How to deal with temptation

How to deal with temptation? Here are a few thoughts on that subject.

What is temptation? I checked a few definitions, and didn't find them very helpful. (They were circular - temptation is being tempted.) So, I stipulate that temptation is a process or event that attracts you toward sin. I further stipulate that a sin is a deliberate disobedience of God.

So, how should we deal with temptation?
1) Avoid it. Stay away from situations, people, or things that you know are likely to cause you to be tempted. This requires that you can envision a temptation coming, and avoid it. There are temptations that you can't foresee, and temptations that you can't avoid. An example of a situation you couldn't avoid would be if you were in jail, or a hospital room, and the source of temptation was within the jail cell, or the room. It is often difficult to avoid temptations coming from within your family, on the job, or in a school class, or in your neighborhood.

2) Remember that God has promised deliverance: "No temptation has taken you except what is common to man. God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted above what you are able, but will with the temptation also make the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it." (I Corinthians 10:13, WEB)


This requires, of course, that you want to be delivered.


3) Remember that temptation is not sin, and don't be defeated spiritually by temptation. James 1:12 says "Blessed is the man who endures temptation, for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life, which the Lord promised to those who love him." (WEB) James indicates that enduring temptation, far from being a sign of God's punishment, may be a source of blessing. He also says, in the same chapter, "1:2 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you fall into various temptations, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance."


4) Do good things. If you are likely to be tempted because you don't have anything positive to do, find something good, or at least not bad, to do, housework, for example.

5) Trust in Christ. Hebrews 2:18 says "For in that he himself has suffered being tempted, he is able to help those who are tempted."

6) And, of course, prayer should be part of each step listed! 


Thanks for reading. Avoid temptation!

Tests and Temptations

Last Sunday, my pastor cleared up something for me. I have long wondered why the Bible distinguishes between being tested and being tempted, when, to someone who is going through either, they would seem to appear the same. The distinction given is that God doesn't tempt people, but the devil does. God tests.

My pastor said something like this: The devil tempts us because he wants us to fail. God tests us because He knows we'll succeed.

I will cite three well-known Biblical examples of tests briefly.

The first things we hear of Joseph are not promising. He was, apparently, a spoiled brat. But God must have seen something in him. Joseph was allowed to be tested by Potiphar's wife, and also by the actions of his brothers. He triumphed, even though he was put in jail as a result of the first test, and sold into slavery as a result of the second. God knew what Joseph would do, but Joseph didn't. The biggest triumph was not his ascension to high office in Egypt. It was that he was able to forgive his brothers.

God allowed Job to be tested by the devil. Job triumphed. He didn't lose his faith in God, even though he lost almost everything else, except his wife, who tried to get him to renounce God.

As far as I know, the Bible doesn't specifically say that God was testing Job, or Joseph.

The most famous case (except for Christ, Himself) is that of Abraham. God tested him. Would he be willing to kill and sacrifice his only son? God knew what Abraham would do, but Abraham didn't.

There's another case that I would like to consider. That is the case of Ruth. Ruth could have stayed in Moab, but chose to leave, going to a place she had never seen, where she probably wasn't expecting much of a welcome, or worse, and all because she wanted to stay with Naomi, and have Naomi's God as her own. Why? It wasn't because Naomi had prospered. It must have been because Naomi, herself, stood a test, staying true to her faith when her husband and sons died, in a foreign land, leaving her as a defenseless widow. Ruth must have seen something attractive in her mother-in-law's life.

Ruth stood the test. She followed Naomi. She did what Naomi said she should. She didn't flirt with the Jewish young men around her (Boaz said that). She just picked up the grain left behind. As a result, she became one of the ancestors of the Jewish kings, and of Christ, Himself. God knew all this, but Ruth certainly didn't, when she decided to leave her home and set off with her mother-in-law.

Thanks for reading.

Where is God when things hurt us badly? pt. 4

This is the fourth in a series of posts. The most recent is here.

I realized, this morning during church (The pastor was speaking about Job, and while I was in that book of the Bible, I sneaked a peek at the NIV Reference Bible's introduction to the book.) that my previous posts had left out a very significant factor.

The question raised by the title of these posts is a thorny one, the question of theodicy. A person who commented on those was not convinced that I have an answer to the question that can be defended by argument. I'm not sure that I do either. I believe that I do have an answer from experience. The answer is that God's love never deserts us, not matter what.

The significant factor that I left out will not improve my chances at an argument, but, to the Christian, it's significant. That is that we and God are not the only actors in the drama. There's also Satan. Satan, although by no means as powerful as God, has some power, and wishes us no good. He has warped the world so that it contains germs, diseases, poisons, cancer, and the like. He also tempts humans to do evil, and, all too often, we succumb.

Well, doesn't the existence of Satan mean that God is not omnipotent? Why would a loving God allow the existence of such a being? I don't think I have a complete answer to that. One possibility is that God is giving Satan, himself, a chance to repent. Another is that God allows Satan to bring misery into the world in punishment for the sins of humanity. A third, illustrated by Job, is that God allows Satan to hurt good people so that their triumph over such hurt can be an inspiration to others. And, fourthly, God allows testing because that refines character. These four possibilities are not mutually exclusive.

To emphasize the last point, here's a quotation from C. S. Lewis:
When a man turns to Christ and seems to be getting on pretty well (in the sense that some of his bad habits are now corrected), he often feels that it would now be natural if things went fairly smoothly. When troubles come along--illnesses, money troubles, new kinds of temptation--he is disappointed. These things, he feels, might have been necessary to rouse him and make him repent in his bad old days; but why now? Because God is forcing him on or up, to a higher level: putting him into situations where he will have to be very much braver, or more patient, or more loving, than he ever dreamed of being before. It seems to us all unnecessary: but that is because we have not yet had the slightest notion of the tremendous thing He means to make of us. C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity: What One Must Believe to Be a Christian. New York: Macmillan, 1952. p. 174.

And one from James 1:
2 Count it all joy, my brothers*, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. (ESV)
*There is an ESV text note, indicating that "brothers" can mean "brothers and sisters."

Thanks for reading.

Joseph and Temptation

In a previous post, I discussed Joseph's first dreams.

I'd like to say a little about Joseph's temptations in this post.

Joseph apparently yielded to temptations to pride early in his life. He seemed to consider himself to be better than his half-brothers. His father, of course, encouraged this, and was one source of the temptation. I believe all of us are tempted to pride, probably on a regular basis.

Joseph was tempted to have sexual intercourse by Potiphar's wife, (Genesis 39) and refused. He suffered for this, and probably knew, or guessed, that he would suffer. She must have been a strong-willed woman, used to getting her way.

Why did Joseph succumb to the first temptation, and not the second? I can only speculate, but here's my theory -- the best way to defeat temptations is to decide previously that you won't yield. I Corinthians 10:13 says "13 No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it." (ESV) One of those ways of escape is to have the question settled in advance. I speculate that, as to most of us, pride came along to tempt Joseph before he was mature enough to have his mind made up to resist it. He could have resisted, but he didn't. Somewhere, before Potiphar's wife came along, probably before he ever entered Egypt, I think Joseph had decided that he wouldn't be guilty of sexual sin. He resisted successfully.

I am reminded of the story of Daniel, who refused to eat food that didn't fit Jewish dietary regulations (Daniel 1:8). I believe Daniel made up his mind about this question early. He also had made up his mind about praying to his God. (Daniel 6) He would do this, even if tempted not to. So, when his very life was threatened, if he wouldn't stop, he didn't stop praying.

Pride is a subtle temptation. It can come to us in so many ways that it is difficult to defend against. I believe we should pay more attention to sins of pride than we do. I hope I'm not being proud in urging this . . .

By the way, it looks like I'm writing a series on some thoughts from my devotional reading. We'll see where that goes.

Thanks for reading!

Temptations in Narnia

In honor of the Narnia movie, opening in theaters today, I am posting references to a series of my earlier posts, exploring the idea of temptations experienced by various characters in the Narnia books. I have also explored the idea of temptation, in general, a little.

The post on The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe is here.

The post on Prince Caspian is here.

The post on The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is here.

The post on The Horse and His Boy is here.

The post on The Magician's Nephew is here.

The post on The Silver Chair is here.

The post on The Last Battle is here.

Escape temptation, and enjoy the movie. Read the books, if necessary, again.

The Christian's Secret of a Happy Life, pt. 7

I continue a series of excerpts from The Christian's Secret of a Happy Life by Hannah Whitall Smith. The book, which is public domain, is available on-line in its entirety here. This version is somewhat different from the paperback I have in my physical possession. (New York: Ballentine Books, 1986) For an article on Smith, in Christian History, go here.

This is some of what Smith had to say on "Difficulties Concerning Temptation"

It seems hardly worth while to say that temptation is not sin, and yet most of the distress about it arises from not understanding this fact. The very suggestion of wrong seems to bring pollution with it, and the evil agency not being recognized, the poor tempted soul begins to feel as if it must be very bad indeed, and very far off from God to have had such thoughts and suggestions. It is as though a burglar should break into a man's house to steal, and, when the master of the house began to resist him and to drive him out, should turn round and accuse the owner of being himself the thief. It is the enemy's grand ruse for entrapping us. He comes and whispers suggestions of evil to us, doubts, blasphemies, jealousies, envyings, and pride; and then turns round and says, "Oh, how wicked you must be to think of such things! It is very plain that you are not trusting the Lord; for if you were, it would have been impossible for these things to have entered your heart." This reasoning sounds so very plausible that the soul often accepts it as true, and at once comes under condemnation, and is filled with discouragement; then it is easy for it to be led on into actual sin. One of the most fatal things in the life of faith is discouragement. One of the most helpful is cheerfulness. A very wise man once said that in overcoming temptations, cheerfulness was the first thing, cheerfulness the second, and cheerfulness the third. We must expect to conquer. That is why the Lord said so often to Joshua, "Be strong and of a good courage"; "Be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed"; "Only be thou strong and very courageous." And it is also the reason He says to us, "Let not your heart he troubled neither let it be afraid." The power of temptation is in the fainting of our own hearts. The enemy knows this well, and always begins his assaults by discouraging us, if it can in any way be accomplished.
Sometimes this discouragement arises from what we think is a righteous grief and disgust at ourselves that such things could be any temptation to us; but which is really a mortification arising from the fact that we have been indulging in a secret self-congratulation that our tastes were too pure, or our separation from the world was too complete for such things to tempt us. We have expected something from ourselves, and have been sorely disappointed not to find that something there, and are discouraged in consequence. This mortification and discouragement are really a far worse condition than the temptation itself, though they present an appearance of true humility, for they are nothing but the results of wounded self-love. True humility can bear to see its own utter weakness and foolishness revealed, because it never expected anything from itself, and knows that its only hope and expectation must be in God. Therefore, instead of discouraging the soul from trusting, it drives it to a deeper and more utter trust. But the counterfeit humility which springs from self, plunges the soul into the depths of a faithless discouragement, and drives it into the very sin at which it is so distressed.

Temptation, therefore, cannot be sin; and the truth is, it is no more a sin to hear these whispers and suggestions of evil in our souls, than it is for us to hear the swearing or wicked talk of bad men as we pass along the street. The sin only comes in either case by our stopping and joining in with them. If, when the wicked suggestions come, we turn from them at once, as we would from wicked talk, and pay no more attention to them, we do not sin. But if we carry them on in our minds, and roll them under our tongues, and dwell on them with a half-consent of our will to them as true, then we sin. We may be enticed by evil a thousand times a day without sin, and we cannot help these enticings. But if the enemy can succeed in making us think that his enticings are our sin, he has accomplished half the battle, and can hardly fail to gain a complete victory.

Temptations in Narnia: Dawn Treader

Edmund and Lucy, and their insufferable cousin, Eustace Scrubb, are called to Narnia, where they join King Caspian on a voyage (in progress) to the East, to try to find seven Narnian lords who had been loyal to him.

Eustace is tempted to be a general nuisance, proud of his own attitude. He succumbs, in the first part of the book.

Governor Gumpas has yielded to the temptation to be a petty tyrant, and to doubt that there is such a person as the real King of Narnia.

Eustace is tempted, and succumbs, to think of himself as special. One symptom is that he attempts to get water above the amount of his ration.

The rest of the crew are tempted to think "That's what he deserved," when Eustace becomes a dragon.

Eustace eventually, after being a dragon for several days, repents, and Aslan changes him back to human form. Edmund speaks comfortingly to him:

"That's all right," said Edmund. "Between ourselves, you haven't been as bad as I was on my first trip to Narnia. You were only an ass, but I was a traitor." C. S. Lewis, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, New York: Collier Books, 1980. p. 91.

Coriakin, the magician who had been a star, did something that he shouldn't have, or failed to do something that he should have. He was punished by being put in charge of the Dufflepuds. He was tempted to impatience with them, and to not trying to educate them to maturity.

Lucy was tempted to say a spell that would have made her unnaturally beautiful. This may have been Envy. Lucy was also tempted, a short time later, to say a spell that would let her hear what others were saying about her. She yielded to this temptation, then wished that she hadn't:

"I will say the spell," said Lucy. "I don't care. I will." She said I don't care because she had a strong feeling that she mustn't.

But when she looked back at the opening words of the spell, there in the middle of the writing, where she felt quite sure there had been no picture before, she found the great face of a lion, of the Lion, Aslan himself, staring into hers. It was painted such a bright gold that it seemed to be coming towards her out of the page; and indeed she never was sure quite afterwards that it hadn't really moved a little. At any rate she knew the expression on his face quite well. He was growling and you could see most of his teeth. She became horribly afraid and turned over the page at once.

A little later she came to a spell which would let you know what your friends thought about you. Now Lucy had wanted very badly to try the other spell, the one that made you beautiful beyond the lot of mortals. So she felt that to make up for not having said it, she really would say this one. And all in a hurry, for fear her mind would change, she said the words (nothing will induce me to tell you what they were.) C. S. Lewis, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, New York: Collier Books, 1980. pp. 130-131.

Three of the Narnian Lords were tempted to quarrel, and do so, on Ramandu's Island.

Caspian is tempted to leave the Dawn Treader, breaking his word, and neglecting his duty, in order to go on a quest that he knows is not for him. He takes steps to carry out this plan, but is dissuaded by the others, and, finally, by Aslan. He seems to be showing Pride.

You may be interested in the web site of the forthcoming Narnia movie. It has cover art for all seven Narnia books, by four different artists, the first chapter of each of the books, and a timeline of the books (which is partly speculation, of course, as Lewis didn't explicitly indicate dates).

This post is out of sequence. I thought I had posted it earlier, but obviously hadn't. Thank God for backed up files! Here is the first post in the series.

Temptations in Narnia: The Last Battle

This ends my series on temptations, or moral choices, in the Narnia books, which began with this post. I believe my desire is to go "further up and further in," or "Further in and higher up!" (Both expressions are used in the book.) I am so glad to have had an excuse to read these books yet again.

Peter Chattaway has written that the Narnia books are, in some senses, not only Christian, but Pagan. He is correct in this--Bacchus, fauns, tree spirits and other such beings appear--and quotes C. S. Lewis, himself, to the effect that paganism was pre-Christian--pagans could be converted. Now to some temptations:

Puzzle the Donkey is tempted to not question what he is doing, on the grounds that he isn't very smart. Therefore, he is marginally complicit in putting forth a false Aslan. Shift the Ape is mainly responsible, and yields to the temptation to disguise Puzzle as Aslan, probably because of greed, one of the seven deadly sins. (He wants more nuts, oranges, and bananas, and a more luxurious life.) Later, Puzzle comes to see that he, too is partly responsible: "I see now," said Puzzle, "that I really have been a very bad donkey. I ought never to have listened to Shift. I never thought things like this would begin to happen. - C. S. Lewis, The Last Battle, New York: Macmillan, 1956, p. 79.

G. K. Chesterton wrote a poem, "The Donkey," which I mention because of Puzzle, and which is related to Holy Week. Here's a much more recent posting on a King and a Donkey, by Ish.

When the Ape sets up a false Aslan, the animals are confused. One of the confusions is that the Ape, and the Calormenes that are complicit with him, claim that the awful Calormene deity, Tash, and Aslan, the good Lion, are the same. The animals are tempted to believe this. Ginger, the Cat, yields to the temptation to disbelieve in either deity, and at least some of the Calormenes also do not believe in their own god.

The dwarfs are tempted, like Ginger, to believe that there is no god, nor any Aslan. They succumb to this temptation, and, like Uncle Andrew, in The Magician's Nephew, succeed in making themselves stupider.

Jill, like many of us, and, I think, Lewis himself, is tempted to wish that things would just go on as they were. The Unicorn, Jewel, replies: "Nay, sister," answered Jewel, "all worlds draw to an end; except Aslan's own country." (p. 84)

Susan Pevensie has yielded to temptation, and is "no longer a friend of Narnia." (p. 126)

All the inhabitants of Narnia had to come up to a great door into Aslan's country, and look into his face. Some of them went on into Aslan's country. Some of them disappeared into his great shadow, did not go through the door, and were never seen again. This wasn't exactly a moral choice, but, it seems, the result of the moral choices made before this time.

Emeth, the Calormene, finds out that his choice to serve the god Tash with honor and fairness was actually a moral choice to serve Aslan. He tells his story:
". . . But the Glorious One bent down his golden head and touched my forehead with his tongue and said, Son, thou art welcome. But I said, Alas, Lord, I am no son of Thine but the servant of Tash. He answered, Child, all the service thou has done to Tash, I account as service done to me. Then . . . I overcame my fear and questioned the Glorious One and said, Lord, is it then true, as the Ape said, that thou and Tash are one? The Lion growled so that the earth shook . . . and said, it is false. Not because he and I are one, but because we are opposites, I take to me the services which thou hast done for him, for he and I are of such different kinds that no service which is vile can be done to me, and none which is not vile can be done to him. . . . But I said also . . ., [yet] I have been seeking Tash all my days. Beloved, said the Glorious One, unless thy desire had been for me wouldst not have sought so long and so truly. For all find what they truly seek." - C. S. Lewis, The Last Battle, New York: Macmillan, 1956, p.156-157.

Finally, to those who have chosen to follow Aslan, there is great reward. They begin to spend eternity in Aslan's country:

. . . but the things that began to happen after that were so great and beautiful that I cannot write them. And for us this is the end of all stories, and we can most truly say that they all lived happily ever after. But for them it was only the beginning of the real story. All their life in this world and all their adventures in Narnia had only been the cover and the title page: now at last they were beginning Chapter One of the Great Story, which no one on earth has read: which goes on for ever: in which every chapter is better than the one before. pp. 173-4.

Temptations in Narnia: The Magician's Nephew

This book is about a time before the Pevensie children were born. Digory Kirke, who grows up to become the professor, in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, has an Uncle who is a bad magician, a mother who is dying, and a new friend, Polly. Uncle Andrew has been dabbling at magic to transport people between worlds. He is too cowardly to test it himself, and tricks Digory and Polly into testing it for him.

Polly is tempted when Uncle Andrew calls her "a very attractive young lady." She is probably from 10 to 14 years old. This appeals to her pride, one of the seven deadly sins, or her vanity.

Uncle Andrew is tempted to use the children for his own purposes, regardless of any consequences to them. Is he really tempted, in that he has a choice in the matter? I'm not sure. He may be so far gone that he automatically makes bad choices.

Uncle Andrew is tempted by pride, one of the seven deadly sins, to consider himself above all rules:

"Oh, I see. You mean that little boys ought to keep their promises. Very true: most right and proper, I'm sure, and I'm very glad you have been taught to do it. But of course you must understand that rules of that sort, however excellent they may be for little boys--and servants--and women--and even people in general, can't possibly be expected to apply to profound students and great thinkers and sages. . . ."

"All it means," [Digory] said to himself, "is that he thinks he can do anything he likes to get anything he wants." - C. S. Lewis, The Magician's Nephew, New York: Macmillan, 1955, p. 16-17.

He is also tempted, by pride, to sacrifice guinea pigs, Digory, Polly, or anything else, to achieve his goals. When Digory and Polly meet the witch, she has the same kinds of thoughts.

Digory and Polly, in the Wood Between the Worlds, are tempted to explore a world other than their own, just because they can. They do so. They almost forgot to mark their way back. They are tempted to quarrel over almost forgetting this, and do so.

Digory is tempted, apparently out of an insatiable curiosity, to strike the bell in Charn that releases the spell that has kept the witch-queen, Jadis, in a state of suspended animation for a long time, perhaps millenia. This results, eventually, in Jadis coming to our world, London in the early part of the 20th century. It also results in Digory and Polly sending the witch to another world, Narnia, to get her out of London. This is good for our world, but a terrible evil for Narnia. Uncle Andrew, a cab-driver and his horse are inadvertently brought to this world, too.

The witch had been tempted to destroy every living thing on her planet, so that she could survive. She yielded to this temptation:

". . . Then I spoke the Deplorable Word. A moment later I was the only living thing beneath the sun."

"But the people?" gasped Digory.

"What people, boy?" asked the Queen.

"All the ordinary people," said Polly, "who'd never done you any harm. And the women, and the children, and the animals."

"Don't you understand?" said the Queen . . . "I was the Queen. They were all my people. What else were they there for but to do my will."

"It was rather hard luck on them, all the same," said he.

"I had forgotten that you are only a common boy. How should you know about reasons of State? You must learn, child, that what would be wrong for you or for any of the common people is not wrong in a great Queen such as I. . . ." - C. S. Lewis, The Magician's Nephew, New York: Macmillan, 1955, pp. 54-55.

Uncle Andrew is tempted not to believe that Aslan is a rational, moral being, able to speak. He yields to this temptation:

Now the trouble about trying to make yourself stupider than you really are is that you very often succeed. Uncle Andrew did. He soon did hear nothing but roaring in Aslan's song. Soon he couldn't have heard anything else even if he had wanted to. And when at last the Lion spoke and said, "Narnia awake," he didn't hear any words: he heard only a snarl. - C. S. Lewis, The Magician's Nephew, New York: Macmillan, 1955, pp. 112-113.

Digory is tempted to get an apple from the garden of the phoenix in a way that he shouldn't. He is also tempted by the promise of immortality which might come from eating such an apple. The witch does yield to this temptation. Digory doesn't. Because he doesn't, Narnia is protected from the witch for many years, his mother is healed of a fatal illness, and the Wardrobe, which is one of the gateways that connects the two worlds, is eventually built from a tree which grew from the core of the apple that cured Digory's mother.

Temptations in Narnia: Horse & His Boy

Shasta, Aravis, Bree and Whin all want to leave Calormene and escape to Narnia. (Bree and Whin are talking Narnian horses who have been captured and have worked in Calormene, without revealing their abilities.) Shasta was found in a boat by a fisherman, who has been hard on him. Aravis is escaping an arranged marriage with an old, ugly man. (Shasta and Aravis are perhaps 15 or so. Both are human.) The four set out for Narnia. They are separated, but eventually get back together, and finally make it to Narnia.

Aravis, Shasta and Bree (who has been a warhorse of a Calormene nobleman) are tempted to pride, and succumb to it. Each of them wants to look good. Bree is afraid that he will look bad in comparison to free Narnian horses. Shasta tries to strike up grand airs. Aravis looks down on Shasta.

Aravis and Shasta quarrel frequently.

Aravis has no concern for a slave girl, whom she drugs, so that she can escape. Aslan punishes her by scratching her in an amount equal to the suffering caused by a lashing of the slave girl.

Shasta steals some supplies, so that the four of them can travel through Tashbaan

Susan, Edmund and Tumnus plan to deceive the Calormenes, in order to escape Tashbaan.

Over and over, Bree is tempted to pride, one of the seven deadly sins.

Rabadash, the Calormene prince, may have lusted (one of the seven deadly sins) after Queen Susan of Narnia. He set out to war on Archenland, without a provocation, and planned to do the same to Narnia, itself. This was probably avarice, one of the seven deadly sins. He was also wrathful, another deadly sin, when he was defeated by the troops of Archenland and Narnia. Aslan struck at his pride, by turning him into a donkey. He was never tempted to leave Tashbaan again, after he was miraculously restored to his human form in front of a large crowd of people, believing Aslan, who told him that he would become a donkey permanently if he left it. Aslan warns him:

"Rabadash," said Aslan. "Take heed. Your doom is very near, but you may still avoid it. Forget your pride (what have you to be proud of?) and your anger (who has done you wrong?) and accept the mercy of these good kings." C. S. Lewis, The Horse and His Boy, New York: Collier, 1954. p. 208.

Temptations in Narnia: The Silver Chair

It had been a few years since I read the Narnia series, but, if I had had to pick a favorite, without re-reading, I would have named The Silver Chair. I had forgotten some of the reasons. Most of them are set out below. They involve a really great character, Puddleglum, the quintessential pessimist, and many moral choices/temptations.

In The Silver Chair, the Pevensie children do not appear. Eustace, their cousin, from The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, who was a "record stinker," and also became a dragon, but was cured of both of these, is involved. He involves Jill Pole, a schoolmate. The two of them are drawn into Narnia, as they are trying to get there to escape hazing from schoolmates. Aslan has called them to Narnia to find the lost prince, Rilian, King Caspian's son. (This is the same Caspian as in the previous two books, Prince Caspian: The Return to Narnia, and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. He is much older in Silver Chair. Eustace is a little older than he was on his first trip to Narnia.) They come into the same planet (?) as Narnia, but enter it on a high mountain, overlooking Narnia proper, a long way from it. This appears to be one part of Aslan's country.

Jill is tempted to show off in front of Eustace, at a steep cliff, and does. As a result, Eustace falls down. Aslan saves him by blowing him to Narnia. This is an example of pride.

Jill is tempted to not drink, and not to trust the Lion, but does trust him.

Jill and Eustace are tempted to squabble over Jill's actions on the mountain, and do.

Caspian is tempted to kill Drinian, who did not stop Rilian from seeking the green lady. This would have been an example of wrath, one of the seven deadly sins. He does not do so, and forgives Drinian.

Rilian was ensnared by the green witch. Was this a temptation? If so, it was probably partly lust, one of the seven deadly sins.

Jill is tempted not to repeat the signs Aslan has told her to remember and repeat to herself. She succumbs:

. . . whatever the Lady had intended by telling them about Harfang, the actual effect on the children was a bad one. They could think about nothing but beds and baths and hot meals and how lovely it would be to get indoors. They never talked about Aslan, or even about the lost prince, now. And Jill gave up her habit of repeating the signs over to herself every night and morning. She said to herself, at first, that she was too tired, but she soon forgot all about it. And though you might have expected that the idea of having a good time at Harfang would have made them more cheerful, it really made them more sorry for themselves and more grumpy and snappy with each other and with Puddleglum. C. S. Lewis, The Silver Chair, New York: Macmillan, 1953, p. 77-78.

This isn't any of the deadly sins, unless it's sloth. My take on this is that apathy and neglect are as bad or worse than any of the deadly sins.

Jill and Eustace are tempted to pay attention to the charm and beauty of the green witch, and do so.

After missing two of the signs, and also beginning to eat talking stag without realizing it, Eustace, Jill and Puddleglum escape the giants of Harfang house, and get into a vast system of caves. They are tempted to doubt the authenticity of the sign that they followed in getting into the subterranean realm.

They saw the ruined city of giants out of a window in Harfang, and saw that UNDER ME was carved into the pavement. Jill had been told to look for a writing on the stones in the ruined city. They are captured, and, finally, brought to Prince Rilian. (He is enchanted, and doesn't realize who he is, except for an hour every night.) He mocks their interpretation of the meaning of this writing. Puddleglum responds:
"Don't you mind him," said Puddleglum. "There are no accidents. Our guide is Aslan; and he was there when the giant king caused the letters to be cut, and he knew already all things that would come of them; including this." C. S. Lewis, The Silver Chair, New York: Macmillan, 1953, p. 131.

They are tempted not to follow the fourth (and last) sign, when Rilian, sane, but tied in the silver chair that renews his enchantment every night, asks them, "by Aslan himself" (p. 141) to cut him loose. They decide to cut him loose.

They are tempted to believe the witch, who tries to persuade them that there is no world aboveground, no Aslan, and enchant them all, as well as enchanting Rilian again. All try to resist, but are almost ensnared. Finally, Puddleglum extinguishes the witch's fire, which was producing enchanting smoke, by stamping on it with his bare webbed foot, and frees them from the spell. This illustrates I Corinthians 10:13, where God promises a way of escape, if we want one.

Aslan forgives them for the temptations succumbed to:

They turned and saw the Lion himself, so bright and real and strong that everything else began to look pale and shadowy compared with him. And in less time than it takes to breathe Jill forgot about the dead King of Narnia and remembered only how she had made Eustace fall over the cliff, and how she had helped to muff nearly all the signs, and about all the snappings and quarrellings. And she wanted to say "I'm sorry" but she could not speak. Then the Lion drew them towards him with his eyes, and bent down and touched their pale faces with his tongue, and said:
"Think of that no more. I will not always be scolding. You have done the work for which I sent you into Narnia." C. S. Lewis, The Silver Chair, New York: Macmillan, 1953, p. 202.

And there will be an end to temptations:

"Sir," said Caspian. "I've always wanted to have just one glimpse of their world. Is that wrong?"
"You cannot want wrong things any more now, that you have died, my son," said Aslan. C. S. Lewis, The Silver Chair, New York: Macmillan, 1953, p. 205.

I have included another quote from this book in a post on a different subject.

This is the fourth in a series, which began with this post.

Temptations in Narnia: Prince Caspian

Prince Caspian: The Return to Narnia is the second book (in the order that C. S. Lewis wrote them) in the Narnia series. The four Pevensie children are called back to Narnia, centuries after the events in the first book (time in England and Narnia isn't synchronous) to rescue Prince Caspian, the true king, who is being attacked by his uncle, the usurper, Miraz. Here are some of the main instances of moral choice/temptation in this book:

Trumpkin, the dwarf, doubts the authenticity of the Pevensie children, who are the Kings and Queens of Narnia returned. He finally accepts them for real, but it takes a while. Here, then, is a temptation that isn't on the list of seven: doubt. Lewis believed that doubt was important. He wrestled with doubts when his wife died. John 3:16 emphasizes doubt's opposite, belief. The Old Testament emphasizes that the Israelites sinned because they doubted what God had done for them.

Aslan tells Lucy that the children, and Trumpkin, are to go a certain way. The others don't believe that she has heard directions from Aslan. Later, Aslan tells Lucy that it would have been better if she, by herself, had followed his directions.

Nikabrik, the dwarf, is tempted, and succumbs to it, to ally himself with a hag and a werewolf, and even to have these bring back the White Witch (which doesn't happen).

Reepicheep, the mouse, is tempted to put honour too high in his scale of values. Aslan chides him for this, but seems to decide to overlook it.

Glozelle and Sopespian are tempted to assassinate Miraz, and do so.

Aslan, Bacchus, Susan and Lucy travel through some towns. The inhabitants are asked to join them. Most are tempted not to, and don't.

Temptations in Narnia: Lion, Witch, & Wardrobe

It's been a while since I posted any "Musings on . . . fantastic literature." (Cybernarcissism-I'm quoting the About section of my blog page.)

My intention, God helping me, is to begin a series on temptations in the Narnia books, by C. S. Lewis. This is the first of that series. I expect to deal with Tolkien, and probably also with Patricia A. McKillip.

Here's an article on temptation from the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia.

A temptation, let us say, is an enticement to do wrong. However, let us say further that you aren't doing wrong if you have no choice in the matter. Temptation, nearly always, means that you are making a moral choice.

I am not attempting to summarize the seven books, at least not directly. They still appear on lists (here's one, and here's a page for teachers about Lewis' books) of good fiction for children, not specifically because of their moral lessons, but because of their stories. Moral choices are part of most good stories. Also, because of their characters. The children are appealing characters. Reepicheep, Puddleglum, and even Uncle Andrew are marvelous creations. A movie, or movies, is in production, based on one or more of the books. (Here's the movie site on the books, which is a good introduction to them.)

I think I know that the characters aren't real people, and that speculating on their moral lives is fantasizing about fantasy, but never mind.

The historic church used to emphasize seven deadly sins. According to the Wikipedia, they are as follows:
Pride
Envy
Wrath
Sloth
Avarice (covetousness, greed)
Gluttony
Lust

I shall attempt to associate some of the temptations with these sins. I don't think that all of the temptations in the Narnia books fit into any of these seven categories.

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The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

Edmund is tempted to betray Aslan and his siblings. He yields, for a time, falling into the service of the White Witch. He is also tempted to pretend that Lucy has imagined their visit to Narnia, and yields to that, too, betraying her. Part of his temptation is to pride. Some of it is envy of Lucy.

After Edmund has repented of his (may I say it?) sin, Lucy is tempted to spend too much time with Edmund when he is wounded, when she should have been attending to the healing of others. Aslan rebukes her.

I'm not sure that the White Witch, her dwarf, or the wolf, Fenris Ulf, are really tempted. They seem to just do evil when the opportunity presents itself. One of the features of the Narnia books is that some species of sentient, rational beings seem to never do wrong (like the beavers) and some of them seem to never do right (like the wolves or the hags). I'm not sure that these are really tempted, or can be.

There are people out there who know these books (and/or temptation!) well. Please feel free to comment.