Ep. #59 – Apologetics in C.S. Lewis w/ David Bates

by John DeRosa · Published September 2, 2019 · Updated August 25, 2019

Summary

How did C.S. Lewis argue for the existence of God? How did he argue for Christianity in particular? Would he have been sympathetic to Classical Theism? David Bates joins us to answer these questions while discussing the life and apologetics of C.S. Lewis.

Guest Bio

David Bates is an English software Engineer living in the United States. He was raised Catholic but fell away for a time period of several years when explored various non-Catholic Christian congregations. He returned wholeheartedly to Catholicism, writing about the Faith at RestlessPilgrim.net and travelling around the country giving talks on Scripture, Church History, Evangelism and Apologetics. He also hosts a weekly podcast, Pints With Jack, where he and his co-host work chapter-by-chapter through the works of C.S. Lewis.

Show Outline

In the first segment, David brings us through an excellent outline of C.S. Lewis’ life and how it shapes his writing. He describes 3 arguments that Lewis expounded on in various places which point to the existence of God.

In the next segment, we discuss what C.S. Lewis had to say defending Christianity in particular. I ask David about the famous trilemma. We also discuss whether aspects of classical theism can be found in Lewis’ work.

In the final segment, David recommends three books by C.S. Lewis where Catholics should start. He also explains how C.S. Lewis is a wonderful example of a humble apologist.