by Eric L. Haschert

Created on: August 29, 2009   Last Updated: June 28, 2011

What C.S.Lewis writes about in the Screwtape Letters is how a senior devil Screwtape is teaching a younger devil Wormwood to steal a man's soul before he dies. As in many good books there is a happy ending.

The whole is just a premise to parade around our various religious defects how we as a people following Christ often misunderstand his message. These things are often debated either by ourselves or with others in the nature of conversations on religion well maybe they aren't but they should be. The problem with religion, just like anything else it's not completely fool proof and we make honest mistakes.

C.S. Lewis is also pointing out that some of these aren't honest mistakes some of us are misled by those who do not want to follow our particular religion. Some people only want to follow their favorite parts of the bible. While others think that they don't need it at all and are living for social position.

He is even pointing out that we might be seriously misled by someone but only the devil means us spiritual harm where others are merely dupes like us..So he makes fun of the devil with a jocular tongue and cheek way to talk about our religious foibles.

The thing is, is there really a Head Devil? Does he actually have underlings working for him? Does hell really exist? He doesn't tackle those issues what he does do is state they are real and they are after our very souls in a purely bureacratic manner.

Mostly what C.S. Lewis is speaking of in the Screwtape Letters are sins committed by those of us who believe in god. He doesn't catalogue them as cardinal or venal but he does point out how we can be misled to believing that we know the truth about the matter but actually have no clue whatsoever of what we are doing.

I thoroughly enjoyed the Screwtape Letters as much as I have his other books. I actually didn't get much from it the first time but the second time it was really good. Why didn't I get it the first time?  Religion was new to me in both practice and theory with time and experience I was able to relate to the book better. 

Whether you believe in the devil or not the Screwtape Letters are a good read for anyone who wants to avoid the pitfalls of religious misunderstanding and sin.

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