Henry F. Schaefer Testimonial

C. S. Lewis is considered the most widely read and influential serious Christian writer of the 20th century. While not agreeing with him on a few minor points, I find Lewis's writing to be very insightful and am happy to be a member of his fan club. I have given his classic book "Mere Christianity" to many friends over the years. I also especially like his novel "That Hideous Strength," which is required reading in my "Science and Christianity" course at the University of Georgia. I consider C. S. Lewis to be the best example we have for constructive engagement by a Christian scholar with the secular world of the university.

I became a Christian during my fourth year as a professor of chemistry at the University of California at Berkeley. For details, see my book "Science and Christianity: Conflict or Coherence?" Although I had not read any C. S. Lewis at the time, I did so soon thereafter, and found his books to be exceptionally helpful. In particular Lewis inspired me to examine the relationship between my academic pursuits in chemistry/physics and the Christian faith. I was initially surprised to find that most of the pioneers in the physical sciences were Christians. There can be no doubt that there is a tremendous tradition, past and indeed present, of distinguished scientist Christians. It gives me great joy to be a part of that continuing adventure.

This resource is part of a series on Mere Christianity.  Click here to listen to the full series.