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The Problem of Pain

4.1 of 5 stars 4.10 · rating details · 17,019 ratings · 599 reviews

The Problem of Pain answers the universal question, "Why would an all-loving, all-knowing God allow people to experience pain and suffering?" Master Christian apologist C.S. Lewis asserts that pain is a problem because our finite, human minds selfishly believe that pain-free lives would prove that God loves us. In truth, by asking for this, we want God to love us less, not...more

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Apr 27, 2011 Louize rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.
Pain posted a serious objection to Christianity (and to Heavenly authority in general), aggravated by claiming that Love is the essence of God. The Problem of Pain focuses on one question, but thoroughly argues on every aspect.

"If God were good, He would make His creatures perfectly happy, and if He were almighty He would be able to do what he wished. But the creatures are not happy. Therefore God lacks either goodness, or power, or both."

In other words, why would an all-knowing, all-powerful,...more
Pain posted a serious objection to Christianity (and to Heavenly authority in general), aggravated by claiming that Love is the essence of God. The Problem of Pain focuses on one question, but thoroughly argues on every aspect.

"If God were good, He would make His creatures perfectly happy, and if He were almighty He would be able to do what he wished. But the creatures are not happy. Therefore God lacks either goodness, or power, or both."

In other words, why would an all-knowing, all-powerful, and all-loving God allow people to experience pain and suffering?

Firstly, Lewis set his arguments by identifying God, as conceivable as possible, and his purpose through the subject of divine omnipotence and divine goodness. He argued that since we are beings of free souls and have the luxury of free will, we take advantage of the fixed laws of nature to hurt ourselves and one another. Yet, even though God is omnipotent and can do whatever he pleases, removing pain leads to a meaningless universe.

"Nonsense remains nonsense even if we talk it about God."

"Try to exclude the possibility of suffering which the order of nature and the existence of free-wills involve, and you will find that you have excluded life itself.”

God’s idea of good is unlike ours; His moral judgment must, therefore, differ from ours. Where God means love, we only mean Kindness. But love is not mere kindness. Let us have a mental note how much confusion between love and kindness is related to our modern thinking.

"Kindness cares not whether its object becomes good or bad, provided only that it escapes suffering", while Love "would rather see [the loved ones] suffer much than be happy in contemptible and estranging modes".

Recognizing the distinction between love and kindness illuminates what it means to be the object of God’s love. Because God loves us, he will not rest until we are purely lovable. To not want pain is, therefore, to not want His love.

"Love, in its own nature, demands the perfecting of the beloved; that the mere 'kindness' which tolerates anything except suffering in its object is, in that respect, at the opposite pole from Love."

Next he establishes his argument for the total corruption and the sin nature of man, as without a sin nature there is no reason to be corrected. How a bad creature could came from the hands of a good Creator? The most obvious answer is that it did not: man, and the rest of creation, was initially good, but through the abuse of freedom, man made himself an abominable, wicked creature he is now.

"The world is a dance in which good, descending from God, is disturbed by evil arising from the creatures, and the resulting conflict is resolved by God's own assumption of the suffering nature which evil produces. The doctrine of the Fall asserts that the evil which thus makes the fuel or raw material of the second and more complex kind of good is not God's contribution but man's".

Pain, through trials and sacrifices, teaches us to rely on God, to act out of spiritual strength, to act for purely heavenly purpose and to accept our discipleship.

"Human will becomes truly creative and truly our own when it is wholly God's, and this is one of the many senses in which he that loses his soul shall find it."

If distressful feelings disguise itself as thought, all nonsense is possible- faith in God is challenged, we object to His goodness, and worse, we doubt His existence. All of those seemed valid to a suffering soul, due to the sway of unbearable pain.

"We are not merely imperfect creatures that need improvement: we are rebels that need lay down their arms".

In conclusion then, pain is not a mere influence to make a creature's submission to the will of God easier. Remembering Prophet Isaiah’s words in the Bible, chapters 46-53, God has called him prior to his birth. He was molded and polished through physical pain, trials and humiliation to be equipped for God’s divine purpose.

When I first considered reading this book, I asked myself if I am lucid enough to absorb Lewis’ arguments. I ended up quoting him and taking notes more than I usually do. But then, I realized that I am merely to review, not write an abridge version. The Problem of Pain is a difficult read; it is not for the casual reader and you should expect to be intellectually challenged. But the big difficulty is much smaller compared to the bigger lessons within.
(less)

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May 27, 2012 Traveller rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: philosophy, religion-worldview

< -<-<- < -<-<- This or.... This or...this->->-->->- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0pPoRn...

Personally, I lean more towards the latter camp. Lewis does at least make a good, solid, and sophisticated effort to address the problem of: "Why does God allow so much pain and suffering, if He is really a loving God, and if He really does exist?"; - which is why Lewis gets 3 stars, even if I don't completely agree.

I remember quite liking his argument at the time I read it...more

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Nov 20, 2008 Jarrod Jenkins rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: nonfiction

Apology for the existence of pain and suffering. Lewis's comfortable, easy style speaks to me in most all of his books. This is no exception.

Memorable quotes:

"Love, in its own nature, demands the perfecting of the beloved; that the mere 'kindness' which tolerates anything except suffering in its object is, in that respect, at the opposite pole from Love. When we fall in love with a woman, do we cease to care whether she is clean or dirty, fair or foul? Do we not rather then first begin to care?...more

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Jan 16, 2011 Kjersti rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-i-own

I absolutely loved this book. I laughed, I blurted out loud "HA!"s between classes and generally forgot about time and place. It's very, VERY good book. My only concern with this review is on my side; I had a goal to get through it in three days, which I did. Thus, there were some parts I read through without the attention I probably should have devoted to it. I don't usually like writing reviews where the fault is with me; but alas, here I am.

As for content, CS Lewis has, as always, very well t...more

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Jul 01, 2012 Amelia, the pragmatic idealist rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: religion-theology, own

*Just* as good as Mere Christianity, but not quite as easy to understand. I would say, though, that this book is probably more relevant in our culture now than it was when it was first published.
I would recommend this book to absolutely everyone, because it seeks to give answers to questions that everybody asks at some point.

The idea behind this book is "why do we have pain in our life?" or more specifically, "If God is supposed to be good, and powerful, and "in charge," why does He allow suff...more

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Jun 01, 2007 RC rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: religiousstudies, missing

It says something that after so many years C. S. Lewis is still one of the foremost Christian apologists of our time. The Problem of Pain is a difficult question every religion has to deal with, and one which has been especially difficult for Christianity. Some religions have the luxury of explaining pain as something deserved - a result of bad behavior from a previous life, or perhaps pain and suffering are caused by a malevolent deity in opposition to a good and loving God. Christianity has no...more

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Jan 25, 2009 Maureen Wagner rated it 5 of 5 stars

As usual, Lewis's book doesn't disappoint. He gives interesting Christian perspectives on suffering without resorting to trite comments of "turn the other cheek" and "if God brings you to it, He'll bring you through it". A very worthwhile read, especially for Christians and C.S. Lewis fans.

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Jan 23, 2013 John rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: reviewed

I thought his most interesting chapter was the one on animal suffering. Lewis reasons that we suffer because Adam brought sin and death into the world.

But, why do animal have to suffer for Adam's disobedience? Good question. Lewis notes that while he is not a trained theologian, he is willing to hazard the truly bizarre hypothesis that something went wrong with the animal kingdom before the creation of man, and that is why god gave Adam dominion over them. God wanted us to fix whatever had gone...more

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Sep 21, 2007 Susetyo Priyojati rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: christianity

"The Problem of Pain" explains the paradox of "If God loves the world, why would He allow pain?" I won't explain much, except that (at least in Lewis' theory) pain is actually an alarm that something went wrong, in Lewis' word "God's megaphone." (that is one of the most popular of his quotes.) By the way, I wonder what a megaphone is - a cell phone with megapixel camera?
The book for me poses a paradox of "I love reading and I sense this book as an excellent reading material, so how could it be s...more

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Aug 31, 2012 Matthew Robbins rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: seminary, read-in-2012, non-fiction, theology

Surprised by how much I disagreed with in this book, despite agreeing with most of the overall conclusions. There are much better books on the theology of these issues, but few can match Lewis' intellect and command of language.

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Sep 06, 2007 Wayno rated it 2 of 5 stars Recommends it for: no one really

Shelves: religiousthemed

Very difficult work to follow, because of the language used. It not common english. For example, he overuses the word "numinious" which merely means "supernatural." Why use a word no one's familiar with?

Lots of word spins. The only real meat and potatoes is that sometimes Humans lock horns with God on the issue of self-sufficiency. God does everything to destroy our self-sufficiency, so we are dependent on him alone. That was the meat and potatoes I took from the book (on page 96 of the paperbac...more

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Mar 01, 2013 Jonathan Brooker rated it 3 of 5 stars

I love the way C.S. Lewis humbly approaches issues and difficult topics with a real unique insight. He's able to go deep while using metaphors that seem awfully simple. Throughout this book he is asking questions and getting my mind thinking about the use and purpose of pain in this world in ways I'd never thought. I think that wrestling with this kind of topic is absolutely essential to any Christian apologetic.

My reason for not giving it 4 stars is because, unbeknownst to me until now, Lewis a...more

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Feb 17, 2013 Daniel Carr rated it 2 of 5 stars

As a philosopher, C.S. Lewis has a very plain method of explanation. He is very methodical as he analyzes this problem of pain and he works through the human condition addressing many difficulties.

I unfortunately just couldn't really get into his writing in this book. I realize that it was not written to entertain but to instruct or inspire. But I would read one chapter every 1-2 nights before bed, and the next time I would sit down I could hardly recall what he had written about in the previous...more

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Sep 17, 2012 Kerry rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-i-didn-t-like

Reading this now for the third time, still trying to make sense of the tortuous prose and flawed logic. This adds nothing useful to one of the more interesting debates in Christianity - why a supposdly loving omnipotent god allows such suffering in good people. It barely relates anything factual and when it claims too, they are often inaccurate. His explanation of the Marxist view of poverty, shows he has either never read Marx, or not understood him! It really is a medieval reading of Christian...more

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Aug 27, 2012 Jamie rated it 2 of 5 stars

Not one of my favorite Lewis works. He leaned more toward talking about sin than pain. While no doubt on some level one's errors can definitely lead to pain, I was hoping for some more substantial stuff on the matter. When he did speak about pain as a way to be a Christian martyr, I disagreed with him ("As suicide is the typical expression of the stoic spirit, and battle of the arrior spirit, martyrdom always remains the supreme enacting and perfection of Christianity" p. 102). I don't think tha...more

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Jul 14, 2012 Sarah Coughlon rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012

I think I've finally begun to understand why people find C.S. Lewis to be so compelling. If I were a Christian, I would want my apologetics to be somewhat outward-looking: I would want a Lewis or a Chesterton to address their work at unbelievers and convince them of the truth. It is possible that Lewis thinks he's doing that, but he's not: The Problem of Pain, even more than his other work, seems to be less about convincing the skeptic than it is about helping the believer feel more comfortable....more I think I've finally begun to understand why people find C.S. Lewis to be so compelling. If I were a Christian, I would want my apologetics to be somewhat outward-looking: I would want a Lewis or a Chesterton to address their work at unbelievers and convince them of the truth. It is possible that Lewis thinks he's doing that, but he's not: The Problem of Pain, even more than his other work, seems to be less about convincing the skeptic than it is about helping the believer feel more comfortable.

He faces a very serious theological problem: how does an omniscient, omnipotent, and omnibenevolent God allow so much suffering in the world? Lewis's argument, once you trim away all of the weird speculations about the psychology of religion, is essentially the argument from free will: God wants to play out the drama of sanctification with human beings who freely choose him. Indeed, the drama positively requires suffering, as it is the only way for God to get through to truly bad people.

This seems, however, like a really stupid way of building a world: why is freedom of the will worth the cost of Darfur or the Khmer Rouge? psychologically, what does freedom actually mean? isn't suffering a really inefficient way of bringing souls to God? does God need for there to be quite so much suffering? None of those questions get answers, and that's where I suspect that he isn't actually trying to persuade unbelievers: he isn't arguing, as Leibniz did, that God made the best possible world, but is trying to present a way of thinking about God to people who already believe that God chose this world. That's different: if you've already bought into his God, then maybe Love and freedom will help you make sense of it. But if you feel comfortable looking his God in the face and demanding an explanation, you will probably be very frustrated with this book: Lewis tells a good story, but he doesn't advance any new arguments.

Stylistically, Lewis is fascinating here: he admits at several points that he is very uncomfortable with the arguments he's advancing. That doesn't absolve him of the logical non sequiturs, but it's reassuring to know that he isn't as flippant about the vastness of human suffering as he often sounds. His view of the psychological effects of suffering is very reminiscent of the Apostle Paul—we learn from pain—though I'm inclined to say that it's scientific bunk.

Finally: giant chunks of this book are devoted to arguments that have nothing to do with the classical problem of evil. Most of those diversions end up with Lewis looking like an embarrassing fool, such as his belief that supernatural dread is ipso facto a proof for the supernatural, or his belief that the Fall of Man was a historical event that impeded our ability to train animals. Those moments were particularly frustrating to me: so many people love this guy so much, why does he have to be wrong about everything? This is also the book where he outs himself as the crazy sexist that readers of The Chronicles of Narnia suspected all along, most blatantly when he sets up the analogy of "patient to agent, female to male, mirror to light, echo to voice" to describe our submission to God.

The best thing that can be said about this book is that it's laughably bad: I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a good hate-read.(less)

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May 21, 2012 VaultOfBooks rated it 3 of 5 stars

by: C.S. Lewis Grade: B+
“If God is good and all-powerful, why does he allow his creatures to suffer pain?” And what of the suffering of animals, who neither deserve pain nor can be improved by it? The greatest Christian thinker of our time sets out to disentangle this knotty issue. With his signature wealth of compassion and insight, C.S. Lewis offers answers to these crucial questions and shares his hope and wisdom to help heal a world hungering for a true understanding of human nature.
C.S. Lew...more by: C.S. Lewis Grade: B+
“If God is good and all-powerful, why does he allow his creatures to suffer pain?” And what of the suffering of animals, who neither deserve pain nor can be improved by it? The greatest Christian thinker of our time sets out to disentangle this knotty issue. With his signature wealth of compassion and insight, C.S. Lewis offers answers to these crucial questions and shares his hope and wisdom to help heal a world hungering for a true understanding of human nature.
C.S. Lewis produces a masterful collection on reasons we as a human race suffer pain from the Christian perspective. He reconciles why a supposedly good God would allow pain and/or inflict it. He starts off by showing us that is no simple feat to have both the fear of danger to our mortal bodies and the dread of a spiritual being. He calls it a sheer jump in between those two.
He moves on to state that the core of reality should be something unexpected and willful. Not made for us or by us but hitting us in the face. He says that Christianity is not a system that we have to fit the awkward fact of pain into but that Christianity is the problem. For pain wouldn’t be a problem unless we had some assurance that reality is ultimately righteous and loving.
The problem with pain comes with our human interpretations. C.S. Lewis states that nonsense is nonsense even when we talk about God. We may attribute miracles to him but not nonsense. Also when it comes to things like animal pain, we as humans can’t talk much about what we don’t know.
The stance that C. S. Lewis speaks from is the Christian perspective. But as you read you can get a sense that he isn’t being too exclusive about this. If you count yourself among a theist religion, especially a monotheistic one, you may find that C.S. Lewis is talking to you too. And I find that this is either very perceptive of him or characteristic of conversations about God. I really got to know C.S. Lewis better than I thought I had known him. He presented some ideas that were quite different from the teaching you usually hear from conservative Christians and I was under the impression that that is what he was.
As I went through this book I was taking down scores of notes. Asking, “What does that really mean?” “Huh?” And, “I never thought of that in that way before.” Harper said this of C.S. Lewis…
“…C.S. Lewis…makes you sure, whatever you believe, that religion accepted or rejected means something extremely serious…” –Harper
The problem of pain is one Lewis’ deeper theological books. It was difficult for this reviewer to understand at times and took two months to get through. Add this on top of the fact that C.S. Lewis repeatedly asserts in this text that he is a layman and you find you are reading a book authored by a remarkable man. The thoughts proposed in this book don’t terribly require a good understanding of certain theological principles beforehand but it is helpful if you know a little bit about the background of Christianity before you start reading the book.
I thoroughly enjoyed this read, it was very thought provoking and compelling. Does C.S. Lewis answer the question of the problem of pain? I couldn’t say. But I think he does a good job of explaining its possible nature, which is all I could ask.

Originally reviewed at www.the-vault.co.cc (less)

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Jul 30, 2011 Ampat Varghese rated it 5 of 5 stars

Most people today know C S Lewis only as the author of the Narnia Chronicles, that singular series of seven fantasy novels centred around the Lion-King Aslan, a thinly disguised representation of Jesus Christ, entering with a bang the space that Graham Greene called “the Pleasure Dome”. And closer watchers of Lewis and his heritage might also recall the 1993 film Shadowlands, loosely based on this Oxbridge Don’s relationship with and marriage to Joy Gresham, who later succumbs to bone cancer.
Apa...more

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Jul 27, 2011 Daniel Alvers rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Lewis misunderstands some theological implications but is very intellegent. This book was good for many things. Excellent in dealing with many of the issues surronding pain and suffering. Does a good job at describing what we sometimes misunderstand as love and good. I feel he could have even taken it further. You can definately see the beauty of his writting in this book. His discussion on the fall of man seemed very interesting and I am still pondering some of the implications of what was said...more

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Jul 27, 2011 James added it · review of another edition

The Problem of Pain is, in toto, a work of theology. There is much in the way of ethics, so much in fact that it is worthy as a reference to that discipline. It broaches apologetics. But I categorize its whole as theology.

In the preface of the book, Lewis disavows erudition in his observations to follow. His Preface and “Introductory” then proceed to make modern books that do claim erudition read like grammar school compositions. Flatly, this is one of the most genuinely intellectual books I hav...more The Problem of Pain is, in toto, a work of theology. There is much in the way of ethics, so much in fact that it is worthy as a reference to that discipline. It broaches apologetics. But I categorize its whole as theology.

In the preface of the book, Lewis disavows erudition in his observations to follow. His Preface and “Introductory” then proceed to make modern books that do claim erudition read like grammar school compositions. Flatly, this is one of the most genuinely intellectual books I have ever read, and a model of exactly how one should write a theological treatise.

Lewis displays a wondrous ability to describe highly contentious truths with unflinching boldness and succinctness. He expounds upon that which should be expounded, and takes as given those things which people of illiberal common sense know to be true, despite the modern American pseudo-academic atmosphere.

Reading Lewis is qualitatively different from most other theologians’ works. Just as sermons seem like a facsimile, a faint glimmer of the Bible itself, so it is with Lewis and theology. When one reads Lewis, particularly The Problem of Pain, it is like hearing the root and epitome of many theological truths of the last 100 years, as if many modern authors have only poorly echoed the ideas put forth in this book.

Lewis seems to have covered everything, from sensory pain to sadomasochism to Hell to Heaven. He even broaches animal pain, though imperfectly; that chapter and the last chapter were--as promised--not the definite, overwhelming truth of every other chapter. They were uncertain, yet plausible and inducing of heavy thought. The Problem of Pain is how to do theology–either have the entire book be stunning truth presented orderly and logically. Or at least, as was done here, if one wishes to conjecture and have a chapter or two that aren’t theological home runs, have them at the end, and provoking of thought, so later students may write essays about it in a classroom.

I didn’t understand only one thing: the idea that there is no increase in suffering when its recipients increase in number. Ontologically this is true, but it seems unhelpful practically. Otherwise, The Problem of Pain is a great work to be kept on a bookshelf forever.(less)

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May 07, 2011 Michael rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: christianity

For a person who includes "Mere Christianity" in any list of my favorite books (most influential, most often read, etc.), I really haven't read much of C.S. Lewis's other work. I intend to remedy that, having just finished "Surprised by Joy" and, prior to that, "The Problem of Pain".

As would be expected, this book is full of brilliant insights and Lewis's trademark logic and disarming wit. Consequently, it should be read by just about everyone, although it is probably not the best introduction t...more

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Jan 11, 2011 Mrsgaskell rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 8-star, british, nonfiction

The book I own is actually The Complete C. S. Lewis Signature Classics: Mere Christianity, The Screwtape Letters, A Grief Observed, The Problem of Pain, Miracles, The Great Divorce, and The Abolition of Man. I've been working my way through them in order and The Problem of Pain came up at a most appropriate time. C.S. Lewis tackles the question of why a powerful loving God would allow pain and suffering. This wasn't an easy read; at times I found it hard to follow his reasoning and the reference...more

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Nov 20, 2009 David rated it 5 of 5 stars

One of a pair from the same time. This issue is at the centre of all debates about an omnipotent, omniscient and apparently also a loving God who allows such things to happen, and it's also examined by Lewis personally in his book A Grief Observed, on losing his beloved wife to cancer. My own pain has been as nothing compared to what others have experienced, but real to me nonetheless. On the one hand you think it's all meaningless chance, on the other that this transforming power to the good mi...more

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Nov 06, 2009 Wendy rated it 4 of 5 stars

I first read this book during a time when my kids were very young, and I was struggling in my marriage, my purpose in life, etc. I can't even remember how my shabby copy got into my hands but I'm thankful to whoever gave it to me.

I don't have a love/hate thing going on with C.S. Lewis. Mine is more like a love/confusion thing. Because while I love some of his stuff, there are many times I'm reading and I just have to scratch my head and say, "Huh???" and attempt to re-read what he wrote. He's v...more

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Oct 09, 2009 Annie rated it 3 of 5 stars

I find that I'm not much of a philosophical kind of gal although that does not keep me from trying to understand those that philosophize. Lewis makes some interesting points however I have to admit, I found myself lost in his seemingly stream of consciousness writing. I suppose it is my own ignorance and lack of reading since I was not familiar with the majority of his intellectual references. I came away from this reading thinking, "boy, I need to read more".

Basically Lewis argues that pain is...more

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May 27, 2009 Heather rated it 5 of 5 stars

It has been a while since I have had a book challenge me both intellectually and spiritually. I had never read outside the Narnia Chronicles before this book, but now I am looking forward to exploring all of Lewis' works.
The language is thick and elevated, completely a different level than his fiction. The ideas and concepts are advanced for me, I caught myself imagining alternate realities like those in some of my science fiction novels because of the existential and metaphysical concepts expla...more

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Oct 18, 2010 Andrea Walker rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: philosophy, religion

This was not quite what I was expecting. Lewis made that clear in his introduction, so I was aware once I started to read that I was getting something else. I was expecting a treatise on methods of coping with pain - emotional, physical, acute, chronic - with some reference to Christianity as Lewis was a Christian and wrote from that standpoint.

This is a book that seeks to answer the question as to why pain exists, given the Christian notion of an all-powerful god that is goodness personified. A...more

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Jan 20, 2008 Nuclearlee rated it 1 of 5 stars

Horrible book. It's never a good idea to preface a book saying, "I didn't want to write this under my own name, but the publisher made me." I basically started reading the book thinking, "wow, he didn't even want to write this book, how can he make a good argument?" I'm not sure if there are any good ideas about why god has a plan for pain, but the evolutionary argument for it works just fine for me. To summarize the entire book, the real problem of pain was reading this book.

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Feb 23, 2013 Noel Burke rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This was a hard read (well, listen - audiobook). I think a good arguement was made for the problem of pain. I disagree with his analysis of the doctrine of total depravity. I don't think he quite got it and that is why he came to teh conclusion he came to. However, his arguements for why we act as we do and why there is pain here in the world was very well done. Ultimately, the question the world wants to know is this: why would a loving God allow bad things to happen to good people? The premise...more

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Aug 09, 2012 Benjamin rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

the problem of pain is classic lewis: a unique combination of deep philosophical thought, razor-sharp wit, the ability to poke fun at himself and a heart that is truly amazed by his God.

his premise is not to make pain or suffering any less distasteful, but to show that back of it all is the love of God. the book can really be broken into three sections. 1) the divine heart 2) human suffering 3) speculative ponderings.

the first section (ch. 1-3) gives the basis for all of lewis' further thoughts...more

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About C.S. Lewis

CLIVE STAPLES LEWIS (1898–1963) was one of the intellectual giants of the twentieth century and arguably one of the most influential writers of his day. He was a Fellow and Tutor in English Literature at Oxford University until 1954, when he was unanimously elected to the Chair of Medieval and Renaissance Literature at Cambridge University, a position he held until his retirement. He wrote more th...more

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Books by C.S. Lewis

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (Chronicles of Narnia, #2)

The Chronicles of Narnia (Chronicles of Narnia #1-7)

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (Chronicles of Narnia, #3)

The Magician's Nephew (Chronicles of Narnia, #1)

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Quotes from The Problem of Pain

“A man can no more diminish God's glory by refusing to worship Him than a lunatic can put out the sun by scribbling the word 'darkness' on the walls of his cell.” — 2,595 people liked it

“Mental pain is less dramatic than physical pain, but it is more common and also more hard to bear. The frequent attempt to conceal mental pain increases the burden: it is easier to say “My tooth is aching” than to say “My heart is broken.” — 279 people liked it

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BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26435.The_Problem_of_Pain?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1328546308l/26435.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26435.The_Problem_of_Pain?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]The Problem of Pain by C.S. Lewis[/url]

The Problem of Pain

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