Remembering C.S. Lewis

Most people my age or older remember this date as the day in 1963 that President John F. Kennedy was shot. I was seven years old and in the second grade. The biggest effect on that shallow young version of me was that my Saturday morning cartoons were preempted by news coverage. But I do remember the day.

What you may not know is that another famous person died on that same day: C. S. Lewis.

As a young teenager looking for rational reasons to support my faith, I found C.S. Lewis to be the one author who truly met that need. I have read Mere Christianity and Miracles over and over again throughout my life. Those books are never old to me, but seem fresh each time I read them. Later I discovered his novels, especially Perelandria, and found a new way to expand both my imagination and my faith. Lewis' influence is today touching new generations who discover The Chronicles of Narnia through the movies. Countless Christians leaders and ordinary saints can and do attest today to the tremendous influence of Lewis on every generation since he died.

Jared at The Thinklings wrote the following tribute to Lewis, with which I heartedly agree.

C.S. Lewis's influence on modern Christianity is unmatched to this day. No other Christian has come close to rivaling his place at the summit of Christian literature. No other Christian has come close to influencing Christian thought in the 20th and 21st centuries more than he. That is why I believe Lewis has been the single most influential Christian of the 20th century. No one -- not even Billy Graham -- has left such a indelible mark on Christian culture. Graham may win the souls, but Lewis builds them up. You might not be able to get an atheist to read Graham's How to be Born Again, but I bet you could get him to read Lewis's The Abolition of Man. And he'd be better off for it.

Thank you Lord, for sending us "Jack" Lewis. He made, and is still making, a big difference.