Behind Every Great Man...

Everyone knows how much I rave about C. S. Lewis, whose writings have influenced my Christian walk more than any others outside the Bible. There is, however, that old saying that "behind every great man is a great woman." This is especially true in the case of C. S. Lewis.

Although a bachelor for most of his life, in the mid-1950's he married Helen Joy Davidman. Born a Jew in New York City and living as an atheist for much of her younger life, she was - like Lewis - an adult convert to Christianity. Joy was a scholar and artist in her own right; she published a renowned book of poetry (Letters to a Comrade), a novel (Anya), and a lucid interpretation on the Ten Commandments (Smoke on the Mountain). She was honored, along with Robert Frost, with a national poetry award.

Since her writings are not well known, I would like to offer just a few quotes from her book Smoke on the Mountain. Although published 55 years ago, it has much to say to a fragmented church and disillusioned world today. (Please notice that she wrote these things a half-century before the pompous Emergent Christians suddenly claimed to have "discovered" them.)

On Idolatry: An idol is an inanimate object that can do no harm...So is a gun. But a man can do great harm with it. Idolatry lies not in the idol but in the worshiper. The real horror of idols is not merely that they give us nothing, but that they take away from us even that which we have...The more we look to material objects for help, the less we can help ourselves or ask help from the grace of God.

On the Name of God: The necessary corollary of the Third Commandment must be: Thou shalt take the name of the Lord thy God in earnest! We who have used the Name for unhallowed ends, from necromancy down to getting our own way in a family quarrel; we who have misused the power God put in flesh and coal, in wood and waterfalls, in solid matter and in empty space; we who have called upon God to bolster up our own vanity, or have NOT called upon Him to deliver us from prejudice -- we are all black magicians, and like Elymas the sorcerer, we have been struck blind for our sins and now grope in mist and darkness. Habitually, day after day, we have taken God's name in vain. Let us, if we can, teach ourselves to take it in earnest. It is high time.

On Sabbath-Keeping: Most of the ordinary people who lose their faith are not overthrown by philosophical argument; they lose faith because they are disillusioned by the churchmen they meet. One sanctimonious hypocrite makes a hundred unbelievers. One little knot of gossips tearing a neighbor's reputation apart on the church steps smashes the Sabbath to splinters. If we are to put it together again, we must be Christians indeed -- must show the rest of the world that a Christian gets something worth having out of his worship. It is not much use asking others to turn to God unless we set them the example. Let the church members behave like Christians seven days a week, and it is likely that the Sabbath will take care of itself. For how do you make a day holy? By seeing that it is holy already; and behaving accordingly.

And perhaps the most relevant to our current economic crisis, here is what Helen Joy Davidman has to say about stealing: The mother who teacher her child to slide under the subway turnstile rather than pay his dime; the athlete who sells his skill to the highest bidder; the rich man who wins applause through benevolent foundations that just happen to be tax-free, and the poor man who feels more comfortable with government support than with a job; the bribed policeman and the bribing bookie, the bribed judge and the bribing gangster, the bribed Congressman and the bribing industrialist -- are they getting something for nothing or aren't they? And who pays the bill? And what would Christ have called them? And anyone who promised to cure the ills of our time with easy hopes and facile solutions would be the most heartless of all.

Thank God for thoughtful, faithful women like Helen Joy Davidman, whose witness and leadership have spoken prophetically to the church and the world. May we heed her sound words and example!