Author Archives: Dr Snyder

Lewis: Reflections on a Post-Christian Culture

  

All of those letters C. S. Lewis wrote to innumerable people throughout his lifetime are a treasure trove. Some show the mark of his published works while others emphasize the personal side of the man. When I researched my book on Lewis (caution: unashamed plug coming up), I read every letter in the collection that he wrote to Americans. It was a highlight of my sabbatical year when I could devote hours each day reading them and making notes for… Read more »

Will Honest Critique Be Allowed?

  

I’m trying to like Donald Trump. I really am. Why does he insist on making it so difficult? I’m not the least bit upset that he spoke with the elected leader of Taiwan. We never should have treated that nation the way we have. So, good for him on that count. Taiwan is not Iran or Cuba. I’m pleased with a number of his nominations for his administration. If they are allowed to do what they believe, we will be… Read more »

The Un-Christening of the Western World

  

When C. S. Lewis moved from Oxford University to Cambridge University after nearly three decades at Oxford, it was a major event. Oxford never really appreciated what it had in Lewis, whereas Cambridge created a special Chair designed for him. His inaugural lecture at Cambridge was a major event as well. In it, he outlined how Europe had become post-Christian, which was a fairly accurate description of Oxford. Lewis noted that nearly everyone thought the switch from pre-Christian to Christian… Read more »

Willful Ignorance: Never a Safe Space

  

Nice to know that neither Obama nor Biden will make an appearance at Castro’s memorial. I don’t think that’s because they wouldn’t like to do so, but the backlash just might be greater than they wish to handle. Most people, outside of the press, aren’t exactly in mourning that the dictator is dead. Some have very good reasons not to feel particularly sad about it. The Castro legacy is not hard to discover: As I said in a previous post,… Read more »

Castro’s Legacy

  

Last Friday, the sane portion of the world rejoiced at the announcement that Fidel Castro had died. His death doesn’t immediately change anything in the island prison of Cuba; brother Raul is still in charge. Yet there is a psychological lift, at least, knowing that the primary perpetrator of the miseries of the Cuban people finally left the scene of the living. Castro has his acolytes on the political left who praise him and who mourn his passing. They try… Read more »

Why I Quote C. S. Lewis

  

There are probably some regular (or semi-regular) readers of my blog who wonder why I quote C. S. Lewis so much. One reason is that he has insights that make me think more deeply about what I believe and why. A second is the way he expresses those insights. Here’s one example, taken from his essay “Is Theism Important?” Think about his perspective here: When grave persons express their fear that England is relapsing into Paganism, I am tempted to… Read more »

22 November 1963

  

Today, November 22, is one that most of the world recognizes for one significant event. I recognize it for two, and the latter is of greater consequence. In the preface of my book, America Discovers C. S. Lewis: His Profound Impact, I write this: I grew up in Bremen, Indiana, population roughly four thousand, surrounded by corn fields and a significant Amish community, half a world away from Oxford and in an entirely different environment. My parents had never read… Read more »