthurian legend and packed with amazing and prophetic insights about society, spirituality, and so much more.

Lewis helped make me an avid reader, and made me want to be a writer. I believe in the communion of the saints, and I like to think he is praying for me, and for what I am writing today.

Holla, Jack! Thinking of you this week. And always
 
Its fitting that I just finished the Space Trilogy earlier this week.
As soon as my friend said that it was the day JFK had been assassinated I remembered that Lewis died the same day. Then I thought about the fact that the Doctor Who 50th anniversary is tomorrow and my mind just about exploded.
The discovery of Narnia was a huge turning point for me in my life and if I had not seen LWW I would not be who I am today. That first Narnia movie and all the books broke the spell of terror that had been over my life as a child (I was literally scared of almost everything) and turned me into a fantasy reader/watcher and eventually a writer. He also showed me that its okay to like mythology. For that I commend Lewis, and for just being an Awsomeatic man in general. Everyone should know how Awsomeatic he was and still is today through all his books and other works.
See you in Heaven someday, Lewis. We have a lot to talk about.:D
 
Its fitting that I just finished the Space Trilogy earlier this week.
As soon as my friend said that it was the day JFK had been assassinated I remembered that Lewis died the same day. Then I thought about the fact that the Doctor Who 50th anniversary is tomorrow and my mind just about exploded.

Yeah, all so coincidental, isn't it! :D
 
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Coming from Lewis' home city of Belfast myself I was glad to see the councial honnor him and rightly so. I did not attened any of the events but I did the Lewis tour in March and as I walked around East Belfast which is staunch Protestant I kept thinking of Lewis' friend in WW1 Paddy and his sad death and the pact they made between them and Lewis honnored it a true friendship, also his close friendship with Tolkien, both were Catholics and in his time would not have been tolerated by his fellow people in East Belfast and still isn't. Lewis was one of the few who broke the mould and called himself Irish and not British and if he had lived on to the early 70's he would have been dismayed at was happing in his city of Belfast. If more people in Belfast followed his example Belfast would probably not have been what it was. I thank him for giving us the Narnia books and hope if he is looking down that he is pleased that Belfast is fianly taking the steps in the right direction, from one Irishman to another God Bless.
 
I couldn't agree with you more, Jadis-the-White, as well as the opinions expressed by others on this thread. If more people followed C.S.Lewis not only Belfast but the whole world would be a better place. Truly a giant of a man who has left an everlasting legacy. His Chronicles of Narnia are truly superb books.
 
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Jack, Tollers and Who?

This excerpt is from Doctor Who Magazine released 12.1.11, and the story is called "The Professor, The Queen and the Bookshop" by Jonathan Morris. Note the honorary memorial incription in the last scene, noting this 50th Anniversary.
2ninmsi.jpg
 
Does anyone know why there seemed to be an effort to burn Lewis' private papers at the time of his death. Even his step son and brother seemed to be involved in this destruction.
 
I was going to ask you, Benisse, whether you mind if I put this on my facebook page?

Incidentally, Lewis wrote commentary about Paradise Lost, in which he cut to pieces the absolutely _false_ notion which incompetent highschool teachers have spread, that Milton thought Satan was _heroic!_ As Lewis explained, Satan _flattering_ himself that he was a hero is very different from _being_ a hero.

No doubt Hitler, Stalin, Pol Pot and other equally vile people considered themselves to be heroes, "saving" their people from the "evil" threatening them!
 
Corin, that comic strip is not mine to give permission to post or not. It has been floating around on FB though.
 
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