You Tube Theology

C. S. Lewis is one of the most influential Christian thinkers and writers of the twentieth century, the author of The Chronicles of Narnia, Mere Christianity, and The Abolition of Man. But what is the deep logic of his imagination? Was he an orthodox Christian? And is there a hidden design behind the seemingly strange features of Narnia? Why did he regard the moral argument as one of the most important tools in his apologetic arsenal?

In this wide-ranging conversation, we speak with Dr. Michael Ward — a theologian, literary critic, lecturer at the University of Oxford, and one of the world’s leading scholars of C. S. Lewis, the author of Planet Narnia and After Humanity.

This conversation will be of particular interest to those who:
• read C. S. Lewis thoughtfully and in depth;
• are interested in Christian apologetics, philosophy, and imagination;
• want to see Narnia not as a “collection of fairy tales,” but as a coherent and carefully constructed imaginative world.

👤 PODCAST GUEST

Michael Ward is an English literary critic and theologian. He is an Associate Member of the Faculty of Theology and Religion at the University of Oxford and Professor of Apologetics at Houston Christian University. He is the author of the bestselling and award-winning book Planet Narnia: The Seven Heavens in the Imagination of C. S. Lewis, co-editor of The Cambridge Companion to C. S. Lewis, and presenter of the BBC television documentary The Narnia Code.

In the year marking the fiftieth anniversary of Lewis’s death, Michael Ward inaugurated a permanent national memorial to C. S. Lewis in Poets’ Corner, Westminster Abbey, London. According to N. T. Wright, Dr Ward is “the foremost living Lewis scholar.”

In his personal life, Ward is a Catholic priest; alongside his academic work, he serves in the parish of Hincksey in Oxford. He studied English literature at Oxford, theology at Cambridge, and received his PhD from the University of St Andrews.

• Dr. Ward's website: https://michaelward.net/
• Planet Narnia: The Seven Heavens in the Imagination of C. S. Lewis: https://a.co/d/09WeF0yu
• The Narnia Code, The: C S Lewis and the Secret of the Seven Heavens: https://a.co/d/03sz6rSg
• After Humanity: A Guide to C.S. Lewis's The Abolition of Man: https://a.co/d/01vXQN8J
• The Cambridge Companion to C. S. Lewis: https://a.co/d/0imh4l4K

🔎 TIMESTAMPS

00:00 Preview
1:18 Intro
3:06 How did you become a Christian, and why did you decide to specialize in Lewis?
7:15 Tell us about the main idea of your book Planet Narnia. What is the “key” or secret of The Chronicles of Narnia?
13:10 Did Lewis believe in medieval cosmology literally, or did he use it only as a literary device?
19:50 Can planetary symbolism explain some of the problematic moments in The Chronicles of Narnia (Father Christmas, Susan’s apostasy, the children’s deaths)?
31:39 Did Lewis think there were mistakes in the Chronicles?
33:23 How unorthodox were Lewis’s theological views (universalism, praying to Apollo)?
40:09 Do you agree with Alister McGrath’s assessment that Lewis’s relationship with Joy Davidman began with impure motives?
42:40 Why did Lewis write The Abolition of Man, and why did you decide to write After Humanity as a guide to it?
49:50 Did Lewis believe the moral argument proves the existence of the Christian God?
52:21 Which books about Lewis would you especially recommend to our listeners?

🗄️ RESOURCES 🗄️

• Our website: https://www.reasonplusfaith.com
• More of our podcasts: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXybS3t4RIdegq-Kn1ArHcAc1br9MdR8S&si=ZQAWYPio_P7vHmnz