PHILOSOPHICAL WRITINGS
MERE CHRISTIANITY
CHAPTER 8: The Great Sin (Part 2)
Paragraph 9:
When the beauty is praised by her lover and the child by his father, the pleasure does not lie in what you are but in what?
Where does trouble begin?
What happens to you when you delight more in yourself and less in the praise?
When have you reached the bottom?
I have a brother-in-law whose young grandson just idolizes him. The little boy cannot take his eyes off his granddad Johhny. When Johnny throws at him even a modicrum of praise, Kyle is bowled over with joy. He doesn't go around thinking he's better than anybody else; he's just so full of joy that his granddad loves him that much. This is the kind of experience Lewis is referring to.
According to Lewis is vanity a terrible sin? If so, why? If not, why not?
Vanity "is a ______________, but a __________-like and even (in an odd way) a _______________ fault."
How much does the vain person value other people?
What is true about the real black, diabolical form of Pride?
Is it always wrong not to care what people think about you? Why or why not?
When does this attitude become wrong though?
How does the devil love to cure small faults?
How must we NEVER cure our vanity?
Paragraph 10:
When we speak about being proud of our regiment or university or family, "very often, in such sentences, the phrase 'is proud of' means 'has a ____________-_______________ _________________ for." Is this feeling or attitude a sin?
When can it be bad though?
What is worse than putting on airs because of your distinguished father?
"To love and admire anything _________________ yourself is to take one step away from utter ______________________ _______________."
What must we love and admire more though than anything else?
Paragraph 11:
What is one thing God is not in the least worried about?
What does God want?
We and God are such 2 kinds of people that what will happen whenever we really get in touch with each other?
In the second book of the Chronicles of Narnia the mouse Reepicheep is humiliated whenever somebody cuts off his tail during the battle. He would rather just go ahead and die. When Reepicheep makes his request to Aslan, Aslan replies that Reepicheep is too concerned about his dignity and therefore will not restore his tail to him. All the other mice then start pleading with Aslan to restore the tail to Reepicheep. Finally, Aslan laughingly relents, not because of Reepicheep's dignity but because of the friendship the other mice have shown towards Reepicheep. God just isn't interested in our puny dignity at the present time. He's got something much better in store for us when Christ returns!
Why is God trying to humble us?
Why does Lewis wish he were further down the path of humility?
Getting close to humility is like what in the desert?
Paragraph 12:
What kind of person will a humble person come across as?
Why would anybody dislike this person?
Paragraph 13:
What is true about the person who does not think he is conceited?
Book Three
Chapter 8 (part 2)
In paragraph 9 Lewis claims he must guard against some misunderstandings. What is the first misunderstanding he wants to clear up?
What is the second misunderstanding about pride?
What is the third misunderstanding about pride?
What is the fourth misunderstanding Lewis wants to correct?
What is the first step to becoming a humble person?