The picture I share today is of the pew in Holy Trinity Church in Headington Quarry that C.S. Lewis and his brother Warnie sat in every week for many years. Once Lewis moved into The Kilns this was the church he attended, this was the church he prayed in Sunday after Sunday. He rarely missed a service here, except when he wasn't home. This pew allowed Lewis both some privacy (since only 2 or 3 people could sit in it, and it was partially hidden behind the pillar) and yet gave Lewis full view of the pulpit and altar. Lewis didn't want his attendance at this church to distract from worship - they were there to give God the honor, not to have people fawn over this celebrated author. When I sat in this pew I had an unexpected range of feelings wash over me, everything from grief to awe - it brought me to tears. It was the most mystical, surprising and powerful moment in my visits to Oxford.
In conjunction with this picture I offer this quote from C.S. Lewis on prayer:
"There are, no doubt, passages in the New Testament which may seem at first sight to promise an invariable granting of our prayers. But that cannot be what they really mean. For in the very heart of the story we meet a glaring instance to the contrary. In Gethsemane the holiest of all petitioners prayed three times that a certain cup might pass from Him. It did not. After that the idea that prayer is recommended to us as a sort of infallible gimmick may be dismissed."
from "The World's Last Night and Other Essays".
No comments:
Post a Comment