Author Archives: Dr Snyder

Lewis on “Christian Apologetics”–Part 2

C. S. Lewis did not live in an ivory tower separated from the world. He knew what people were going through and how they thought. During WWI, he was in the trenches with every social class in British society. When WWII erupted, he spoke to RAF pilots—those who might not come back from their next mission. As he interacted with all types of people, he came to some sobering conclusions about them and how to reach them for the Gospel…. Read more »

Lewis on “Christian Apologetics”–Part 1

How does one survey the vast number of essays C. S. Lewis wrote and pare them down to the twenty-or-so most essential ones? The problem arose for me as I prepared a course to teach at my church–slated for the January-April Parish Academy session. I earnestly desired to include his excellent thoughts in “Historicism,” but that essay is so prominent in my upcoming book (and the course I will develop based on that book), that I chose to exclude it… Read more »

My Lewis “Season”

I haven’t written many blog posts lately, but that doesn’t mean I’ve been lazy. I just want to make sure I have something worthwhile to say. So, today, I am providing an update on what has been keeping me busy during this season. One of my projects was the development of a course at my church on writers C. S. Lewis admired. If you have seen previous posts, you know I focused on George MacDonald, G. K. Chesterton, J. R…. Read more »

The Lewis-Sayers Connection: Part Two

My previous post revealed how C.S. Lewis and Dorothy L. Sayers established a relationship as authorial colleagues and friends. Interestingly, Lewis had never read Sayers when she was primarily focused on her Lord Peter Wimsey novels. In fact, Lewis only read one of the Wimsey tales after being impressed with her Christian writing. As he wrote to his friend Arthur Greeves, “Dorothy Sayers The Mind of the Maker I thought good on the whole: good enough to induce me to… Read more »

The Lewis-Sayers Connection: Part One

I’ve written a couple posts this year about the course I have developed for my church’s Parish Academy this fall. The title for the course is “Writers C. S. Lewis Admired.” The four writers I’ve chosen to focus on in the course are George MacDonald, G. K. Chesterton, J. R. R. Tolkien, and Dorothy L. Sayers. A previous post centered on Chesterton, the one of the four I knew the least about. It wasn’t that I was completely ignorant of… Read more »

Getting to Know Chesterton

I’ve been working steadily on a course I will be teaching at my church this fall; I call it “Writers C. S. Lewis Admired.” It has been challenging, but in a good and profitable way, as I am becoming better acquainted with those writers. George MacDonald provided Lewis with a baptized imagination in his youth. I was already familiar with the Lewis-Tolkien relationship (although I am picking up even more information now) and I have studied and read Dorothy L…. Read more »

Father, Forgive Them

The first recorded words of Jesus as He hung upon the cross were “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” He uttered these words after being beaten, scourged, forced to carry the crossbeam through the streets of Jerusalem, and then having nails pounded into His hands and feet. And yet, as He hung there, He wanted those who were responsible for this to be forgiven. C. S. Lewis once wrote, “Everyone says forgiveness is a… Read more »