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Alister E. McGrath is a historian, biochemist, and Christian theologian born in Belfast, Northern Ireland. A longtime professor at Oxford University, he now holds the chair in theology, ministry, and education at the University of London.

Dr. McGrath has written a new biography of C. S. Lewis that is well worth your time. I asked him to respond to a few questions about his book – C. S. Lewis – A Life: Eccentric Genius, Reluctant Prophet.

Trevin Wax: There are many well-known biographies of Lewis currently available, including several from those who knew him personally. What prompted you to take on this task? What did you feel was missing from the other treatments of Lewis’ life?

Alister McGrath: There were several issues that made me come to this conclusion.

First, that some biographies to date didn’t really understand Lewis’s Irish background, or the Oxford academic culture in which he worked for so long. I know these both intimately, and was able to cast light on some things that weren’t really understood properly in earlier biographies.

Plus there has been a massive increase in scholarly work on Lewis in the last few decades.

Plus I carried out a lot of archive work, which turned up material that had never been used before – including a new Lewis letter.

Trevin Wax: What was your method in writing? How did you start and sustain such a mammoth project?

Alister McGrath: I began in September 2008. It involved reading everything that Lewis wrote in chronological order, to get a feel for the development of his ideas and writing style. This also allowed me to harvest some great quotes or phrases, which add interest to the text.

After sorting out a publisher, I then began to bring all the material together, with two aims in mind as I wrote:

  1. What does someone who has come across Lewis through the Narnia books or movies want to know about him?
  2. How best can I explain why Lewis is such a complex and fascinating person?

When I submitted the text, it weighed in at 135,000 words. I wondered if this was too long, but my publisher liked it, and suggested a few areas in which I could expand the book instead.

Trevin Wax: You paint Lewis as a “reluctant prophet” and also an “eccentric genius.” Some fans of Lewis may never have thought of him in these terms. Why is Lewis’ reluctance and eccentricity important for those seeking to understand his life and legacy?

Alister McGrath: These two descriptions capture aspects of Lewis’s character that help us understand his wrestling with fame, especially in the 1940s.

It is obvious that Lewis did not expect or want to become famous, and struggled with his popular acclaim. He also operated from outside the centre – for example, he did not really fit into Oxford’s academic culture. I personally think that one of the reasons that Lewis decided to use a spiritual director was his fear that he would be destroyed by his fame, unless he leaned how to handle it well.

Trevin Wax: You make the case that Lewis was wrong regarding the timing of his own conversion, first to theism and then to Christianity. How did you arrive at this conclusion and why do you think the timing is important?

Alister McGrath: I came to this conclusion when working through his writings in chronological order. When I finished everything relating to 1929, I found myself wondering why there was no sign of any change in outlook or tone! But the writings of 1930 show a mood change, with two very clear points of transition.

I didn’t expect to challenge the date of Lewis’s conversion when I began the project; I thought that I would simply cast more light on various aspects of his religious development.

But when I began to read Lewis in the light of a possible conversion in June 1930 (that seems most likely, but I can’t prove it), everything made a lot more sense.

Is it important? Not for Lewis fans. The important thing for them is that Lewis was an atheist who became a Christian. The exact timing isn’t an issue.

But for Lewis scholars, it is a major issue, as it affects our understanding of the trajectory from atheism to belief in God, and then from belief in God to an acceptance of Christianity.

Trevin Wax: You graciously point out the weakness in Lewis’s writings as well as the shortcomings of his personal life. Why is it important for us to keep these things in mind as we study his work?

Alister McGrath: Like the rest of us, Lewis was human. He made mistakes. He got things wrong. I admire Lewis, but I’m not prepared to idealize him.

I felt that the greatest service I could do Lewis was to paint an accurate picture of his life and character, and allow readers to understand that God can take and use even flawed people, and do great things through them.

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