Integrative Essay

Abigail Dodrill
Professors Paulo & Adriana Ribeiro

IDIS-150-07
22 January 2011
Work Count: 1,750

I just transferred to Calvin in the fall of 2010. I had already spent two years at a state university back home in Tennessee but by the end of my first semester there I knew that was not the school for me. So after a long journey of searching for colleges, visiting multiple schools and taking a year off to work and save after I found Calvin I was finally able to start attending this past fall semester. Because I am only able to attend Calvin for two years before graduating from college it was my goal, and still is, to get all I can out of every class I take. I knew that my first interim I was going to take DCM I just didn’t know which one. After searching the long list of options I had narrowed it down to two DCM classes but C.S. Lewis won over for multiple reasons. The main reason was that I did not know much about him. I had heard of the man and read bit and pieces of his first Chronicles of Narnia book but that was the extent of my knowledge about the great author.

The first day in the class we discussed his article Meditation in a Toolshed which was a great article to start with. Reading this article in a way brought me into the world of C.S. Lewis and gave me a little picture of how his mind worked when he was writing. In this reading Lewis was telling me to keep an open mind and explore everything around me with multiple view points. It was a good start to the class because it opened my mind and made me more receptive to what those in the class had to say and it made me more open for additional reading by Lewis and Plantinga that were ahead of us.

The next article that we read was Bulverism and this one really got my attention because as a social worker this seemed to be another form of an ism such as racism, sexism, ageism etc. I work every day to train myself to be equal to all and to not judge others and in this article that is was I saw Lewis reminding us to do. As Lewis said in the article so many of our thoughts today are “tainted” by society and we have to remove ourselves from that and keep ourselves aligned with God and not this world. As we were being taught how to keep our eyes on heavenly things instead of earthly things we dove into the book Engaging God’s World by Cornelius Plantinga Jr. The first chapter we read was titled “Longing and Hope” and it focused on finding complete happiness and how that can only by found in heaven so we should stop looking for it on earth. One example that Plantinga gave was “Even if we fall deeply in love and marry another human being, we discover that our spiritual and sexual oneness isn’t final. It’s wonderful, but not final. It might even be as good as human oneness can be, but something in us keeps saying 'not this' or 'still beyond.'” As a recently married woman I am so blessed to be able to get this little glimpse of what God’s relationship is with the church when I look at my relationship with my husband.

The next article that I was really interested in was The Weight of Glory by C.S. Lewis. He said “Money is not the natural reward of love; that is why we call a man mercenary if he marries a woman for the sake of her money. But marriage is the proper reward for a real lover, and he is not mercenary for desiring it.” I think that through this Lewis was telling his readers that they needed to check themselves when going to God for something because we can often turn to God with the goal of getting something for ourselves instead of to glorify Him. We do not need to seek out fame or fortune but instead want to be famous in God’s eyes and have him say “well done my good and faithful servant” In chapter two of Plantinga’s book he reminded us that in order to be good and faithful servants of God that we are to tend to the earth that God entrusted us with. I thought of it as, if we desert God’s earth and don’t care for it that is being disrespectful to our Heavenly Father.

We should live strong, passionate lives always for Christ and as Lewis’ book The Screwtape Letters says we are never to have “lukewarm behavior.” In this reading of the twelfth letter in his book gave a warning that is we become lukewarm Christians we are letting the devil win because we are not growing as we are called to do. This is exactly what our enemy, the devil, wants. Lewis would often tie his writings together and I think that his article The Poison of Subjectivism ties in with how Christians should grow because it says “If water stands too long it stinks.” This means that as Christians we are not supposed to just sit back and wait for Christ to return. We are supposed to be active in caring for the land, the people, and all creatures God created. We are supposed to keep busy with God’s work until the second coming. Then we get to spend the rest of eternity with Jesus.

Plantinga reminds his readers in chapter three of his book that as we are to work hard until the second coming we are only here temporarily. We are to tend to the earth and keep it in good shape for God’s glory but we do not need to make it our home because our home is not of this earth. As we take care of the earth we are showing God’s goodness and we are spreading that around the world. That brings God joy and we are found to be good in His eyes.

In chapter 4 of Plantinga’s book titled “Redemption” he writes about how Jesus died, was buried, went to hell for 3 days, conquered evil and rose and is now seated at the right hand of God. Jesus died the ultimate death so that all of His believers would not have to. Plantinga also mentions how Jesus did not only suffer on the cross but he endured throughout his entire life. Even though the life he led was perfect, he lived it like a fallen Christian. To quote Plantinga “He [Jesus] got himself baptized, like every sinner. He absorbed accusations. He accepted rebuke without protest. He endured gossip about his choice of friends and his eating and drinking habits…Jesus endured the kind of mockery that shreds a person’s dignity.” God sent his son and his son died for us. That is always a good reminder of how much God loves us.

Reading the chapter on Eros in C.S. Lewis’ book The Four Loves was my favorite reading of the entire interim because it really resonated with where I am in my life right now, as a newlywed. Eros, as Lewis defines it is "being in love" in the lovers sense. As I have recently entered into marriage where as Lewis calls it we engage in “venus” or “sexual element within Eros” Being in a marriage and having all the benefits of marriage such as what Lewis calls venus is the closest thing to being one with a physical person. This is what is meant when people say that marriage is the closest thing we can get to understanding God’s relationship with His church. It is a very special gift to be married and it is a gift that should not be taken lightly. In a marriage one does not put themselves first, they are to think of their other half and communicate with them when making a decision. This is how the church is to act with their decisions. Churches are supposed to consult God with any decision but far too often churches get away from this and think that they are making the best decision for their congregation, but churches need to ask is that what God would want for His church. Everything should go back to God before a final decision is made. This applies to every Christian because we make up God’s church.

Making up God’s church Christians also make up something that Lewis wrote about in his article The Inner Ring. We make up rings, gangs, or to phrase is to today’s culture what we call “cliques.” Lewis talks about how rings are not bad or good but they can become bad when the goal of a ring is to exclude people once you get into the group because it was so hard for you to get in. This is not how God wants us to form relationships with others. We are to be open and always inviting to anyone who wants to join in company with us. We should fellowship with all kinds of people. We should also have good accountability with our closest friends so that we do not go down a path that will lead us to sin against God.

To conclude I think it is appropriate to write about the last chapter from Plantinga’s book which is titled "Vocation in the Kingdom of God" because this chapter really speaks to college students, like myself. It informs the readers that education is important and is a decision that should not be taken lightly because in our college years we really shape our minds and gain knowledge about how to have a good career that glorifies and focuses on God and not ourselves. Plantinga also reminds students to pick a career based on what God is calling us to do and not based on what income we want to have. God will always care for us if we follow Him and do His will.

This DCM class gave me many reminders of why I chose to attend Calvin College, why I chose the career of a social worker and that my focus needs to be on God and not myself. Through C.S. Lewis and Cornelius Plantinga Jr. I was refreshed and given new perspectives on many concepts and ways that all Christians need to be reminded of. We live for God everyday to glorify His reputation because we love Him.


                                          Work Cited

Lewis, C. S. Meditation in a Toolshed, God in the Dock; Essays on Theology and Ethics. Grand Rapids. Eerdmans, 1970. Print.

Lewis, C. S. Bulverism, God in the Dock; Essays on Theology and Ethics. Grand Rapids. Eerdmans, 1970. Print.

Plantinga, Cornelius Jr. Engaging God's World. Grand Rapids. William B. Eerdmans, 2002. Print

Lewis, C. S. The Weight of Glory. Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Oxford, 1942. Lecture

Lewis, C. S. The Screwtape Letters. New York City: HarperCollins, 1942. Print.

Lewis, C. S. The Four Loves. New York: Harcourt, Brace, 1960. Print.

Lewis, C. S. The Inner Ring. University of London, England, 1944. Lecture.

The Problem of Pain

The main question that C.S. Lewis asks in this book is why did God allow there to be pain and suffering to this world? If God knows everything and loves everyone why does He let us suffer? These are very hard questions to answer but C.S. Lewis tackles them as best he can. Yet again C.S. Lewis tries to give is advice on a lot of information we already know. He just brings new light to it. A part that really caught my attention in the chapter that we read was "all that is given to a creature with free will must be two-edged, not by the nature of the giver or of the gift, but by the nature of the recipient." In this idea it seems that Lewis is saying that in order for us to know peace we need to have suffering. This leads me to the questions would our world be dull without conflicts? What would we do if there were never any problems to solve? Wouldn't we get bored? These are questions that I have thought about before reading this chapter of Lewis' book. I know that after the second coming there will be no pain or suffering and that we will not be bored because we will be completely satisfied with just being with Jesus for eternity.

All this makes me think about my times of trouble, heartbreak, and tragic losses I have gone through and we have all gone through. It makes me think how I found myself needing God more than ever in those situations. When I was going through something hard the first thing I would do would be to ask why? And I didn’t ask a person why, I ask God why? I do not think that tragedies, pain or suffering are good things by any means. I do know though that we grow closer to God in those hard times. I think that if the world was the way it is now but without pain and suffering and everything was easy, would we need God? Would we go to God? Or would we get along by ourselves and just go with the flow of life because it was easy and nothing ever went wrong.

As humans we do not always depend on God but as Christian humans we should always go to God with our joys and our sufferings. Lewis reminded me of this during the reading and I know that I do not always thank God during the good times and I do not always ask for His help during the bad. After reading Lewis’ book I am reminded to do that. This was the last reading for the interim and I think it was very appropriately put here. We all need reminders about how to live our lives as Christians. We all need to go to God with everything everyday.

Engaging God’s World – Chapter 5

The final chapter of Plantinga’s book was interesting. I greatly enjoy being at Calvin College for many reasons that Plantinga mentioned and in a way I think he was too harsh on secular universities but then again I agree with him based on my experience. I attended a secular university for two years prior to coming to Calvin and they were not fun enjoyable years. I hated the school, I know hate is a strong word but it is true. I became depressed, I did not care about my education and simply got through each semester by doing as little as I could and I still made good grades because the people there, the professors did not care about their students or if the students got a good education. Of course there are some who do but yet again speaking from my experience I did not have many who did. I am not saying that all professors need to be strict and mean because you can have a professor who is funny, silly, and makes the class exciting and enjoyable, but they can still give you a good education.

From my experience at Calvin College the level of education I have received here completely opposite from the state university I was at for two years. The classes are great because not only do the professors care but the students care just as much, sometimes more about their education. Much of the time too it is not about the grade but about getting as much out of the class as one can. At Calvin is seems that those professors who do not care about their students are rarely found whereas at the state university the professors who truly cared about their students getting a good education were a rare find. This is where they are different. I would say that people go to most state universities to get a diploma to get a job. Lewis talks about education in Learning in War-Time and he stresses that we do not need to go to school as a means to an end, such as just to get a job. We need to go to school to get knowledge about a variety of subjects so we can help in many ways those who need help. God wants us to be well rounded and I think that getting an education at Calvin College, for the most part will give students that well rounded education. It is up to the students to pursue it though. As Lewis said in Learning in War-Time “We can therefore pursue knowledge as such, and beauty, as such, in the sure confidence that by so doing we are either advancing to the vision of God ourselves or indirectly helping others to do so."

I also think that students often just pick a college that is close to home or where their friends are going to go and as Christians we need to put more thought into where we get our undergraduate education because those four years at college will often shape a person in a way that no one imagines. As Plantinga says in chapter 5

“So deciding whether to marry or to remain single, and, if married, whether to conceive or adopt children, or do both. There are all vocational decisions for a citizen of the kingdom, and some of them are large. But a Christian looks at even the smaller decisions (who deserves my support for the office of county drain commissioner?) with faith and good humor, aware that in the plan of God, the mustard seed of one of our decisions may combine with the mustard seeds of others’ decisions to bring good growth for the kingdom.”

This also relates back to C. S. Lewis’ article Man or Rabbit. Because as good Christians we are called to live everyday for Christ, which means that every decision we make reflects back on God. We need to be careful as we go through our lives that we are living it to the best of our ability. God needs to be the center of our lives. I think that Calvin College helps students with putting God in the center of everything; education, family, and in the future our job.

Man or Rabbit?

Lewis asks just one question in this article. Can both Christians and non-Christians live good lives? He quickly answers the question with a strong "yes" however there is still a difference in their lives that comes out through their daily activities. I think that Lewis' purpose in writing this essay is to write to Christians telling them this is how you should act but right now you are acting a lot like a moral non-Christian. Lewis is very straightforward with this article, as he is with all his articles.

Lewis writes about questions that non-Christians may ask about becoming a Christian such as "Need I bother about it? Mayn’t I just evade the issue, just let sleeping dogs lie, and get on with being ‘good’? Aren't good intentions safe and blameless without knocking at that dreadful door and making sure whether there is, or isn't someone inside" Lewis seems to show disgust at the thought of this. He accused people who ask those questions of being lazy and cowards and intentionally turning away from God. They keep their morals, but do not want to do more than that. That is where Christians are called to be different. Christians and non-Christians can be moral beings but Christians are called to take it a step further by not only being moral, but being knowledgeable so that they can help in any situation. Lewis gives the example of knowing medical science. “If you had no knowledge of medical science, you would probably give him a large solid meal; and as a result your men would die. That is what comes from working in the dark.” Christians do not need to “work in the dark.” We need to use the light of the Lord that we were given. This reminds me of the importance of getting a good education, such as the education that Calvin gives. As college students we are equipping ourselves with the information we need to know in order to be successful in helping others through this life on earth.

Lewis yet again reminds us how we are to live as good Christians. This is extremely important because, as Lewis says in other writings that our actions do not only impact us but they impact how people see God because we are little Christs. We live for God.

The Inner Ring

This reading by C. S. Lewis yet again was written long ago, but is still very relevant to today’s culture and societies around the world. No matter what country you live in there are going to be little groups or friends here and there, cliques of people, gangs, bands etc. There are so many names for what Lewis calls “the inner ring” Lewis wrote “You merely wanted to be ‘in.’ And that is a pleasure that cannot last. As soon as your new associates have been staled to you by custom, you will be looking for another Ring.” This makes me think of all the products that we buy into today and the particular brand that comes to mind is Apple. Right now anything that has an Apple logo is “in” such as the iPhone, iPad, MacBook, iPod. I am not saying that having apple products is a bad thing. I have one myself. Like Lewis said “I am not going to say that the existence of Inner Rings is an Evil. It is certainly unavoidable...But the desire which draws us into Inner Rings is another matter. A thing may be morally neutral and yet the desire for that thing may be dangerous.” I think that when we start making the products we have our little idols that is when it is bad. Many people buy the first new products as soon as Apple puts them up for sale. This is what I like to call “keeping up with the Joneses.” It is a worldwide clique the much of society participates in. Much of society keeps up with the latest Apple products because they want to be “in.”

Also Lewis says that we will always be looking for another ring to enter as soon as we enter into one because we will never be satisfied with what we have. This seems to me the biggest reason why companies, such as Apple, make upgrades because then people who had the first iPhone can now throw that one out and get the one that is better and looks cooler and they can be the first to have is which will give them a societal advantage above all their friends. Of course I am being sarcastic here but isn’t that what businesses in today’s society tell us. That in order to be accepted by our friends and colleagues then we must have the latest and greatest things that money can buy. Because as advertisements tell us, then we will be happy.

I love that Lewis brings us back to reality and tells us that it is not about that at all. God doesn’t care what gadget you have. He cares about what is in your heart, how you treat people and who you really worship. Lewis yet again gave me a different perspective on the simplest thing.

The Four Loves - Eros

This is the reading that I suspect I will most enjoy out of all the readings this interim. It is very relevant to me right now because I just got married on December 27. As I read it I thought back to the beginning of my relationship with my husband, Matt. We were just 17 and about to be high school seniors with many big life choices to make. As single people we had been inclined to put ourselves first when it came to decisions as simple as what movie to watch or what to do on a Saturday night to the more important decisions such as what college to attend. Then we began to fall in love. Our relationship grew and we began to think more and more about each other’s wants and needs instead of strictly ourselves. This brings me to the quote by C.S. Lewis in the chapter about Eros in his book The Four Loves where he said "Eros enters him like an invader, taking over and reorganizing, one by one, the institutions of a conquered country. It may have taken over many others before it reaches the sex in him; and it will reorganize that too." My interpretation of what Lewis said here is that as humans we are naturally inclined to put ourselves first, but when humans fall into true love that natural inclination changes as the time goes on and the love grows stronger and stronger.

As a boyfriend or girlfriend people are technically still single because they are not married. They are courting each other and considering if that person is the one they wish to engage in marriage with. As Lewis said that reorganization takes place once Eros enters a person. Still as two people, who are not married yet, are in a relationship it makes some decisions much harder such as choosing a college. Deciding on what college to attend it hard enough when you are not in a relationship with a man or woman, but because that love is blossoming it makes it extra hard. Matt and I spent our first year of college together at the same university in our home town but we both knew that university was not where we wanted to graduate from. We had the thirst for knowledge from a Christian perspective. We wanted the kind of education that Lewis wrote about in Learning in War-Time but we had to do the searching to find the right place; that was found in the discovery of Calvin College. The hard part was that Matt was able to get to Calvin College before I was. At this point we had been together for just over 2 years. We were very much in love and were getting closer and closer to thinking that marriage was the right decision for us. Matt made the right decision for him and came to Calvin but I was unable to do so just yet so I stayed in Tennessee at the state university for one more year. All in all we spent a full year apart in a long distance relationship. This is where the aspect that we were still single people came into play. Because we were not married we still had to live our own lives. As much as we longed for our own lives to walk along the same path so we could be together our lives took two different paths for one year and I can honestly say that was one of the hardest years of my life so far.

After that year apart some tough decisions were made regarding our relationship with each other. We were both deeply in love with the other. As Lewis said we were engaging in the love that brought "simply a delighted pre-occupation with the Beloved." We just wanted to be together. I strongly agree with the saying “absence makes the heart grow fonder.” I like to say it will either make you or break you. After many tough decisions about our future as single people and our future as two people in a loving relationship that was leading to marriage we both ended up back in Grand Rapids. He attended school and I worked with the goal of saving enough money to attend Calvin College as I had wanted for two years. A year later we were both attending school and were engaged to be married. Love can carry you all over the place. It will drag you through the mud and it can also put you on the highest cloud. We had definitely been drug through the mud by love but had made it to a high cloud.

My intention in sharing my story with you is to show how Lewis was so right in saying that love can definitely reorganize a person’s thought process. Five years ago, before I knew my husband, I saw my life taking a completely different path, but as soon as I fell in love with him the path I saw myself started to change. Eros invaded my life and I could no longer just think of myself. I thought of my boyfriend, then my fiancé and now I think of my husband. With each step we took our relationship grew and changed. Now because of marriage we have just entered into a whole new level where we are no longer single people in a relationship, but we each make up a part of one marriage. We will now consider the other in every decision that we make. In the process of our courtship God reorganized our lives and our priorities changed as our love for each other grew. Each step of our relationship was an  important one and I think that everything we went through to get to where we are today will help us as we grow in our new marriage. Even though Lewis was not married when he wrote this, he definitely knew what he was talking about.

I want to end this post with a picture of our ceremony and this quote from Lewis saying “First, theologically, because this is the body's share in marriage which, by God's choice, is the mystical image of the union between God and Man.” It was very important for us to get married in God’s house because our marriage is to be an example of the relationship between God and His church. We are very blessed to be able to share in this kind of relationship with each other and I hope that everyone of you who are yet to be married will be able to do the same.

Engaging God’s World – Chapter 4 - Redemption

So far we have read about longing and hope, how we were created, the fall of man, and now we move on to the redemption of man which means we must understand that Jesus, God's one and only son was sacrificed in our place. He took all of our sins upon himself and carried them to the cross where he died. He was placed in a tomb and descended to hell. After three days he conquered the grave and rose to heaven to sit at the right hand of the Father. Plantinga begins chapter 4 of his book Engaging God’s World with this verse from Isaiah 53:3 which says “But he was wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the punishment that made us whole, and by his bruises we are healed.”

In my group discussion today we discussed in depth where Plantinga talked about how Jesus suffered not only at the cross but all throughout his life on earth. Jesus lived in a way that a “repentant sinner” would act even though he was sinless.

            “He got himself baptized, like every sinner. He absorbed accusations. He accepted rebuke without protest. He endured gossip about his choice of friends and his eating and drinking habits…Jesus endured the kind of mockery that shreds a person’s dignity.”

Jesus lived through all this without complaint, without sinning or wanting to sin once. He lived a complete pure life. We must remember too that while Jesus was here on earth he was human just like us. He had been emptied of every spiritual attribute so that he could resist the same temptations as we do every day. Jesus resisted and never sinned once, even when the devil tempted him for days and nights on end. Plantinga does a good job at reminding us that Jesus sacrificed all so that we could be with him forever in eternity. Now it is our responsibility to be good representations of little Christ’s until the second coming when we will be forever united with Jesus and we will spend eternity in paradise.

From C.S. Lewis’ writing on Mere Christianity Lewis says “The child wears a coat that’s too big and a hat that falls down over her eyes. She clumps around in grownup shoes and she clips on earrings that swing down to the middle of her neck. It’s all a kind of pretending, but it’s also a kind of preparing, because every child wants one day to be a person who fits into clothes of this size.” As every child yearns to be a grownup and act like a grownup, we wish to be a part of the kingdom of God. We grow closer to God in our everyday walk, the time grows closer to the day when we will see Jesus. We must patiently wait on His return. It is good to stay refreshed with books such as Plantinga’s that will further prepare us for the second coming of Christ.