Letter 16: Pupil in the Pew

Review:
Focus on the Present and Eternity with God, not the Past or the future.  

 Outline:
  • Ties back to letter 7
  • Screwtape is concerned about patient continuing to attend the same church.
  • If patient can not be made to be stopped from going to church, make him a church hopper because:
    • parochial organization brings unity from unlike
    • "...the search for a 'suitable' church makes the man a critic where the Enemy wants him to be a pupil."
  • Two churches near patient
    1. Vicar who waters down the faith to point of shocking congregation because he felt they were too hardheaded to get it.
    2. Fr. Spike who always shocks, some dishonesty; but really believes.
  • Both are party churches where you major on minors and forget doctrine.
Terminology:
  • Coterie - an intimate, often exclusive, group of persons with a common interest
  • Platitudes - flat or trite remarks
  • Insipid - lacking flavor, dull, uninteresting
  • Maritain - Jacques Maritain (1882-1973) French, Catholic Philospher and fan of Aquinas; wrote a great deal in Britain and France
  • Hooker - Richard Hooker (1554-1600) A Rationalist; A top Anglican theologian and opponent of Puritan movement. Wrote much based on reason. Proper conduct was determined by:
    • Understanding your own nature.
    • Understanding your place in the external world.
  • Thomas Aquinas - (1225-1274) of Dominican order, leading theologian of the Western church prior to the reformation, much of his works are standard of Roman Catholic doctrine. Wrote great philosophical works that refrained from being overly speculative.
  • Pestilent - dangerous to life, deadly; used here as harmful, troublesome
Questions/Discussions:
  • What do you think of church hopping?
  • What is it with all the denominations today?
  • Do you have a different attitude depending on who is preaching or leading?
  • Do you look to God for the discernment of what to ignore and what to take in? And do you take it in?
  • When we pray are we conscious of how others listening to "how we pray" ?And when we hear others pray are we being critical of "how they pray"?
Scripture:
  • Romans 14 - talks about not being a stumbling block for a brother.

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