The Great Divorce
C.S. Lewis’ The Great Divorce is a classic Christian allegorical tale about a bus ride from hell to heaven. An extraordinary meditation upon good and evil, grace and judgment, Lewis’s revolutionary idea in the The Great Divorce is that the gates of Hell are locked from the inside. Using his extraordinary descriptive powers, Lewis’ The Great Divorce will change the way we think about good and evil.
About the Author
Clive Staples Lewis is arguably the best writer of his time. He wrote classic books such as The Chronicles Of Narnia Series, Mere Christianity, The Screwtape Letters, The Four loves, The Problem of Pain, A Grief Observed, Out of the Silent Planet, Surprised by Joy, The Abolition of man, Miracles, and many other books and short stories. To reach many different age groups, C. S Lewis wrote over 30 different books. C.S Lewis’s most known books are The Chronicles of Narnia, Mere Christianity, Out of the Silent Planet, and Screwtape letters. He used allegories to spread the great news of all that the Lord has done. Believe it or not, C.S Lewis was not always the strong Christian that we know him as today. He actually was an atheist until 1931.
C.S Lewis gives us a real picture of what it would be like to go on a bus ride through Heaven and Hell. He presents his book, The Great Divorce in a way that makes us start to question our faith in the Lord. C. S Lewis uses sins, such as, believing that can get into Heaven without God, love, lust, pity, self-loathing, worry, fear, and many others to point out sins that we do not consider as sins. These sins help us to point out areas where we have not fully given everything to God despite saying that we have. Connecting with each of the ghosts helps to put into perspective where we have fallen short of the glory of God. During each chapter, you will sense a moral with each of the characters has to deal with their sins. Such as Christ does not expect us to come to him, He hangs on the cross and says, “It is finished.” Unchecked worry, fear, and doubt can blind you from the truth. Looking to yourself and the things that you can do leads to vanity. Love can become a demon as soon as it gains more power to you than a god. Love often times can be more dangerous than Lust.
C.S Lewis is able to write in a way that takes a lot of time to dissect what he is trying to tell us. Often times it is help from a teacher, pastor, friend, or the Lord that helps you to see what Lewis is trying to convey in his books. These books help you to grow deeper in your faith as a Christian. C.S Lewis books all show different relationships that God has with man. He uses the gift of his writing and his story to help many Christians grow closer to the Lord.
His books are written in a way that is harder to understand for certain age groups. I recommend The Great Divorce for anyone above the age of 16. This is because Lewis writes in a way that makes it hard for children to understand the message he is trying to convey. While not as tough as King James version or Shakespeare, Lewis’ old English style can take some time to understand. He wrote other books for younger audiences such as The Chronicles of Narnia Series.
