CSL Not Arian

Φιλολoγικά/Philologica : Were the Inklings a Forbidden Society? No. · HGL'S F.B. WRITINGS : Craig Crawford's view on Harry Potter (feat. réprise of his view on Tolkien and CSL, feat. Dan Brown) · CSL Not Arian · Assorted retorts from yahoo boards and elsewhere : Commenting on Schnoebelen's at al:s comments on HP

Hans-Georg Lundahl

2 octobre 2018

This is not a real or mis-conception, but an open question between two conceptions.

How close was C. S. Lewis to Milton and Newton on the issue of subordinationism?

Was he in a clear risk zone of Arianism, since George MacDonald whom he respected was Arian in Christology?

I

Alexander J. Wei

First I'd say the supposed Arianism of Milton and MacDonald is in dispute. I myself don't hold to that. As for Newton, something like that or Unitarianism at least, does seem to be true.

Furthermore, I'm not aware of any such with Lewis. Although he calls MacDonald his Master, his views are not identical.

Hans-Georg Lundahl

Thank you.

Alexander J. Wei

I am returning to this question because I am making a detailed look at Lewis's A Preface to Paradise Lost. In Chapter XII, "The Theology of Paradise Lost" he talks about the whole question of how heretical the poem is, divided up analytically. This is in response to a Professor Saurat, who makes what Lewis thinks are unjustified attacks on the poem and poet.

He outlines four categories:

• 1) things that occur in the poem that are in fact not heretical.
• 2) heretical things that do not occur in Milton
• 3) heretical things that occur in Milton's De Doctrina
• 4) possibly heretical things that occur in Paradise Lost.

Lewis says for point 3, p. 85 in this edition, that only one thing qualifies here. He says outright that Milton was an Arian. I see no evidence that Lewis followed Milton here; I don't know his preface to Athanasius, but I suspect he was completely orthodox about Arianism.

Hans-Georg Lundahl

Thank you very much.

As I have to do some clearing of CSL before some people unduly impressed by people listening to Fritz Springmeier who considered John Todd both honest and knowledgeable, it is good to hear this!

II

Dianne Mosley

What a great questions! I can’t wait to read the answers you are going to get.

David Jack

pretty certain that MacDonald wasn't an Arian...where did you see this suggested?

Michelle Harmon

He certainly never denied the divinity of Christ.

Hans-Georg Lundahl

I thought George MacDonald was Unitarian?

Ken Howes

Universalist; the two groups were not identical at the time, though they eventually merged. I don't know whether his universalism was as a general belief or as a membership in a universalist association.

III

Paul Penfold

This article contains a lengthy purported quote from Lewis that robustly defends Trinitarianism and denounces Arianism:

//christianhistoryinstitute.org/magazine/article/how-arianism-almost-won

I've never seen anything other than full Trinitarian orthodoxy in Lewis's writings and have long had the impression that he regarded such a thing as being greatly important

Alexander J. Wei

Yes, now that I think of it, didn't he write a great foreword to Athanasius's Incarnation!

Hans-Georg Lundahl

Paul Penfold - thank you very much!

Paul Penfold

No worries :)