The safest road to Hell is the gradual one -- the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts. ~ C. S. Lewis
One reason why many people find [the false idea of the "force" or "life-force"] so attractive is that it gives one much of the emotional comfort of believing in [a god] and none of the less pleasant consequences. When you are feeling fit and the sun is shining and you do not want to believe that the whole universe is a mere [chance evolution] of atoms, it is nice to be able to think of this great...force rolling on throughout the centuries and carrying you on its crest. If, on the other hand, you want to do something rather shabby, the life-force, being only a blind force, with no morals and no mind, will never interfere with you like that troublesome God we learned about when we were children. The life-force is a sort of tame god. You can switch it on when you want, but it will not bother you. All the thrills of religion and none of its costs. Is the life-force the greatest achievement of wishful thinking the world has yet seen? ~ C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
Christianity, if false, is of no importance and, if true, of infinite importance. The one thing it cannot be is moderately important. ~ C.S. Lewis
There is no neutral ground in the universe: every square inch, every split second, is claimed by God and counterclaimed by Satan. ~ C.S. Lewis
The perfect church service would be one we were almost unaware of; our attention would have been on God. But every novelty prevents this. It fixes our attention on the service itself, and thinking about worship is a different thing from worshipping. ~ C. S. Lewis
There are only two kinds of people: those who say to God, "Thy will be done," and those to whom God says, in the end, "Thy will be done." ~ C. S. Lewis
[I felt] the steady, unrelenting approach of Him whom I so earnestly desired not to meet. That which I greatly feared had at last come upon me. In...1929 I gave in, and admitted that God was God, and knelt and prayed: perhaps, that night, the most dejected and reluctant convert in all England. I did not then see what is now the most shining and obvious thing; the Divine humility which will accept a convert even on such terms. The prodigal son at least walked home on his own feet. But who can duly adore that Love which will open the high gates to a prodigal who is brought in kicking, struggling, resentful, and darting his eyes in every direction for a chance of escape? The words compelle intrare, "compel them to come in"...plumb the depth of the Divine mercy. The hardness of God is kinder than the softness of men, and His compulsion is our liberation. ~ C.S. Lewis, Surprised by Joy
Here the whole world (stars, water, air, And field, and forest, as they were Reflected in a single mind) Like cast off clothes was left behind In ashes yet with hope that she, Re-born from holy poverty, In lenten lands, hereafter may Resume them on her Easter Day.
~ C. S. Lewis (Inscription on his wife's, Joy Davidman's, memorial)
The further...in you go, the bigger everything gets. The inside is larger than the outside. ~ C. S. Lewis, The Last Battle
[Believers] can't say "I'll be happy when God calls me [home]" without being afraid we'll be thought morbid. If we really believe what we say we believe – if we really think that home is elsewhere and that this life is a "wandering to find home" why should we not look forward to the arrival? There are [only] three things we can do about death: Desire it, fear it, or ignore it. The third alternative, which is the one the modern world calls "healthy" is surely the most uneasy and precarious of all. ~ C.S. Lewis, Letters to an American Lady
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