Letters to Malcom: Letter 4 Part 3

In the last part of this letter Lewis addresses the question of whether there is a threshold on the importance of a request in prayer, below which should not be included in one's prayers. I generally resonate with Lewis' approach to this, but a permanent liturgy of rabbinic Judaism does change he parameters. In the amidah prayer, the central prayer in all three daily services, the requests are already there.

The amidah prayer includes 13 blessings of requests, six are personal, six are communal, and one is a catchall. It is safe to assume that when our Sages established these blessings, they chose needs that were universally important for all people across time and space. Hence the six personal blessings are for wisdom, return (to God), forgiveness, redemption, healing, and prosperity. The order of the blessings is discussed in the Talmud (Megillah 17b) but the themes are presumably broad enough that they cover all important aspects of human need. In fact, specific requests can be made within each blessing for specific relevant requests. 

Nonetheless, I think our Sages are teaching us a lesson: there's not that much that we really need. 

Puddleglum and The Last Battle

I have previously made known my disappointment in Tirian the last King of Narnia, despite Alsan's tacit approval: (1) Tirian waited way too long to discover the truth of the arrival of Aslan. Immediately upon hearing of Aslan's arrival, he should have (minimally) sent reliable officers to verify the truth.  (2) Tirian rashly (as Lewis describes it) seeks to avenge the murdered dryad without a comprehensive (or any) plan. (3) This leads Tirian and Jewel to kill two unarmed Calormens (rightfully in my mind). (4) At that point Tirian effectively gives up, completely ignoring the possibility of repentance) and hands himself over the Shift and the Calormens. This is nothing short of a complete abdication of his duty as King of Narnia. 

However, there is a more fundamental question regarding the actions of Tirian and all of the Talking Beasts living in the north of Narnia. Why are they willing, without checking (!) to believe that Shift is Aslan's interpreter (even beyond the question of Shift's obvious character flaws)? Can they believe that Aslan would be willing to have such terrible deeds performed in his name? 

Ignored by Tirian is the theological charge of Puddleglum in the Silver Chair, "I’m going to live as like a Narnian as I can even if there isn’t any Narnia." Could a Narnian, based on everything known of Aslan, call Shift's command living like a Narnian? Is not the imaginary Narnia in which Narnians are free from human subjugation (as the old Bear argues for) so much more so much better than the Shift's version of Narnia? 

There are some challenges to this. God does indeed send His people into slavery, but to atone for their sins. And even in exile there is a need to 'Live like a Narnian,' to refuse to accept the world as is but to strive to create the world that Puddleglum perceives. God's chosen people may be slaves, exiled, discriminated against, but it's irrelevant if the people themselves refuse to believe it. 

This is lesson of the just observed holiday of Passover. Our Sages insist that the Children of Israel were redeemed early as they were in danger of complete assimilation...

This probably needs some further thought as well, but hopefully it's coherent enough... 

The Jealousy of Venus (Part 1)

I don't usually like writing my ideas when they are only half-baked, but with Purim and Pesach I haven't written in a while so here goes...  

This is about Till We Have Faces (TWHF). Elsewhere, I've explained my general contention about this work that Lewis calls his best work, but now I'm attempting to come to terms with the following challenge which I think may help demonstrate the purpose of this work. Let me quickly note that I am in no way an expert on Greek and Roman mythology so I may be way off here anyway... 

Venus is the goddess of love and beauty. No doubt this is very important to Lewis who, as we've spoken about, enables the half-gods to take their place when the true God is ascendent. If, as Lewis believes, God is Love (as explained, for example, in Mere Christianity and The Problem of Pain) then of all the half-gods Venus must be the most important and that's why it makes sense that it is Venus/Aphrodite/Ungit who is the god of Glome. 

However, the story of Psyche presents the following question, how can Psyche be worshipped at the expense of Venus? Can't Venus just ramp up the beauty leaving Psyche's beauty in the dust? Can't Venus just make everyone love her? How can it be that people turn to Psyche's beauty and ignore the source of all beauty? And how does getting beauty from the Underworld help at all? 

I think the questions are in some way, self-answering. Of course, Venus could do all of that, but the problem isn't Psyche, it's the people. Just like the problem isn't God, but that people don't recognize God. So, Venus strikes out with vengeance against the object of people's worship, just like God struck out against the idols of the Egyptians (as we read about in the Passover Haggadah). Psyche must work for Venus to make Venus lovable. 

In truth, God is love, even if He is not always beloved. It is the task of His Nation to demonstrate His love and beauty to humanity.

OK, that's a start... not great, but we'll continue and see where this takes us...