God as a Friend

Son of Earth, shall we be friends?

(Aslan to Trumpkin, Prince Caspian)

Hopefully everyone has the opportunity to do something for C.S. Lewis reading day. Personally, besides the previous post, I had the chance to listen in to one of the Pints with Jack livestreams (the one that started before Shabbos). I even got to type in some answers which were noted by the hosts. Specifically, I mentioned that Lewis would certainly have considered Jesus as his best friend. And while I think that is true, I do not think the concept of God as friend is at all obvious.

In Prince Caspian, Trumpkin the dwarf plays a major role in establishing Caspian as the head of the rebels against the evil King Miraz. He helps rally the troops, quiet potential arguments, and even goes to search for whatever help may come with the blowing of the horn. Yet, he does not believe in the old stories or in Aslan the son of the Emperor-Beyond-the-Sea. It is only upon seeing Aslan with his own eyes is he persuaded at which point Aslan asks him the above question - shall we be friends?

How can someone be friends with God?

This was one of the topics I addressed in an article I wrote that I cited in the last post and Lewis helps us define what this could mean. In The Four Loves, Lewis comments, "Lovers are normally face to face, absorbed in each other; Friends, side by side, absorbed in some common interest." Any love, according to Lewis, requires giving of oneself. What differentiates friendship from other loves is a shared common interest. Hence, to be friends with God one must share an interest with Him.

What interest can be shared with God?

In our world, God and the Jewish people share the quest of spreading the truth of the One God to all of humanity. Hence, Abraham who walks before God, is His friend. Abraham does not need God's to command him to spread His name. It is Abraham's quest as much as it is God's. Noah, to contrast, walks with God. He follows God's commands because God told him to do so. Noah is God's loyal servant, maybe even a son, but he is not God's friend.

In Prince Caspian, the common interest between Aslan and the Old Narnians was freeing Narnia from King Miraz enabling the Old Narnians to return as regular citizens. However, Aslan's interest was that the country should once again be faithful to the morality that he instilled, while others doubted that such morality even existed. That lack of overlap soured the friendship - what good is Narnia without its moral compass?

But Trumpkin learns to be Aslan's friend. He now knows that defeating Miraz is not sufficient and he has taken as his own to restore Narnia to its glory of, not only power and wealth, but of a moral society to be a light to the rest of the world.