Are there any Atheists here that have read "Mere Christianity" by C.S. Lewis?

Question

If so, what is your repsonse?

NOTE: This is not a challenge. I truly do want to hear an Atheists view on the book.. Where the author was right/wrong etc.

Answer 1

I have read all of C.S. Lewis' books, except for some of the Chronicles, and when I converted to Christianity he was a huge influence.

Looking back, his arguments employ circular reasoning, straw man arguments, and he clings to his love of mythology as a reason to accept Christianity instead of just admitting that Christianity's recycling of Paganism appeals to him and does not make it true.

He also loves the word of fantasy and seems to wish it to be true rather than admitting that it is not and accepting it, as in his fantastically flawed reasoning used in Miracles.

Lewis approaches the world from the point of view of someone who is completely immersed in the fantasy world of literature, which is not surprising considering his profession and his position at Oxford.

But he refused to leave the fiction section of the library and tackle any real questions.

Answer 2

I only got through a tiny portion of "The God Delusion" when I realized it was nothing than the exact same atheistic claptrap which you see on these boards all of the time. I skimmed the rest and it confirmed my suspicions over and over again. What Dawkins does is just as many here do.... create a completely different "version" of God than what people actually believe and then say that HIS version is stupid. He seems to convince himself, but the fact that his version is not what people follow never seems to enter his closed mind. He does the typical illogical atheistic ploy of insisting that the Bible must be interpreted literally because he, and other atheists, has no answer for the vast majority of Christians who do not interpret it literally. I thought I was looking at another version of the incredibly dumb book "The Passover Plot". Just because someone writes a book that does not make them a scholar.

Answer 3

Lewis was an apologist in the purest form, ambiguous. All the arguments basically break down to "I can't concieve of a world without a creator." While this is an interesting point, it in no way leads to the conclusion of a Christian worldview. I find it to be lacking in substance, though beautiful in prose.

Answer 4

I've read it and I believe that CS Lewis makes too many assumptions on human thought and behavior. Early in the book he establishes the "Law of Nature" which didn't sit right with me and really effected the rest of the book in a negative way.

Lewis' fiction may be good, but I don't care for his non-fiction works.

Answer 5

Yes I have. I found it interesting, but even C. S. Lewis doesn't have it all right. I've not read it for a while, so I should probably read it again at some point, but I remember his famous trifurcation fallacy (Liar/Lord/Lunatic) which some christians rely heavily on.

Answer 6

I read it.

It was so full of logical flaws, particularly arguments from incredulity, that I considered it poor reading.

Even Lee Strobel's "A Case For Christ," as flawed as it was, was better than Mere Christianity.

Answer 7

I think you should issue it as a challenge. I thought C.S. was brilliant in his writing.

Answer 8

Yes, actually, it was one of the things that convinced me of atheism. One of his points was something along the lines of "Jesus said he was God, people saying he was just a teacher are missing the point; either he's God or he's lying."

So I got off the fence about that one.

Answer 9

No I haven't. Does it have talking animals like that other Christian book?

Answer 10

I'm a Christian - It's pretty good. Some of his arguments have holes, but still good.