C. S. Lewis Quotes

A collection of quotes by C. S. Lewis.

C.S. Lewis (1898-1963) was a renowned British writer, scholar, and Christian apologist, best known for his beloved series of fantasy novels, The Chronicles of Narnia. Born in Belfast, Ireland, Lewis developed a passion for storytelling and literature from an early age. As a child, he created an imaginary land called "Boxen" and began writing stories about talking animals, which foreshadowed his later works.

Lewis studied at Oxford University and became a tutor and lecturer in English literature at Magdalen College, where he developed a lifelong friendship with fellow author J.R.R. Tolkien. He earned recognition for his academic achievements and public speaking, primarily in the areas of medieval literature, literary criticism, and Christian theology.

Lewis's writings spanned various genres, including science fiction, poetry, and philosophical works. However, it was his fantasy novels, particularly The Chronicles of Narnia, which gained immense popularity and remain cherished classics to this day. These allegorical tales explore moral and spiritual themes through captivating adventures in a magical world.

Deeply influenced by his conversion to Christianity, Lewis became a prominent defender of the Christian faith. His books Mere Christianity, The Problem of Pain, and The Screwtape Letters delve into theological and philosophical arguments that have had a profound impact on readers seeking a reasoned intellectual defense of Christianity.

C.S. Lewis's contributions to literature and Christian apologetics have ensured his enduring legacy as one of the most influential writers of the 20th century.

Joy is the serious business of Heaven.

Joy is the serious business of Heaven.

Isn't it funny how day by day nothing changes, but when we l

Isn't it funny how day by day nothing changes, but when we look back everything is different.

You can't get a cup of tea big enough or a book long enough

You can't get a cup of tea big enough or a book long enough to suit me.

Eros will have naked bodies Friendship naked personalities.

Eros will have naked bodies Friendship naked personalities.

Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art... It h

Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art... It has no survival value rather it is one of those things that give value to survival.

Literature adds to reality, it does not simply describe it.

Literature adds to reality, it does not simply describe it. It enriches the necessary competencies that daily life requires and provides; and in this respect, it irrigates the deserts that our lives have already become.

They would say, he answered, that you do not fail in obedien

They would say, he answered, that you do not fail in obedience through lack of love, but have lost love because you never attempted obedience.

Love

For me, reason is the natural organ of truth; but imaginatio

For me, reason is the natural organ of truth; but imagination is the organ of meaning. Imagination, producing new metaphors or revivifying old, is not the cause of truth, but its condition.

Imagination Truth

â€œIf we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this w

â€œIf we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation isâ€¦we were made for another world.â€

Long before history began we men have got together apart fro

Long before history began we men have got together apart from the women and done things. We had time.

History

The future is something which everyone reaches at the rate o

The future is something which everyone reaches at the rate of 60 minutes an hour, whatever he does, whoever he is.

Time Future

How incessant and great are the ills with which a prolonged

How incessant and great are the ills with which a prolonged old age is replete.

Age

Some people feel guilty about their anxieties and regard the

Some people feel guilty about their anxieties and regard them as a defect of faith but they are afflictions, not sins. Like all afflictions, they are, if we can so take them, our share in the passion of Christ.

Faith

Humans are amphibians - half spirit and half animal. As spir

Humans are amphibians - half spirit and half animal. As spirits they belong to the eternal world, but as animals they inhabit time.

Time

Even in literature and art, no man who bothers about origina

Even in literature and art, no man who bothers about originality will ever be original: whereas if you simply try to tell the truth (without caring twopence how often it has been told before) you will, nine times out of ten, become original without ever having noticed it.

Art

God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself,

God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing.

God Happiness Peace

There are two kinds of people: those who say to God, 'Thy wi

There are two kinds of people: those who say to God, 'Thy will be done,' and those to whom God says, 'All right, then, have it your way.'

God

I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has rise

I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.

Religion

If you read history you will find that the Christians who di

If you read history you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were precisely those who thought most of the next. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this.

History

Of all tyrannies a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good

Of all tyrannies a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive.

Good